Tackling erosion-accumulation events in a moat sequence from a unique Ottoman memorial place (Szigetvár, SW Hungary) using 14C and geoarcheological data

Bibliographic Data

ID5412445
AuthorsSándor Gulyá (0000-0002-3384-2381, University of Szeged, corresponding author), Andrea Torma (0000-0001-7364-2600, University of Szeged), Norbert Pap (0000-0001-8243-4213, University of Pecs), Pál Fodor (0000-0002-2097-2988, ELTE Research Centre for the Humanities), Máté Kitanics (0000-0003-0073-7451, University of Pecs), Péter Gyenizse (0000-0002-8175-9734, University of Pecs), Miklós Molnár (0000-0003-4382-9508, Hungarian Research Network), Mihály Molnár, Pál Sümegi (0000-0003-1755-4440, University of Szeged)
Year2022
Volume14
Issue1
Publication date2022-01-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueArchaeological and Anthropological Sciences (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1866-9557 • E-ISSN: 1866-9565
PublisherSpringer Science and Business Media LLC (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1007/s12520-021-01479-x
OpenAlexW4205734449
LanguageIT
Citations received1
References cited23

One of the most influential rulers of the sixteenth century, Sultan Suleyman I, passed away and was buried temporarily near the fortress of Szigetvár in SW Hungary in 1566. Later, a memorial place was erected on the site in the second half of the sixteenth century. The complex was surrounded by a palisade system and a moat on its northern side. The site was fully destroyed in 1692, and the exact location vanished with time. Recent investigations of historical sources complemented by geophysical, archeological, and geoarcheological investigations managed to identify the location of the site, and probe corings revealed the moat system. This study presents the results of complex chronological, sedimentological, and geochemical investigations done on the sediments accumulated in the moat. Based on geoarcheological data, two major changes could have been noted in the nature of the deposit marking erosion and transportation of soil from the banks of the moat. Elevated concentrations of Fe and K, and high MS values mark the effects of fire on the deposit and accumulation of flue ash. A rise in heavy metals in these horizons is attributable to anthropogenic sources related to the destruction of the site. Chronological data comes from dateable artifacts reposited and 14C dates of charred cereal seeds. A Bayesian age model built using 14C ages constrained by written historical data on site use helped us to determine the age of moat construction and the referred erosion-accumulation events. The older event was dated around 1670, which is in line with historical records of the first siege of Szigetvár. The second event postdates 1684 and thus must correspond to the time of the site's final siege and later destruction

Ancient history · Archaeology · Chronology · Erosion · Fortress (chess · Geography · Period (music · Sequence (biology · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies · Geology and Paleoclimatology Research · History · Marine and environmental studies · Geology · Paleontology