The exposed object, an "askos" type ceramic vessel, comes from the tumulus necropolis near the village of Ciumai, Taraclia district. The vessel was discovered in 2015 in a cenotaph tomb attributed to the Jamnaja culture, dated to the early Bronze Age (ca. 3300-2600 BC).
The vessel, with an obviously asymmetrical configuration, is hand-moulded from quality clay paste, having a smooth brown surface with gray spots. The body of the vessel is provided with a pronounced protrusion and a truncated neck with a wider opening towards the mouth. The vessel has a stem and is ornamented with three pairs of symmetrically placed relief appliqués. The height of the bowl is 15.5 cm, the diameter of the mouth is 11.4 cm, the diameter of the body is 15 cm and the diameter of the base is 7.5 cm. Such vessels in the archaeological literature are known as "askos" vessels, the respective term being of ancient Greek origin, denoting one of the primitive containers of the period - the bellows made of animal skin.
In prehistoric times, among some peoples, the bellows was transposed into ceramics, in these cases the basic features of the archaic leather vessel were preserved, acquiring a prominent convex shape with a stem and a flat bottom. From the original appearance of the bellows, the asymmetric mouth corresponding to the animal's neck has been preserved, and sometimes three or four legs, corresponding to the appendages of the flayed skin from the animal's legs. These vessels have lost their original zoomorphic character, entering as a new form in the inventory of Neo-Eneolithic ceramics. The first vessels of this type are attested in Greece, in the early Neolithic (ca. 5000-4500 BC) having the shape of cups or cups. In the Neo-Eneolithic Carpatho-Balkan cultures, the type of Aegean askos of short or tall form, with or without legs and with a handle, is found. Less often, they are provided with two mouths (one for filling and one for emptying) or they are off-center and provided with strangely shaped mouths. In the space between the Carpathians and the Dnieper, only tall forms of simple askos, without zoomorphic elements, are known. Askos-type vessels are present in various prehistoric cultures, especially in Southeast Europe and Anatolia.
Being often discovered in association with cult inventory, askos vessels could be an important indicator of use in religious ritual practices. Along with the zoomorphic, anthropomorphic and rhyton-type vessels (roughly conical container from which, in some ceremonies, liquids were drunk or poured), the askos were included in the category of vessels intended for worship, being related to libations (ritual act that consisted of tasting and then pouring a cup of wine, milk, etc. as homage to the deity).
The stone industry particularities of the 3a layer from Trinca 1 grotto
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. III [XVIII], nr. 1, Arheologie. Istorie Antică
The stone industry of the 3a layer from Trinca 1 grotto holds a special place among the Paleolithic monuments from Moldova and is characterized by an unusually big number of blades and a small number of tools from blades combining elements of the Late and Middle Paleolithic. The point on a Levalois blade has a special place among the tools, being completely analogous to the forms of the Jerzmanowice culture which existed in Europe more than 30 thousand years ago. The stratigraphy of this layer, the particularities of its lithography and fauna indicated to its quite early stage within the Upper Paleolithic.
Considering the above, the article approaches the connection possibility between the stone inventories from 3a layer of the Trinca 1 grotto with the findings of the Jerzmanowice culture.
We show in the article data on microstratigraphy and layer fauna, based on the field documentation held by the author which conducted the excavations at the grottos during a few field seasons.
Михаил Аникович, Николай К. Анисюткин
Н.А. Кетрару, Г.В. Григорьева, С.И. Коваленко, Верхнепалеолитическая стоянка Рашков VII. Кишинев, 2007, 185 с.
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IV [XIX], nr. 1, Arheologie. Istorie Antică
Николай К. Анисюткин, Сергей Коваленко, Алиса Ларионова, Александр Очередной, Ксения Степанова, Андрей Чепалыга
Preliminary results of interdisciplinary research of the Early Paleolithic multilayered site of Bairaki in Transnistria in 2011- 2012
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VII [XXII], nr. 1, Arheologie. Istorie Antică
The exposed object, an "askos" type ceramic vessel, comes from the tumulus necropolis near the village of Ciumai, Taraclia district. The vessel was discovered in 2015 in a cenotaph tomb attributed to the Jamnaja culture, dated to the early Bronze Age (ca. 3300-2600 BC)...
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.