NOTES ON A GLASS BEAKER WITH APPLIED DECORATION FROM THE SARMATIAN CEMETERY OF TIMIȘOARA – HLADIK 1 (TIMIȘ COUNTY)

Abstract

The rescue archaeological excavations conducted during 2019-2020 within the range of Timișoara city – point Hladik 1 led to the discovery of a Sarmatian cemetery, where 139 inhumations and sixteen flat circular ditched burial enclosures were investigated. These are only a part of the cemetery, as it extends outside the limits of the excavated area. Grave furnishings, rather varied and rich, are represented by handmade and wheel-thrown pots, domestic and household objects, toiletries, silver coins, adornment and dress items and weaponry. To these adds a glass beaker with applied decoration, discovered among the items identified in grave 6, which is object of the article here.

Beakers decorated with glass trail applied hot on the Isings 33 type beaker body emerge as early as the second half of the 1st century AD, being diffused particularly in the north-Italian area and on the Dalmatian coast, where their manufacturing centres were in fact located. Made of colourless or green good quality glass, these beakers remain fashionable until the 3rd century AD. Produced in the same decorative manner, the exemplar here may be considered a local, later version of said type, most likely manufactured in the officinae of Pannonia, as suggested by parallels with similar specimens discovered at Savaria or Makò. It was made sometime during the last phase C1b – early phase C2 in the central-European chronology.

Given all analysis aspects of the glass beaker and other artefacts, the authors conclude that Gr. 6 at Timișoara – Hladik 1 dates sometime to the second half of the 3rd century, most likely to its third quarter.

The recent preliminary analysis of the grave goods has evidenced that the dating of this group of 139 graves at Hladik 1 pertains grosso modo to the chronological frame comprised between late 2nd century and last decades/late 3rd century AD.