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The Archaeology of RomanSouthern Pannonia

The state of research and selected problems in theCroatian part of the Roman province of Pannonia

Edited by

Branka Migotti

BAR International Series 23932012


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Published by

ArchaeopressPublishers of Bri sh Archaeological ReportsGordon House276 Banbury RoadOxford OX2 [email protected]

BAR S2393

The Archaeology of Roman Southern Pannonia: The state of research and selected problems in the Croa an part of the Roman province of Pannonia

Archaeopress and the individual authors 2012

ISBN 978 1 4073 0985 9

Translated by Valr Bed, Tomislav Bili, Danijel Dzino, Branka Migo , Sanjin Mihali , Miroslav Na, Mirko Sardeliand Vlasta Vyroubal

Proofread by Mirta Jambrovi and Branka Migo

Printed in England by 4edge, Hockley

All BAR tles are available from:

Hadrian Books Ltd122 Banbury RoadOxfordOX2 7BPEnglandwww.hadrianbooks.co.uk

The current BAR catalogue with details of all tles in print, prices and means of payment is available freefrom Hadrian Books or may be downloaded from www.archaeopress.com


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C EMETERIES

Tino Lelekovi

1. Introduction

A comparison in the state of research of the Romancemeteries in Pannonia as a whole reveals an obviousadvantage of the northern (Hungarian) portion of the province. As far as the southern (Croatian) part isconcerned, cremations of the 1st and 2 nd centuries prevailin its western areas,1 while 3rd - to 5 th-century inhumation

cemeteries are more typical of the eastern part.2

Overall,although rural cemeteries are more numerous than urban,the cemeteries of the three colonies (Siscia, Mursaand Cibalae) have produced the majority of the so-farresearched graves ( g. 1). Due to such imbalance in thestate of research, it was not possible to apply here JohnPearces context-based classi cation of the cemeteriesof Roman Britain, which comprises the following types:urban, of small towns, military, of villas, and rural. Theevidence from northern Croatia so far allows only two basiccategories of cemeteries to be identi ed: urban and rural.On the other hand, it was possible to apply the Britishscheme in terms of chronology and funerary ritual: early(from the later 1st century BC to the mid 2nd century AD,featuring almost exclusively cremations), transitional (fromthe mid 2nd century to the end of the 3rd century, with mixedcremations and inhumations) and late (4th and 5 th centuries,with inhumations absolutely prevailing) cemeteries.3

2. Early cemeteries

The earliest evidenced cemeteries date from the beginningof the conquest of Pannonia and its subsequent integration,lasting to the mid 2nd century, when inhumations started toappear with greater frequencies. As this was also the period

of intense Romanisation and urbanisation of the area understudy, it should be pointed out that early cemeteries are aninvaluable source for the study of these processes, the moreso as early graves are often the only nds from the initial phase of Romanisation.

2.1. Funerary ritual

Funerary remains from the 1st half of the 1st century AD being exceptional, nearly all early cemeteries date fromthe later 1st and the 1st half of the 2nd centuries. Out of a

1 Gregl 1989; Knez 1992; Gregl 1997; Isteni 1999; Wiewegh 2003;Gregl 2007; Boi 2008.2 Miloevi 2001,159-188.3 Pearce 2008, 34; see also Philpott 1980, 58-59.

total of 534 graves, around 200 stem from Siscia,4 around140 from Mursa,5 and 129 from the rural cemetery atStenjevec,6 which means that these three cemeterieshave yielded the majority of the nds (table 1). Recently, parts of the cemeteries of Mursa and Siscia have beeninvestigated, with clear stratigraphies established, whichhas much improved our knowledge and understandingof the funerary archaeology not only of those two towns,

but of the wider area. Two types of cremation ritual have been identi ed in the studied territory. One of them wascremation at theustrinum , which implies washing the bonesand isolating them from the pyre debris after the cremation,and nally depositing them in the grave calledustrinatum .The other ritual comprised pyre sitesin situ, producing thebustum type of grave. In view of this, the rst subject to be addressed is these two types of cremation rituals andthe forms of graves resulting from them. Given that gravearchitecture and tumuli can house both busta and ustrinata ,they will be tackled in separate sections.

2.1.1. Ustrinata

Such graves result from cremations in a speci c placewithin the cemetery(ustrinum), with the ashes isolatedand put into an urn or wrapped in cloth, and depositedinto the grave together with the grave goods.7 Ustrinataare characterised by a variety of forms, due to the fact thatthe cremation ritual comprised of various components thatchanged over time, or could have been used only in certain phases of the funerary procedure.8 Given that remains ofonly two pre-Flavian cemeteries have been identi ed sofar, the funerary ritual and grave shapes of this period aredif cult to assess in all their detail ( g. 2.1). Only ve

such graves dating from the 1st third of the 1st century have been preserved, stemming from Ilok (Cuccium), a site onthe right bank of the Danube ( g. 6). The grave pits wererectangular, quite large (2 x 2 m) and regularly shaped,yielding an abundance of ceramic and glass vessels, clay-lamps and weaponry. Two of the graves feature prominentlyfor yielding swords (gladii ), which led the researchers to presume that the cemetery belonged to native soldiersserving in the Roman army as auxiliaries.9 This hypothesis,however, remains inconclusive, as the poor knowledge offunerary rites of the autochthonous population in southern

4 Wiewegh 2003; Lelekovi 2009b, 294-295.5 Lelekovi 2009a, 46; Gricke-Luki 2011,178.6 Gregl 1989, 33.7 Bechert 1980, 255-256; Jilek 1999, 27.8 Abegg-Wigg 2008, 251.9 Tomii and Dizdar 2007, 40; Dizdar 2010.


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The Archaeology of Roman Southern Pannonia

314

F i g . 1 . D i s t r i b u t i o n o f R o m a n c e m e t e r i e s ( a f t e r G o o g l e

M a p s , m o d i e d b y T . L e l e k o v i ) .


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Tino Lelekovi: Cemeteries

315

Table 1. Numbers of burials by sites.

B u r i a l m o u n d s

( t u m u l

i )

C r e m a t

i o n s

I n h u m a t

i o n s

T o t a l

C r e m a t

i o n s o f

u n k n o w n

d a t e

I n h u m a t

i o n s o f

u n k n o w n

d a t e

E a r l y c e m e t e r

i e s

T r a n s i

t i o n

c e m e t e r

i e s

L a t e R o m a n

c e m e t e r

i e s

T o t a l

MURSA

Finds from unknown context 43 312 355 43 312 355

Bana Jelaia Square 98 308 406 92 314 406

120 Divaltova Street 12 70 82 79 3 82

18 Bana Jelaia Square 0 0

5 Huttlerova Street 20 20 20 20

Faculty of Medicine 6 6 6 6

19 Bana Jelaia Square 6 6 6 6

Cvjetkova Street 24 24 24 24Hadrijanova Street / Obrtnika kola(Trade School) 4 4 4 4

18 Krstova Street 2 2 2 2Vojarna (Barracks) / Universitycampus 5 5 5 5

Total 0 153 757 910 43 379 92 393 3 910SISAK Finds from unknown context,mostly stone chests 0 0

Sportski park (Sports Park) 166 2 168 166 2 168

Zeleni brijeg (Green Hill) 19 19 19 19

Kralja Tomislava Street 47 47 47 47

28 Gundulieva Street (2007) 4 2 6 4 2 6

28 Gundulieva Street (2008) 25 3 28 25 3 28

Zagrebaka Street bb (2003) 0 0

Zagrebaka Street bb (2009) 5 5 5 5

TOTAL 0 200 73 273 0 19 200 7 47 273

VINKOVCI

Anina Street 12 12 12 12

Jurja Dalmatinca Street 20 20 20 20Vladamira Nazora Street 27 27 27 27 Northern cemetery(unknown context) 8 8 8 8

Southern cemetery 1 72 73 1 72 7349 Jurja Dalmatinca Street 3 3 3 3Jurja Dalmatinca Street (2007) 6 6 6 632 I. G. Kovaia Street 9 9 9 9Gundulieva Street 5 5 5 5Western cemetery (2009) 4 56 60 4 56 56

Kamenica 2 2 2 2TOTAL 0 5 220 225 4 146 1 2 72 225


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B u r

i a l m o u n d s

( t u m u l

i )

C r e m a t

i o n s

I n h u m a t

i o n s

T o t a l

C r e m a t

i o n s o f

u n k n o w n

d a t e

I n h u m a t

i o n s o f

u n k n o w n

d a t e

E a r

l y c e m e t e r

i e s

T r a n s

i t i o n

c e m e t e r

i e s

L a t e

R o m a n

c e m e t e r

i e s

T o t a l

ITARJEVO 8 3 11 3 0DARUVAR 5 5 5 0

TEKI 129 129 129 129

TRBINCI 0 0 163 163 0 0 0 0 163 163

LUDBREG 0 0

TUMULI

RNKOVEC 1 1

DONJI EHI 1 1

DONJI VUKOJEVAC 1 1DUMOVEC-DUMOVEKI LUG,Sesvete 35 35

UREKOVEC-LUCI 30 30

GLAVNIICA (near Sesvete) 4 4

GOLA (near Koprivnice) 13 13

MRACLINSKA DUBRAVA 24 24

NOVAKA (near Koprivnica) 35 35

OBRE-BREZJE (Zagreb) 2 2

REPIE 6 6 0

SESVETE-SELINA 5 5EPKOVICA 1 11 36 48

TRNAVA RESNIKA 1 1TRNOVAK (near Sv. Martin naMuri) 15 15

TUROPLJSKI LUG 104 104 VELIKA GORICA-VELIKIBRIJEG 0 0

ZAGREB-BORONGAJ 1 1

CEMETERIES ON THE LIMES

ILOK 4 3 7 4 3 7

DALJ 1 1 1 1

ZMAJEVAC-MOCSOLS 175 175 175 175

RURAL CEMETERIES

BRATELJI 4 4

BUBIJEVA JAMA 29 29 29 29DRAGANOVEC-FARKAI(near Koprivnica) 1 1 1 1

GORNJA VAS 64

HRVATSKA DUBICA 1 1 1 1

KOMIN 0 0KUNOVEC BREG (nearKoprivnica) 10 10 10


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Fig. 2. Typological scheme of incineration graves (made by M. Maeri).

B u r

i a l m o u n d s

( t u m u l

i )

C r e m a t

i o n s

I n h u m a t

i o n s

T o t a l

C r e m a t

i o n s o f

u n k n o w n

d a t e

I n h u m a t

i o n s o f

u n k n o w n

d a t e

E a r

l y c e m e t e r

i e s

T r a n s

i t i o n

c e m e t e r

i e s

L a t e

R o m a n

c e m e t e r

i e s

T o t a l

KUZELIN 1 1 1 1

MALI POARI 0 0 NOVOSELJANI-DRALOVI (nearBjelovar) 9 9 9 9

OKUJE

RAJTEROVO BRDO 1 1 1 1

NOVAKI-SVETA NEDJELJA 1 1 1 1

SLADOJEVCI (near Slatina) 9 9 9 9

SLAVONSKI BROD ? 0 x 0

ZAGREB-STENJEVEC 129 129 128 128EPKOVICA 17 17 17 17

VELIKI BASTAJI 1 1 1 1

VELIKO KORENOVO 1 1 1 1

VINAGORA 1 1 2 1 1 2

ZAGREB-Drieva Street 4 4 4

ZAGREB-Maksimir 14 14

TOTAL 343 534 1452 2265 47 544 453 448 423 2376


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Pannonia prevents clear distinguishing between the nativeand Roman funerary habits.10 A similar nd occurred inVinkovci (Cibalae), some 40 km west of Ilok. It contained

11 items of weaponry from the early 1st century, estimatedto be local products made in imitation of Roman swordsof the Augustan period. For a long time this nd had been considered as a hoard of weaponry. However, in arecent reconsideration, its individual components werereinterpreted as swords stemming from destroyed cremationgraves of an early Imperial cemetery.11

From the Flavian period on the number of graves grew,which gave rise to a variety of the forms ofustrinata inPannonia as in all of the northwestern provinces.12 Grave pits are of oval, round, or irregular form, with equally

varied dimensions; predominant are fairly small pits up to10 Cf. Dizdar in this volume, section 3.11 Dizdar and Radman-Livaja 2004.12 Jilek 1999, 27; Abegg-Wigg 2008, 251.

1 m long, although large and richly equipped graves morethan 3-m long have been recovered, as in Andautonia.13 An important argument for recognising grave pits is

deposition of the pyre debris, known also from the majorityof the northwestern provinces ( g. 2.2). This procedure has been evidenced in graves from the 1st to the 3rd centuriesin the areas to the north and east of Italy, with regionaland chronological variation. Accordingly, it is dif cult toascribe the habit of pyre deposition to a speci c period ora population group.14 In northwestern Croatia graves bothwith and without the deposition of pyre debris have beenfound, while the northeastern part has yielded only gravescontaining the pyre debris. The recent excavations of thesouthwestern cemetery of Siscia are quite important fora better understanding of this habit, as they have yielded

two clearly separated layers from the early and mid 2nd

13 Nemeth-Ehrlich and Kuan palj 2007; Nemeth-Ehrlich and Kuanpalj 2008, 199.14 Bechert 1980; Jilek 1999, 27; Abegg-Wigg 2008, 251.

Fig. 3. 28 Gundulieva Street, Sisak, grave 6: ustrinatum with the pyre debris (photo: T. Lelekovi).


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century. The earlier layer produced graves with the pyredebris, which was absent from the later ones; this should be taken as the proof that graves containing the pyre debriswere an early phenomenon, which died out by the mid2nd century.15 The excavations in Sisak have brought tolight another feature: two forms ofustrinata constructedfrom tiles with no bondage, the rst one resembling a

box ( g. 2.3). The most frequent type of the box graveis rectangular in shape, measuring 0.60 x 0.60 x 0.30 m,its possible north-Italian origin being suggested by thefrequency of comparable nds in north-Italian cemeteries.( g. 4)16 It should be noted, however, that this type ofgrave is exclusive to Pannonia Superior, while absentfrom Pannonia Inferior.17 The latter area produced onlyelongated rectangular graves constructed from tiles withno bondage, which, however, only appeared in 3rd -centurytransitional cemeteries (see section 3.1.2.). Another typeof earlyustrinata is represented by box-shaped receptaclestopped with a gable-wise arrangement of tiles. This typeis otherwise frequent in the western provinces, but withsome difference in comparison to Pannonia. While in Galliaand Germania grave pits were covered by a single tile orstone slab, graves composed of two tiles set gable-wise aretypical of Pannonia and Noricum, and are often found inAquincum, Savaria, Brigetio, and Carnuntum. ( g. 2.4)18 Gabled ustrinata have been documented only in thesouthwestern cemetery of Siscia, with one grave standingout through its particular construction, in that its walls and

oor remained bare of tiles, which, on the other hand, wereused only for the gabled roof; the grave contained the pyredeposit. 19 Curiously, this type of grave is most frequently

15 Lelekovi 2009b, 294-295; Lelekovi 2011.16 Gregl 1989, 13; Lelekovi 2009b, 295; see also Negrelli 2006, 70.17 Jovanovi 1984, 39.18 Jilek 1999, 26-27.19 Lelekovi 2009b, 294-295.

found in Carnuntum.20 The remainder of the gabled boxeshad their interiors lined with tiles, while lacking the pyredebris.

The cinerary urn, as a component of the funerary ritual,has not been frequently used in the Roman cemeteries ofnorthern Croatia. In the majority of urned cremations the

urn was placed in a pit; such graves both with and withoutthe pyre debris have been evidenced. Apart from these,tile-constructed urned graves have been found, but theynever contained the pyre debris. Such graves are otherwisetypical of north-Italian cemeteries,21 suggesting a funeraryritual in uenced by Italian immigrants in Pannonia.22 Urnedgraves in wooden boxes have until now been found onlyin the eastern cemetery of Mursa and the south-easterncemetery of Siscia; these were pits with wood planks liningthe walls and covering the opening; some of them producediron nails. ( g. 5)23 While the nails might have been part ofthe grave construction, this remains inconclusive as theywere mostly found in the pyre debris, which means thatthey might equally have been parts of wooden cof ns or biers. Stone urns are very rare nds in the region of study,and have so far been attested only in Siscia. ( g. 7) Sincethey were invariably made of low-quality local limestone,none has been completely preserved. As a rule, the stoneurn contained both bones and grave goods: rst, the largerfragments of (washed) bones were isolated and depositedat the bottom with the grave goods placed on top, to be

nally closed with a lid. The urn of one such grave in thesouthwestern Siscian cemetery contained silver earrings,coins, a bronze-sheet coil, ceramic jugs and a lamp, and

20 Jilek 1999, 26-27.21 For instance, at Verginese in the vicinity of Ferrara (Negrelli 2006,93).22 Jovanovi 1981,147; Gregl 1989, 13.23 Lelekovi 2009b.

Fig. 4. 28 Gundulieva Street, Sisak, grave 12: tile-lined ustrinatum before and after the removal of the grave goods(photo: T. Lelekovi).


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a glass arybalos. The urn was placed in a rectangular pitlled with earth, and next to it was a ceramic censer. In

the pits holding stone urns the pyre debris has never beenevidenced.24

It is ustrinata that most extensively illustrate the scopeand variety of grave goods, especially as concerns ceramicartefacts, as they usually survive undamaged. In spite ofthe lack of any uniformity in grave inventories, some basiccharacteristics can still be established, the most conspicuousof them being a gradual disappearance of vessels for servingsolid foods. In early cemeteries vessels for liquids and solidfoods are equally represented, while in the transitional phasedrinking vessels predominate, to remain practically the onlytype of vessel as a grave good in late antique graves.25

2.1.2. Busta

Such graves are characterised by the fact that both thecremation and deposition were executed on the same place,

which enables easy differentiation from theustrina ; busta feature burnt pit walls and their ll is composed of the pyredebris mixed with the human and animal bone, as well asthe burnt and melted grave goods. Only very exceptionallyhave undamaged grave goods been found in such graves.Pits are usually of an elongated rectangular form, althoughsome were sub-square, oval or totally irregular; the wallswere mostly straight and perpendicular to the bottom, andonly rarely were they slanted. As a rule, traces of burningare unequally distributed, being visible mostly on the bottom and in the upper portions of the walls. The rest of thewalls usually feature only slight traces of burning, and areonly exceptionally burnt on the whole surface ( g. 2.5-6).26

24 Lelekovi 2009b, 294-295.25 See Isteni 1999, 83-166; Wiewegh 2003, 41-52; Boi 2008.26 Gaitzsch and Werner 1993, 57-58.

Fig. 5. Bana JelaiaSquare, Osijek,

grave 103: enclosedustrinatum (photo: A.

tefan).

Fig. 6. Ilok, ustrinatum,1 st half of the 1 st c. (Photo Archiveof the Institute of Archaeology in Zagreb).


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The origin and interpretation of thebustum type of gravehave not yet been satisfactorily explained. One of thetheories postulates that such graves originated in northItaly and that during the 1st century AD legionaries spreadthem to the provinces, especially those of the Rhinelandand the Danube/Balkan regions. On the other hand, givena strong concentration of the troupes from the East alongthe Rhine and Danube, it is possible to perceive of thebustum as a funerary feature imported to the West by thearmy and oriental immigrants.27 According to AleksandarJovanovi, the share ofbusta in the cemeteries of Moesiaand southeastern Pannonia (the territory of Sirmium in thiscase) is from 60% to 90%, which distinguishes these areasfrom the rest of the Empire. On account of that, Jovanovi believed thatbusta originated among the native Balkan(south-east Pannonia included) ethnic communities, to besubsequently spread to the rest of the Danube area. Thistheory has been further substantiated by the presumptionthat it was exactly the troupes stationed in the 1st and 2 nd centuries in the Middle and Lower Danube that broughtthe bustum type of graves to the Rhineland and the rest ofthe Empire.28 Jovanovi does not give the chronology ofthe cemeteries featuring a large proportion ofbusta , whichshould be important in the light of the fact that thebustum

27 Struck 1993b, 90.28 Jovanovi 2000, 205-206; Pirling 2002, 524-526.

Fig. 7. 28 Gundulieva Street, Sisak, grave 8: stone-urned ustrinatum (photo: T. Lelekovi).

became the predominant type of grave in the transitional phase (see section 3.1.2). This means that the claim forthe autochthonous nature of this funerary ritual should bereconsidered by establishing the exact number ofbusta dating from the early and transitional phases, respectively.A possible predominance ofbusta in the transitional phasewould seriously challenge the claim for their Balkan-Danube origin. Whichever the case, none of thebusta fromnorthern Croatia can be dated to the 1st century, suggestingthat they were imported to the region at the end of the 1st century at the earliest.29

So farbusta of the end of the 1st and the 2nd centuries have been found only in the eastern part of the territory of study,at the sites of Slavonski Brod30, Osijek 31, Sotin, 32 andBatina. 33 Altogether four types ofbusta can be isolated,two classi ed by the grave shape and one each by the

29 In 2004 and 2005, 66 graves from the end of the 1st century wereexcavated in Gyr (Hungary), the majority of which were busta. Theresults have not yet been published extensively, but it transpires fromthe preliminary report (Br 2007, 40-54) that this cemetery shares manycommon characteristics with the earliest phase of the east cemetery ofMursa, one of them being the fact that both contained burials of men andwomen.30 Mikiv 2006, 6-9.31 Gricke-Luki 2000, 17; Lelekovi 2009, 46; Gricke-Luki 2010,26-27.32 Hutinec 2010, 29-33.33 Bojiet al. 2010, 80-87.


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ritual procedure and grave goods. The most numerous areclassicbusta in oval or rectangular pits ( g. 2.5; g. 8), aswell as those whose pit narrows towards the bottom throughsteps cut in the upper walls of the two longer sides, or allfour sides ( g. 2.6; g. 9). The third type is represented bythe busta in which larger bones were separated from thecremation remains and placed either on the cleared part ofthe bottom of the pit or on the burnt ll ( g. 2.7). In someexamples the grave goods underwent the same procedure, possibly suggesting that some pyres were equipped with aniron (?) mobile construction that should have stabilised the

pyre and prevent the larger bones and goods from fallinginto the pit. The fourth type is distinguished by thebustayielding whole vessels, mostly a jug or a cup, as gravegoods ( g.6). Most often typical 3rd -century two-handledcups are found in such graves, indicating their origin inthe transitional period.34 This further complicates the issueof the chronology of this type ofbustum , especially in theCroatian part of Pannonia. The majority of the Rhinelandbust a date from the mid 1st century, and are mostlyassociated with military sites on thelimes , while some nds,like those from thetumuli cemetery at Hunstrck-Eife, have been dated to the mid 2nd century (see section 3.1.2).35 In theDanube provincesbusta are considered as an autochthonous

34 Brukner 1981, 41.35 Wigg 1993, 15-17, 107.

Fig. 8. Bana Jelaia Square, Osijek, grave 31: bustum,1st half of the 2 nd c. (photo: T. Lelekovi).

Fig. 9. Bana Jelaia Square, Osijek, grave 392: bustumwith the enlarged upper section, 1st half of the 2 nd c.

(photo: T. Lelekovi).

Fig. 10. Bana Jelaia Square, Osijek, grave 286: bustumwith ceramic vessels, turn of the 1 st and 2 nd c. (photo: V.

Mesari).


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feature dating from the pre-Roman period.36

The earliestexamples from northern Croatia come from Mursa and aredated to the turn of the 1st and 2 nd centuries. Given thatbustadating from the 2nd half of the 3rd century have also beenevidenced in Mursa, on present evidence the chronologicalframe for this type of grave appears to be from the later 1st to the later 3rd centuries.37

2.1.3. Grave architecture

Two types of grave architecture are representative of theearly phase: grave enclosures and individual tombs. Twoenclosures were recovered in the southwestern Sisciancemetery ( gs.11 and 12). One of them was enclosed by a brick-wall, with the mortared tile-constructed tombmeasuring 2.20 x 2.16 m and preserved to the height of1.40 m, stood in its middle. A rectangular stone urn wasfound in the tomb, holding burnt human bone and lavishgrave goods: twobalsamaria , two glass jugs, amber andgold jewellery, and four stamped clay lamps. The tomb wasfurnished with a niche containing burnt bone and remainsof the pyre debris, testifying to a multi-burial construction.Finally, the skeleton of a dog was found on the oor, butits possible role in terms of funerary rite remains unclear.38 A hypothetical reconstruction of this tomb on the basis of

36 Jovanovi 2000, 205-206.37 Lelekovi 2009a; Lelekovi 2010; Gricke-Luki 2011, 178-181.38 Pavlekovi and krgulja 2008, 17-18.

Fig. 11. 28 Gundulieva Street,Sisak: grave enclosures in the

southwest cemetery aerial view(photo: T. Lelekovi).

Fig. 12. 28 Gundulieva Street, Sisak: grave enclosuresin the southwest cemetery (drawing: T. Lelekovi).


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comparable Norican and north-Italian nds39 suggests thatthe former was not an entirely belowground structure; the belowground grave chamber could have been surmounted by an aboveground architectural construction such asan aedicule or a similar feature holding portraits of thedeceased and an epitaph. The other enclosure was encircled by a wall made of large stone blocks, with a stone chestin its middle 40; its contents, as well as the lid, were foundmissing, and the chest bore no carvings or inscription.Behind the two enclosures, smaller tombs were found.Given that the enclosures were quite at a distance fromthe town gate, and in spite of the fact that the extent of thewestern Siscian suburb is generally unknown, it is possibleto assume that the 600-m long section of the southwesternSiscian cemetery stretched along the road, holding severaltens or even a hundred such monumental tombs ( g. 13).Individual simple tombs of the 1st and 2 nd centuries have been found only in the southwestern cemetery of Siscia,located on an elevated ground behind the two enclosures.They were of a simple rectangular ground plan measuringapproximately 1.30 by 1 m; one of the walls had an opening

39 Luxurious examples of such tombs are known, among other places, inAquileia in Italy (Tirelli 1998, 147) and empeter in Noricum (Kremer2001, 13-54.)40 See notes 106 and 107.

that was closed with a tile or a stone slab. The tombswere constructed in carefully cut rectangular pits with at bottoms and with no foundations. The bottom was pavedwith tiles, whose function was both to cover the bottomand to support the tile walls. Apart from the paving tiles,large pieces were found lying on the bottom and by thewalls, probably belonging to the construction of the cover/roof; nevertheless, they do not furnish enough elementsfor the reconstruction of the roo ng. The last type of gravearchitecture is represented bytumuli - round masonrytombs, featuring 3 sub-types: 1. with no opening; 2. with theopening (doors); 3. with the doors and an entering passage(dromos ). In northern Croatia such graves are dated fromthe 1st to the mid 2nd centuries, and are considered as afunerary feature of the autochthonous population of thearea. 41

2.1.4. Grave mounds (tumuli)

The tumulus burial is a funerary feature established in onlytwo relatively small areas of northern Croatia. Of a total

of 17 cemeteries, yielding altogether 279 tumuli, no fewerthan 12 (with 216 tumuli) have been discovered in the area

41 Gregl 2000, 166-167; Gregl 2007, 226-227.

Fig. 13. Plan of Siscia (after Google Earth, modi ed by T. Lelekovi).


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of Zagreb, that is, along the River Sava and on the slopesof the nearby mountains of Medvednica and Vukomerikogorje. In the Podravina region, next to the border withHungary, three cemeteries containing altogether 63 tumulihave been found (see table 1).42 All these nds are part ofa wider phenomenon typical of the eponymous provinces

of Noricum and Pannonia ( Norico-Pannonian tumuli). Thetumulus burial most probably originated in the 1st centuryin the modern-day Austrian regions of Styria and the southof Burgenland; from the later 1st till the mid 3rd centuries43 this phenomenon spread further, covering the wider areasof eastern Austria, eastern Slovenia, southwestern Hungary,and northwestern Croatia.44 Arguably, the Croatian gravemounds represent the southeastern peripheral branch of the Norico-Pannonian tumuli.

So far seven north-Croatian tumuli cemeteries have beeninvestigated, yielding altogether 55 tumuli. Of a total of 13tumuli found at the village of Gola to the east of Koprivnica,

ve have been actually excavated, with only two producingnds, while the remainder had been previously destroyed by

ploughing. In one of the investigated tumuli a rectangulargabled stone urn was found, containing burnt human bone and grave goods. Another tumulus was composedof a atbustum containing the pyre debris, remains ofthe cremated bodies and grave goods, covered with earthheaped up above. Both tumuli were dated to the late 2nd and the 1st half of the 3rd centuries by Westerndorfsigillataand the coins of the emperor Maximinus Thrax.45 At thesite of Novaka in the vicinity of Gola another cemeteryof 35 tumuli was found, of which 21 were excavated.The tumuli varied in size from six to 15 m in diameter,while the preserved height was from 0.50 to 1.70 m. Allof them were constructed by heaping up earth over theearmarked surface holding the cremated remains of the bodies and grave goods. However, the manner in whichthe remains were deposited exempli es two main types oftumuli. The rst one is characterised by an urn holdingthe cremated bone, placed on the burial spot together withthe grave goods and the pyre debris ( g. 2.8). The othertype is represented by the tumuli holding a mixture of thecremated bone, grave goods and pyre debris, all depositeddirectly on the burial spot ( g. 2.9). In only two examples

of the second type were shallow pits found, containingthe pyre debris mixed with the cremated bone and gravegoods, possibly interpretable asbusta. This type of tumulidates from the later 2nd century to the 2nd half of the 3rd century (two of them were dated by coins of Caracalla andGordian III).46 Two cemeteries have been investigated inthe eastern districts of Zagreb; the rst one at the site of

42 Gregl 1997,14-18.43 Similar type of burial has in the same period been noted in other partsof the Empire. For instance, in the valley of the River Moselle in the rearof the Rhine limes, of a total of 233 tumuli 55 date from the 2nd half of the1st century and 44 from the 2nd to the mid 3rd centuries, while the remaining99 tumuli have not been researched; arguably, the highest frequency ofthis funerary custom falls in the 1st century (Wigg 1993, 15-17, 107).44 Mikl-Curk 1997, 32-36; Palgyi 2003, 257-261; Palgyi and Nagy2003, 50-51,154.45 Demo 1985, 119-120; ari 1986, 113, 116.46 ari 1979; ari 1990, 111-113; Okroa-Roi 2006, 186-187.

Sesvete-Dumovec produced 35 tumuli, four of which have been excavated. They were of equivalent dimensions (10m in diameter and 1.5 m of the preserved height), withone slightly smaller, but signi cant for yielding a gravechamber. It was looted by the local inhabitants in the 1950sand the chamber was damaged. Nevertheless, enough of the

construction survived to reveal the measurements (length:2.40 m; width: 1.70 m; height: 0.70 m) and plastering ofthe walls; bronze ttings of a wooden chest and a stone urnwere found in the chamber. The remaining three tumulilacked chambers, and were constructed as those from Novaka, that is, by heaping up earth over the burial spot,which held the cremated remains of the bodies and gravegoods. Two of the three tumuli each housed one centralgrave, while the third had two graves.47 In the forest resortof Turopoljski lug, a site numbering 104 tumuli, six moundshave been investigated, ranging in measurements from veto 18 m in diameter and from 0.30 to 1.50 m in height.Two larger tumuli held poorly preserved tile-constructedand masonry grave chambers, while four smaller tumuliwere constructed over the remains of the pyre debris. Onthe basis of small nds, the tumuli can be dated from themid 1 st to the early 3rd centuries.48 Smaller clusters of tumulirecently found at the villages of Gornji Vukojevac49 andepkovica50 south of Zagreb can be added to the abovesites. Both were rural cemeteries holding cremated graves;there is no knowing whether they actually featured tumulithat could have been levelled by ploughing. If this isso, these tumuli can be de ned as chamber-less moundsconstructed over pit graves containing the pyre debris andfeaturing a certain peculiarity in the area. At the site ofDonji ehi to the south of Zagreb, three tumuli have beenexcavated as probably a part of a larger cemetery, whoseimportance is threefold. Firstly, a stone stele was foundthere during building works, testifying that tombstonesmade part of such constructions ( g. 2.10). Secondly, intumulus 1 a coin of Tiberius was found, rendering it theearliest tumulus so far in northern Croatia. Thirdly, tumulus2 testi ed to adromos construction, as an exceptionalexample in northern Croatia.51

With few exceptions, the results of the excavations of Norico-Pannonian tumuli in northern Croatia have not been

fully published, which hinders their detailed analysis. Eventhough, three main types of tumuli can be established withcertainty: 1. with grave chamber housing the ashes andgrave goods; 2. with deposited ashes and grave goods withor without (stone) urns; 3. with atbusta holding a mixtureof the pure remains and un-selected remains of the cremated bodies. The differential chronologies of the tumuli cannotat this stage be established with any certainty; possibly,

47 Sokol 1981, 169-178.48 Koevi and Makjani 1988, 35. According to the authors, the tumulilacking grave architecture do not enable differentiation between the pyresite and the place of deposition. Namely, it is possible that the red-hot pyredebris, mixed with fragments of the grave goods and burnt bone of thedeceased, were redeposited from the cremation to the deposition spot, to be nally covered with earth in the form of tumulus.49 Dizdar, Tonc, and Lonjak Dizdar 2011.50 Bugar 2009, 269, 281.51 Gregl 2000, 166-170; On the stele see Migotti 2008.


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types 1 and 2 date from the 1st and 2 nd centuries, while type3 might be somewhat later (2nd half of the 2nd and 1 st half ofthe 3rd centuries). Equally questionable is the possibility toclassify the cemeteries in clearly de ned typological groups,as the available evidence and documentation show that thetumuli cemeteries in the region of study do not share uni ed

forms or organisational patterns. On the contrary, they arequite heterogeneous, sharing this characteristic with therest of the province of Pannonia.52 Some of the cemeteriesform compact clusters with all or some of the tumuli linedalong a road and arranged in one or more regular rows.One such example is the cemetery at Sesvete-Dumovec,whose 22 tumuli of a total of 35 are arranged in two rows,with the remainder unevenly scattered in the surroundings.Some of the cemeteries reveal irregular and inconsistentlayouts, such as the one at urekovec, whose 30 tumuliare dispersed irregularly across the burial area.53 Sites witha lager number of tumuli, exempli ed by Turopoljski lugand Novaka, feature smaller clusters of mounds dispersedacross a broader space. The distance between some of thegroups sometimes amounts to as much as 500 m, renderingit dif cult to judge whether they formed one or morecemeteries. An example of this is the site of Turopoljskilug, whose 104 tumuli are arranged in ten clusters, withindividual groups numbering from two to 24 tumuli, and thedistance between them measuring several hundred metres.The available documentation reveals that some clusters oftumuli were arranged in rows, while others were scatteredwith no clear elements of organisation.54 The same is true ofthe cemetery at Novaka, whose 35 tumuli were arrangedin ve clusters. Overall, it is impossible to establish the precise spatial relationships between the tumuli cemeterieson the one hand and the adjacent roads and settlements onthe other. Nevertheless, the circumstances in the rest of the province, with tumuli mostly lining the roads at a distanceof approximately 500 m from a related settlement or villa,55 can be presumed for the north-Croatian cemeteries as well.

The origin of the tumulus burial remains a controversialissue; given the limited amount of the published material,the scrappy evidence from northern Croatia cannotcontribute signi cantly towards clearing this controversy.Two confronted theories of the origin of the tumulus

burial exist among the Croatian Roman archaeologists, aselsewhere. The rst perceives the tumulus as a local custom,while the other posits that the tumulus burial resulted fromthe Romanisation of the local elites.56 In view of this, it issigni cant that the majority of the north-Croatian tumulistem from the presumed territory of themunicipium Andautonia. At the same time, no such cemetery has been discovered in the presumed Siscianager , hinting atthe possibility of setting the territorial boundary betweenthese two towns exactly on the basis of the distribution of

52 Palgyi and Nagy 2003, 53.53 Sokol 1981, 169-170.54 Koevi and Makjani 1988, 26-27; Gregl 1997, 19.55 Palgyi and Nagy 2003, 51-54.56 Koevi and Makjani 1988, 35; Gregl 1997, 23.

types of burial.57 On balance, it can be hypothesised that thenorth-Croatian Norico-Pannonian tumuli are characteristicof the cemeteries of rural settlements of the autochthonousorigin, which explains their absence from the areas holdinglands assigned to colonists and veterans. If to this we addthe fact that the majority of the tumuli are dated to the 2nd

and 3rd

centuries, the phenomenon of the Roman tumulusin northern Croatia indeed seems to be connected with theRomanised local elites.58

2.2. Urban cemeteries

The study of the early phase of the urban cemeteries ismuch impacted by the fact that 60% of the nds comefrom Siscia and Mursa. This is not surprising, as these twotowns were the only earlycoloniae and at the same timethe only major towns in the territory of study. In the 1st and 2 nd centuries the status ofmunicipiumwas bestowedon Andautonia and Aquae Balissae, and probably also onCibalae, but these towns produced only an insigni cantamount of early burials. Therefore, the discussion of thelayout and organisation of the early cemeteries, as well astheir relation to the perimeters of their respective towns, has been sourced mainly from Mursa and Siscia.

Given that during Vespasians rule Siscia became a colonyand one of the leading urban centres and a starting point forthe Romanisation of southern Pannonia, it should also beea key site for the study of the early Roman cemeteries ofnorthern Croatia.59 Yet, the Siscia of the 1st century is very poorly known in terms of its dimensions and urban features,as well as the population number.60 On the other hand, it isexactly its early cemeteries that have been researched in ameasure allowing at least some study of the town in the 1st century. Cremation graves have been found on a fairly vastarea comprising some 500 ha on the both banks of the RiverKupa. Three foci of the concentration of cremation gravesand tombstones have been established: north and southeastof the town walls, as well as southwest from the town, onthe right bank of the Kupa. Even though, the exact extentof the area taken by the Siscian cemeteries has not beende ned ( g. 13). The core of the northern cemetery was probably at the site of Zeleni brijeg, with further stretching

towards north and northwest, but with northwestern limitsunknown; it was bounded by the Rivers Kupa and Odrain the south and west, respectively. The southeasterncemetery was bounded by the rivers Kupa and Sava, whilethe cemeterial territory in the southwestern extraurbanarea, south of the Kupa, is more dif cult to establish,

57 The administrative boundaries of Roman towns mostly remain in therealm of more or less plausible hypotheses. In northern Croatia this is particularly true of the boundary between Andautonia and Siscia, sincethe natural features of their respective terrains give no clues; on variousopinions regarding the territorial boundaries between these two towns seeKuan palj and Nemeth-Ehrlich 2003, 107-110; Loli 2003, 131-133.58 On the settlement and the administrative organisation of this area seeMocsy 1974, 71-73.59 Mcsy 1974, 112-114, 135.60 Loli 2003, 138-140.


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with the Kupa still guring as a broad boundary.61Thesethree areas are consistent with the main town cemeteries,which, in their turn, correspond to the presumed routesof the main roads leading towards Siscia. Moreover, it isexactly owing to the established cemetery areas that thesections of the roads in the suburbs can be hypothesised.

The northern cemetery grew along the road towards thestation Ad Fines (the village of Buevec?) to the northwestof Siscia, near the place where the roads towards Emonaand Neviodunum branched off from the road leading toAndautonia and Poetovio.62 Along a still hypothesisedroute towards Ad Fines three separate clusters of cremationgraves have been excavated, most probably sections ofthe same (northern) Siscian cemetery.63 Regrettably, theresults of the excavations have not been published. To thesouthwest of the town, on the right bank of the Kupa, grewa cemetery known in the literature as the cemetery in NoviSisak. It spread along the southern road heading towardsSenia on the Adriatic coast, with an eastern branch leadingtowards Sirmium.64 This cemetery had since long beenoutstanding for yielding a wealth of chance nds, amongthem stone sarcophagi.65 Its importance has recently beenfurther enhanced by excavations in 2007 and 2008, as it wasfor the rst time that larger sections of a Siscian cemeterywere disclosed and chronological relationships betweenvarious types of cremations established. These excavationsare important for the study of early cemeteries, becausethey proved the existence of two chronological layers of burial, both belonging to the early phase ( g. 17). The rstlayer, dating from the early 2nd century, is represented bycremation earth pits, lled with pyres debris. The cemeteryarea was enclosed by a wooden fence, which followed theroute of the Roman road at a distance of some 30-35 m.However, the limited scope of the excavations did not allowestablishing whether the fence encircled the whole of thecemetery or just a larger funerary enclosure measuring 35 by 30 m (135 by 100 Roman ft.). The second layer, startingin the mid 2nd century, reshaped thoroughly the funeraryarea. Monumental enclosures dominating the cemeterygrew next to the road, while in their rear smaller tombs oftwo types were put up: mortared tile-built tombs and chests

61 The area on the right bank of the Kupa was in the 18th and 19 th centuryknown as Vojni (Military) Sisak, and from the mid 19th century on as Novi

(New) Sisak. In New Sisak several toponyms exist that refer to particulararchaeological sites, but are in the literature often used impreciselyand misleadingly. I would therefore like to use the opportunity to give precise locations and usage of these names, in order to avoid possiblemisunderstandings. The northern section of New Sisak, a plateau to thesouth of the right bank of the Kupa, is called Pogorelac. Before the arrivalof the Romans, it was the site of the Celtic settlement Segesta, while inthe Roman period it probably held an industrial suburb of the same name(see Radman Livaja 2007, 169-170). To the south of Pogorelec is a hillyarea called Zibel, with roads running through the valleys, of which themost important is Gundulieva Street, as it was the site of the southwestcemetery in the Roman period. In the literature, the sites of Pogorelac andZibel are often equated and used imprecisely, with the most often mistake being the use of the name Pogorelac to cover Zibel as well. However, onlythe correct use of these two toponyms enables a meaningful study of theSiscian archaeological topography.62 Loli 2004, 132; Graanin 2010, 16.63 Burkowsky 1993, 78.64 Wiewegh 2003.The road network as brought in the Barrington atlas(Talbert 2000, 20-21) has been used. On the roads see also Durman 1992,122-124; Loli 2003, 132-133.65 Migotti 2007b; Vukeli 2007; Vukeli 2009.

constructed from rectangular tiles measuring 0.60 x 0.60x 0.40 m. Unlike the earlier ones, the graves of the secondlayer contained no traces of the pyre debris. Among the

nds from the southwestern cemetery anustrinum standsout as a rare funerary feature documented in north-Croatianterritory. It was a rectangular building measuring 1.80 x

2.10 m, and surviving only to the height of 0.50 m, whichleaves its reconstruction in the realm of hypothesis. Thell was composed of a large amount of pottery fragments

and crushed tiles, revealing traces of intense burning.Such traces were present also on the surface around the building, while to the south of it a thick deposit of asheswas evidenced.66

The southeastern cemetery grew along the road crossingthe River Sava and leading towards Varianae (Kutina?)and further east. It was this cemetery that in the 1954rescue excavations yielded the largest number (166) ofearly cremation graves so far in the Croatian portion ofPannonia. Although no phases could have been con rmedin terms of stratigraphy, they can be presumed on the basisof grave shapes. Overall, the remains of the three cemeteriesdiscussed above can be taken as an indication of a gradual progress of the town, the in ux of Italic immigrants and a profound Romanisation of its native citizens. The area to theeast of the town walls remains completely unexplored, but ithas nevertheless yielded an unknown number of cremationgraves. Apparently, this cemetery did not grow along themain road, but a vicinal one that possibly connected thetown with an as yet undiscovered settlement or a harbouron the Sava.67

Unlike Siscia, where all so far evidenced graves dateto the period of the colony, nearly all cremations fromMursa predate the towns elevation to the rank of colony.The existence of a 1st-century fort or fortress has been presumed since long, but has never been archaeologicallycon rmed.68 Yet, at the site of Bana Jelaia Square in theeastern section of Mursa, 100 cremation graves from the2nd half of the 1st century and the 1st half of the 2nd centuryhave been excavated so far, yielding as much as 60% ofbusta .69 With this percentage Mursa gures among sitesthat can rightly claim thebustum as a local feature in terms

of A. Jovanovis theory. If, on the other hand, the theoryof the bustum as a military funerary custom is correct,70 the abovementioned cemetery can be claimed as proofthat Mursa was a military post, with the cremations ofwomen suggesting an accompanying civilian settlement.71 Among the most important of the graves are theustrinatathat yielded bronze wine strainers, otherwise typical of the

66 Lelekovi 2009b, 295-296.67 Nenadi 1987, 84-93; Burkowsky 1993, 74; Wiewegh 2003, 31.68 Klemenc 1928, 272; Spaul 2000, 265; Lrincz 2001, 21; Pinterovi1977, 103-104, 112-113; Filipovi 2004, 157; Dizdar and Radman-Livaja2004, 45.69 Gricke-Luki 2000, 152-154; Lelekovi 2009, 46; Gricke-Luki2011, 26, 229.70 See note 28.71 Lelekovi 2009, 46.


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material culture of the Scordisci and testifying to the burials

of natives.72

It seems that thecolonia Mursa was planned so that thecardo and decumanus connected to the three main roadsapproaching the town: Poetovio Mursa on the west,Mursa Cibalae on the south, and the northern and easterncontinuations of thecardo and decumanus, respectively,which linked to thelimes road that approached Mursa fromthe north and proceeded eastwards towards Teutoburgium(Dalj). Accordingly, four main cemeteries grew around thetown ( g. 14). At the moment, the northern cemetery seemsto have been the smallest, due to the lack of free space between the town and the River Drava, the more so as thearea north of the Drava was too marshy to accommodatea cemetery. The remaining three cemeteries spread freelyalong the roads up to one kilometre from the town.However, the sorest topographical issue of Mursa is theoutlining of the outer borders of the cemeteries, as well asestablishing the dividing lines between the cemeteries andurban districts. For a long time the course of the town wallsof Mursa had been considered to be known, until it has been seriously questioned by the excavations in 2008 and2009.73 With the elevation to the rank of colony in Hadrianstime, the eastern border of the settlement was moved

72 Egri and Rustoiu 2009, 83-86.73 By using archival and eld documentation produced by the Croatianhistorian and archaeologist Matija Petar Katani (1750-1825), whonoted the remains of Mursa prior to their usage as building materials inlater constructions, the engineer and an amateur archaeologist Radoslav

farther east, so that the eastern cemetery was overlaid

by the inhabited area.74

Such horizontal stratigraphy wasfurther con rmed by the nd of the forti cation ditch inthe same area, possibly also dating from Hadrians time.75 However, neither in this nor in any other of the townscemeteries were graves dating form the time of Hadrianor the Antonines ever found. Consequently, there is noknowing which cemeteries were in use at that time or whatkind of funerary ritual was practiced. This, in turn, broughtto the conclusion that the border between the town and theeastern cemetery was not xed, and that it was relocatedaccording to the needs of the town. Overall, given that theearliest graves in the southern cemetery date from the 3rd century, it can be assumed that after the establishment ofthe colonia in the 2nd century only the eastern and westerncemeteries existed; they were probably intensively usedalso during the Severan period.

No substantial remains of the early settlement phase ofCibalae have so far been discovered, yielding a nearlycomplete lack of early graves only expected. Apart fromthe already mentioned soldier graves,76 Cibalae has so far

Franjeti made a reconstruction of the town walls at the beginning of the20th century. The plan of Mursa as given by Franjeti, which had been used by subsequent authors (Pinterovi 1978; Gricke-Luki 2000; Filipovi2004), has only recently been more or less refuted by the most recentarchaeological excavations. However, no new plan based on the results ofthe recent excavations has been made so far (see section 4.2.).74 Lelekovi 2009a, 46.75 Lelekovi 2009a, 46; Filipovi 2007, 18.76 See section 2.1., and Dizdar and Radman-Livaja 2004.

Fig. 14. Plan of Mursa in the Severan period (after Google Earth, modi ed by T. Lelekovi).


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Fig. 15. Plan of Cibalae (after Google Earth, modi ed by T. Lelekovi).

Fig. 16. Plan of Andautonia (after Google Earth, modi ed by T. Lelekovi).


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produced only two early cremations, one in the southerncemetery and the other in the north ( g. 15). The latter wasquite lavishly furnished and is considered to have belongedto a wealthy craftsman.77 These two nds testify that inthe 2nd century Cibalae was a settlement with at least twocemeteries, and that the dearth of early graves is probably

due to the fact that they were overlaid or destroyed bylater buildings, therefore escaping discovery. Andautonia(itarjevo) became amunicipium already during theFlavians, which renders it one of the earliest Roman townsin northern Croatia ( g. 16). In the last several decades anumber of excavations have disclosed urban parts of thesettlement with luxurious architecture, which suggests thatthe standard of living in smaller towns did not fall behind themajor urban centres. Nevertheless, the cemeteries remaineda poorer researched part of the town.78 Only sections atthe site of Kutelo (the southern cemetery) and the northerncemetery, recovered in the 2008 rescue excavations, areknown so far; both were sited at the towns edges, alongthe major road Poetovio Siscia running through the town.79 The excavations have revealed that in the 120s the townextended over the southern cemetery, dislocating it some500 m further south, to the site of Kutelo. Owing to this,it is possible to distinguish the cremations of the period predating the expansion of the town during Hadrians rulefrom later burials. Excavations of the southern cemeteryrevealed early graves at two sites: in the vicinity of the parish church (dating from the 1st and 2 nd centuries) andat Kutelo (dating from the 2nd to 4 th centuries). Besidescremation graves, the latter site produced a masonrytomb.80 Given that the results of the excavations have notyet been fully published, it remains unknown what werethe shapes and the chronology of graves from the twosites, possibly representing two different sub-phases ofthe cemetery. According to the available literature, bothsub-phases yielded cremation pits lled with the pyredebris, comparable to those found in the rural cemeteriesin the surroundings of Andautonia.81 A good example isa grave from the 2nd half of the 1st century, featuring arectangular wooden construction and standing out for itsmeasurements (1.6 x 3.2 m). It was fairly lavishly furnished,yielding several ceramic jugs and oil lamps, as well as glass beakers. In the 2009 excavations ve cremations from the

2nd

half of the 1st

and the 1st

half of the 2nd

centuries wererecovered, varying in size from 2.80 x 3.20 m to 2.90 x 4.50m. Compared by the number of grave goods and dimensionsof the pits, these ve graves belong to the same layer asthose found in 1996, both being basic for the study of theearliest Andautonian cemeteries.82

Besides the above mentioned towns, early cremations

77 Dimitrijevi 1979, 159-160; Iskra-Janoi 2004,78 Viki-Belani 1981, 129-154; Kuan palj and Nemeth-Ehrlich 2003,116.79 Pintari 1998, 1-3; Kuan palj and Nemeth-Ehrlich 2003, 116. Seealso Loli and Wiewegh in this volume.80 Kuan palj and Nemeth-Ehrlich 2003, 116; Nemeth-Ehrlich andKuan palj 2007, 44, 62, 65.81 Gregl 1997, 24-25.82 Nemeth-Ehrlich and Kuan palj 2007; Nemeth-Ehrlich and Kuan-palj 2008, 199-200.

should be expected in several other urban settlements ofthe area of study, but such nds have not appeared thereso far. The rst of them is Aquae Balissae (Daruvar),which already in the Flavian period became a Municipium

Iasorum . All graves discovered there so far date fromthe period after the mid 2nd century.83 The same is true of

lesser towns whose administrative status is unknown, suchas (probably) Iovia/Botivo (Ludbreg). At some point inthe 3rd century this settlement became acivitas in the lateantique meaning of this term, and in the 4th or 5 th century possibly even a bishopric. However, Iovia got the townwalls already in the 2nd century, which provided it withan urban aspect in material terms, in spite of the lack ofthe legal municipal status. The cemeteries (or individualgraves) of Iovia have not been studied, but the positionof three funerary areas (northern, eastern, and western)have been located on the basis of the course of the townwalls and scattered chance nds.84 The situation in AquaeIasae (Varadinske Toplice) is even less encouraging inthis respect, in that not a single funerary remain has ever been found there, in spite of the rich nds of the thermal baths and a forum.85 Another thermal complex has beendiscovered at Topusko southwest of Siscia, resulting in thehypothesis of a small town at this site.86 Masonry tombshave been found there, with only one (lavishly furnished)grave extensively published; it was dated to the turn ofthe 2nd and 3 rd centuries by grave goods: ceramic vesselsand clay lamps, as well as glass vessels and amber andgold jewellery.87 However, such chronology should bequestioned on the basis of comparison with similar ndsfrom the southwestern cemetery of Siscia, dated to the mid2nd century, as well as one equally dated amber gurinefrom a grave in the southeastern Siscian cemetery.88 Ina word, given the proximity of Siscia and Topusko, theabovementioned grave from the latter place should possibly be dated to the mid 2nd century, rather than its end, whichwould classify it among the early cemeteries, and not amongthose transitional. Another site that has yielded remains ofa settlement and an af liated cemetery is Slavonski Brod,a possible location of Roman Marsonia. Marsonia was inthe Poetinger Table and the Antonine itinerary marked asa station on the road Siscia Sirmium, and is consideredto have been the centre of thecivitas Breucorum ; at this

stage, however, it remains uncertain whether the settlementestablished at Slavonski Brod was a road station or a smalltown. Archaeological excavations there brought to lightten busta and two urned graves. Since the results of theseexcavations were published only cursorily, at this stage onlytwo broad presumptions can be put forward. The rst oneconcerns the chronology of the nds, probably dating fromthe 2nd and 3 rd centuries, judging from the pottery. Secondly,the nds most probably stem from the part of the cemetery bordering on the inhabited area. Such position is suggested

83 See Schejbal 2003, 111-118.84 Gregl and Migotti 2003, 13-43, 135-136.85 Nemeth-Ehrlich 1997.86 It has not been established with certainty whether on this spot RomanAd Fines or Quadrata should be located: egvi 2006, 271; Graanin 2010,16, 39. See also Loli and Wiewegh in this volume, section 7.87 ari 1980; ari-egvi 1984.88 Wiewegh 2003, 62; Lelekovi 2011.


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by the nding of remains of a pottery workshop in laterlayers, indicating that at one point the town expandedand spread over the former cemetery area. The mostcharacteristic feature of this cemetery is thebustum , whichis otherwise more typical of the eastern part of the studiedarea. On the other hand, the pottery forms correspond to

those from the Siscian cemeteries and are not found in thecemeteries of northeastern Croatia, above all Mursa. On balance, the cemetery at Slavonski Brod can be estimatedas standing in the border area of two differing Pannoniantraditions, southwestern and southeastern, and sharing thecharacteristics of both.89

2.3. Rural cemeteries

The study and understanding of rural cemeteries is aboveall affected by a generally poor and also uneven stateof research of the rural areas of northern Croatia. Thisimbalance is most clearly re ected in the proportion of therural cemeteries west of the Slavonian Mountains90 and therest of area of study. In the central and western northernCroatia 80 rural cemeteries have been catalogued so far,while only a few have been identi ed in the remainingarea. 91 The imbalance in the state of research is evidentalso at the level of narrower zones, as is best illustrated by comparison between the areas of Zagreb (ager ofAndautonia) and Sisak (ager of Siscia).92 Despite thefact that these two towns were founded and integratedin the Empire at approximately the same time, there is aconspicuous difference in the level of rural settlement andthe number of rural cemeteries between the territories ofSiscia and Andautonia. The Andautonian area boasts of 25early rural cemeteries, while they are completely absentfrom the Siscian.93 Also, the former is characterised by aconcentration of Norico-Pannonian tumuli strong enough tosuggest that the southern limit of the distribution of tumulicemeteries is at the same time the borderline betweenthe Andautonian and Siscian territories.94 Besides tumulicemeteries, the Andautonian area has yielded 219 pitcremations, whose number is equal to that of tumuli, whilesome difference in their location has also been noted: tumuliare as a rule situated by the main roads Siscia Emona andSiscia Poetovio running through Andautonian territory,

while pit graves were identi ed both along the roads andat some distance.95 Although some differences have beenobserved between the variously located cemeteries, theycannot be clearly de ned due to the inadequate scope ofresearch. As an illustration of this, two cemeteries fromthe Zagreb area will be brought, both dated to the 1st and2nd centuries. One of them was investigated in 1873 atthe site of Stenjevec in the western district of Zagreb; it produced 123 incinerations of differing typology, with a

89 Mikiv 2006, 7-9.90 On the syntagmSlavonian Mountains see Migotti in this volume, note13, g. 2.91 Demo 1985; Gregl 1997; Gregl and Jelini 2010.92 See notes 59 and 60.93 Gregl 1997, 14-18; Gregl and Jelini 2010.94 See note 58 and 59.95 Gregl 1997, 22.

predominance of tile-constructed graves and pit graveslled with ashes. The small nds from the graves count

among the standard grave goods of the period.96 Anothercemetery has been discovered at the village of GornjaVas in the mountainous umberak region to the west ofZagreb, inhabited by the community of the Latobici. It

was composed of rectangular and circular dry-masonrytombs constructed of unworked stones and stone slabs,measuring approximately 1 by 1 m; a total of 63 tombshave been recovered on an area of 1100 square metres.97 A peculiar feature of the Gornja Vas cemetery is the urnsin the shape of a house (house urns ); it has been presumedthat they were brought by the Latobici from the area ofSalla (Hungary) in the 1st century.98 If now we compare thegrave shapes of the cemeteries at Stenjevec and Gornja Vas,it transpires that they belonged to two completely differentcommunities living at a small distance from each other. Theformer (Stenjevec) exempli es the cemetery of a settlementwhich grew on the main road and whose inhabitants wereItalian incomers and/or Romanised natives, while thelatter (Gornja Vas) is an example of the cemetery of anautochthonous community who, in spite of Romanisation,continued practising traditional funerary rituals ordeveloped new ones based on old customs. A signi cantexample in this regard is a masonry tomb from Zagreb(Drieva Street), resembling those found at the umberakvillages of Gornja Vas and Bratelji. Namely, the cemeteryat Drieva Street was as distant from the main roads aswere the cemeteries in the umberak, which points to the possibility that the native inhabitants of the Andautonianager cherished identical or similar funerary customs.99 Thissubject deserves to be further researched and the previousdata reinterpreted, in order to enable distinguishing betweenthe cemeteries with the prevailing immigrants from thosemostly inhabited by the autochthonous population. Mostimportant in this regard would be a further investigation of Norico-Pannonian tumuli, whose concentration is especiallyhigh in the surrounding of Andautonia.100 At the moment,very important for the study of early cemeteries of the areaare recent nds of burials, recovered during protectiveexcavations of a section of the highway that partly followsthe route of the main road Siscia Emona. Along thiscorridor, three sites yielding Roman settlements and the

related cemeteries have been excavated (epkovica, Okuje,and Gornji Vukojevac). Since the results have not yet beenfully published, the details of the number and shape ofthe graves are lacking. At the moment, the graves can bedetermined as smaller 2 nd -centuryustrinata lled with the pyre debris.101 In broad terms, both the grave shapes andgrave goods correspond to those found in Andautonia andSiscia, therefore supporting the presumption advancedabove, that namely the inhabitants of the rural settlementsalong the main roads shared the same funerary rituals withthe citizens of Andautonia and Siscia. Such conclusion

96 Gregl 1989.97 Gregl 2007, 227-228.98 Mcsy 1974, 17.99 Viki-Belani 1981, 149-150.100 Mcsy 1974, 136.101 Bugar 2009, 271.


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opens the question of the share of natives in the populationof these two towns; this issue, however, remains unresolvedat this stage.

In the rest of the western part of northern Croatia onlya few randomly scattered early cemeteries have been

discovered. Besides the already discussed tumuli (seesection 2.1.4.) cemeteries in the Drava district (Gola, Novaka, Draganovec/Farkai), the village of KunovecBreg northwest of Koprivnica appears as an important siteof the only so-far excavated cremation cemetery in that part of northern Croatia. A total of nineustrinata wereinvestigated, featuring rectangular pits lled with the pyredebris; a grave whose bottom was paved with fragmentsof amphorae and ceramic mortars stands out as a unique

nd.102

3. Transitional (intermediate) cemeteries

While in the core of the Empire inhumation becamecommonplace as early as the time of Hadrians rule, aswitnessed by the mass production of sarcophagi and theintroduction of new forms of funerary architecture, at thesame time incineration was still the most customary wayof burial in Pannonia. Inhumation became more frequentthere only from the 3rd century, although occasionalincinerations occur as late as the 4th century. The 3rd -century cemeteries are named as transitional, on accountof gradual abandonment of incineration and a concomitantintroduction of inhumation. The fact that during a longer period two rituals existed side by side caused the transitionalcemeteries to be characterised by a balanced mixture ofincinerations and inhumations ( g. 23). It should be bornein mind that this process did not develop at the same paceor the same time in various regions of the area of study, as isevident from the fact that the investigated cemeteries showvaried proportions of incinerations to inhumations, as wellas some difference in ritual components.103

Until recently transitional cemeteries of northern Croatiahave been a complete enigma, which comes as a surprisegiven that in the 3rd century the province of Pannoniawas experiencing its age of ourishing, evidenced by a

population increase and the emergence of new settlementsor further growth of those already existing.104 The onlyevidence of this period in northern Croatia in termsof funerary archaeology had until recently been stonesarcophagi, whose number increased exactly in the 3rd century. A problem attached to this category of monumentin the present context is the uncertainty of use of individualspecimens, which, on the base of their outer measurements,could have equally held the body of the deceased and ashes, pinpointing ritual duality of the period.105 On the other hand,these sarcophagi/chests point to the fact that the change infunerary ritual was not based solely on the substitution of

102 Demo 1985, 120-123.103 Andreae 1963, 163-164; Heinzelmann 2001, 26; Pearce 2008, 34.104 Hoti 1992, 145-146.105 Some elements for distinguishing between the sarcophagi and ash-chests do exist, but are not always conclusive. Cf. Migotti 2005, 370.

incineration by inhumation; this change introduced somenew ideas and trends, whose most conspicuous appearancewas funerary stone receptacles.106

3.1. Funerary ritual

The main characteristic of the transitional funerary ritual isa concurrent employment of incineration and inhumation.The lack of information on this phenomenon in northernCroatia has only recently been much improved by two protective excavations in Osijek (the sites of Bana JelaiaSquare and 120 Divaltova Street), in which sections ofMursas eastern and southern cemeteries, respectively,from the late 2nd and the mid-3rd centuries were investigated.These excavations revealed, for the rst time, sections oftransitional cemeteries of Mursa substantial enough to yieldinformation on the arrangement of graves and a variety oftheir shapes, rituals employed, and the relationship betweenincinerations and inhumations. Overall, certain exibility inthe organisation of the cemeteries and the types of burialsemployed can be discerned. A lack of order is re ectedin an uneven spacing within individual rows of graves, aswell as in intersecting burials. Both these phenomena aretypical of transitional cemeteries, whose possible initialtendency towards spatial order was subsequently disturbed by a mixture of incinerations and inhumations, due to thedifferences in both shapes and measurements between gravestructures related to these two rituals.107 Nevertheless, in thetwo investigated Mursan cemeteries inhumations prevailed,with only some 5% to 7% of incinerations. Funerary ritesemployed there can be divided in two basic categories:incineration- and inhumation-related. Besides Mursa,sections of transitional cemeteries have been investigatedin Sotin (Cornacum) and Batina (Ad Militare) enabling,despite the limited scope, some insight into the transitional burial phase in the Danubelimes area. In comparisonwith Mursa, those twolimes sites help achieve a betterunderstanding of the transitional phase in the Danube areaand the differences between various sub-regions and sites(see section 2.4.). In the rest of north-Croatian territory

nds of transitional cemeteries are extremely rare. Untilrecently, only stone sarcophagi testi ed to the existenceof transitional burials.108 It was only in the 2007 and 2008

excavations of the southwestern cemetery of Siscia that acluster of graves presumably from the transitional phasewas recovered ( g. 23). Regrettably, the graves had beenrobbed prior to discovery, with the skeletons missing. Ittherefore remains inconclusive whether they date from thetransitional phase or Late Antiquity.109 Beside the nds ofindividual rural graves and some Norico-Pannonian tumuli, both from the 2nd to 3 rd centuries, an important discoveryoccurred in the cave Bubijeva jama in the vicinity ofKarlovac, which yielded the rst substantial cluster oftransitional graves in northwestern Croatia.110 Still, the

106 On the stone sarcophagi and ash-chests of the area under study seeMigotti 2007b; Gricke-Luki 2011, 70-83.107 Philpott 1993, 413-414;108 Jovanovi 1984, 45.109 Cf. Gricke-Luki 2011.110 Perki 2002.


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overall dearth of evidence prevents a better understandingof the transitional phase of burial in the whole of the areaunder study, as well as the systematisation of the data provided by chance nds. Therefore, the so-far gatheredknowledge on the transitional burial in northern Croatia will be outlined on the example of the cemeteries of Mursa, asthe only resourceful evidence. Those rare other sites thathave been investigated to a certain measure cannot serve but to delineate the differences and similarities, as well asa variety of 3rd -century funerary rituals in the towns andsub-regions of northern Croatia.

3.1.1. Inhumations

It seems that rm roots of incineration in Pannonia andother northwestern provinces caused a certain unwillingnessto embrace inhumation, which was only begun there in the2nd half of the 2nd century.111 Therefore, inhumations fromthe early cemeteries that do exist in southern Pannoniashould by no means be taken as the heralds of incipienttransition, but rather as isolated examples of the gravesof immigrants from the core of the Empire or its orientalregions. 112 The earliest instance of the transitional phaseis represented by a section of the southern cemetery ofMursa, dating from the turn of the 2nd and 3 rd centuries,

111 Nock 1932, 325-326; Jovanovi 1984, 45; Faber and Fasold 2007, 11.112 Jovanovi 1984, 45; Lelekovi 2009, 46.

with the ratio of 5% to 95 % between the incinerations andinhumations. This points to a high rate of the acceptanceof inhumation among the inhabitants from the mid 2nd century, while this rite completely prevailed by the endof the 2nd century. Nevertheless, other settlements, suchas Cornacum and Ad Militare, have produced differentratios, testifying that the transition was neither uniformnor simultaneous, while certain differences between theincineration and inhumation rituals at local levels alsoexisted. Although a meagre sample does not allow plottinga systematic typology of differences, it is possible to isolate

three main differentiating characteristics: the way the bodywas deposited, the choice of grave goods and the numberof items, and nally, the grave form. Supine inhumations prevail (218 graves or 59%), with the legs stretched orslightly bent, and with the head straight up. Although thehands are usually on the pelvis, apparently there exists nosingle canonical position. Nevertheless, the position of thearms was certainly part of the ritual, as suggested by severalrecurrent variations: both arms along the sides; one of thehands on the pelvis and the other along the side; handsfolded on the chest; hands to the shoulders. In the slightlyless than 10% of the cases, the skeletons were placed onside with legs semi- exed, associating sleep. Some ofthe skeletons were in foetal position, which is otherwisetypical of the Germanic peoples from across the Danube.113

113 See Filipovi 2010, 21.

Fig. 17. 28 Gundulieva Street, Sisak: example of two separate burial layers in the southwestern cemetery (photo: T. Lelekovi).


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The same variety can be observed in the orientation of theskeletons and graves ( g. 18). The majority were oriented N-S (31%), W-E (30%), and NW-SE (11%), meaning thatin nearly two fourths of all 3rd -century graves the deceasedwere buried with the head to the east, north, or south, whilein 30% the head was to the NE-SW (5.4%), W-E (5.4%),SW-NE (4.4%), and SE-NW (4.1%). 16 graves held morethan one body, of which 14 each held two, while two graveseach held three bodies. A separate category of graves arethose holding bodies buried with no indications of ritual,and placed on face; eight examples were found, adding upto 2% of all skeletons. In all eight of them the bodies were

evidently dumped in the pits that can hardly be consideredas proper graves. This is suggested by the fact that the pits bottoms were unevenly cut and the bones found innon-anatomical position, displaying a complete lack ofritual observance. Two social categories can tentatively beconnected with the burials disrespectful of the communitysritual norms: outcasts and the poor.

The transition from incineration to inhumation had itsimpact on the choice and number of grave goods. In thetransitional phase burials lacking grave goods started tooccur more frequently, marking a clear difference fromthe earlier graves, which customarily contained at leastsome goods. In the transitional cemeteries of Mursa nearly60% of the burials lacked grave goods. The remainder didinclude associated artefacts, characterised by a conspicuous

variety of forms and quantities. The excavations of a sectionof the southern Mursan cemetery at 120 Divaltova Streetin Osijek yielded curious results: practically none of the 82recovered graves produced an artefact that can be estimatedas an item of dress accessory. The only similar items arethe remains of shoes; in none of the cases were the shoesworn, but were always deposited next to the deceased, asa grave good in the basic meaning of this syntagm ( gs.20 and 21).114 Presumably, it was the custom not to dressthe deceased in the every-day clothes, except possiblya tunic.115 If indeed this was the funerary custom of theSeveran period, it was changed by the 2nd half of the 3rd

century, as the later transitional graves yielded jewellery,shoes and dress accessories (belt buckles and brooches)in the positions as worn.116 Among the vessels, ceramicforms suitable for drinking or serving drinks come mostfrequently. Vessels possibly intended for the solid food arerare, suggesting that the funerary ritual was altered in thisrespect as well.117 The only grave good that deserves to bespeci cally mentioned is ceramic oil lamps, which werestill commonplace in inhumations of the Severan period, tolast deep in the 3rd century. In the 2nd half of the 3rd century,however, none of the inhumations contained such objects.

114 On the difference between grave goods and personal possessions cf.Migotti and Perini 2001, 123-124.115 Vukmani and Hrak 2010, 34; Lelekovi 2010.116 Lelekovi 2011.117 Gricke-Luki 2011, 162-167; see also note 26.

Fig. 18. Bana Jelaia Square, Osijek, graves 97 and 99: two inhumations of opposite orientation, 250-260 AD (photo: A. tefan).


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Fig. 19. Bana Jelaia Square, Osijek, double grave 17 ofa man and a woman (photo: T. Lelekovi).

Fig. 20. 120 Divaltova Street, Osijek: inhumation grave52 with the remains of the deposited shoes, 1st half of the

3 rd c. (photo: V. Mesari).

Fig. 21. 120 Divaltova Street, Osijek: detail of grave 41 ( g. 20) showing the manner of depositing the footwear (photo:V. Mesari).


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Curiously, during this time ceramic oil lamps come onlywith incinerations, which will be discussed below.

The study of the transitional cemeteries of Mursa has shownthat pit graves ( g. 26.1) strongly predominate over tiletombs ( gs. 26.3-5), with pits either rectangular or oval inform and with relatively rare burials featuring remains ofwooden cof ns. Of a total of 393 graves only 19 producednails and remains of cof n ttings ( g. 26.2), of which 15were grave pits and four were tombs. Tombs of this phasehave been found in Siscia and Mursa, mostly constructed oftiles with no mortar, which does not qualify them as tombsin the narrow meaning. Three shapes of such constructionshave been evidenced. The simplest variant was constructedof gable-wise arranged tiles, with the bottom sometimes paved with tiles, so that the perpendicularly set tiles liningthe walls were either placed on the pavement tiles ordirectly on the earth ( g. 26.3). Another type is the gravein the form of chest or cof n, constructed of tiles lining boththe bottom and the walls, as well as covering the receptacle( g. 26.4). The third type of grave is also chest-shaped, butwith gable-wise set tiles; tiles lined its longer sides bothon the inside and outside, giving additional solidity to theroof ( g. 26.5). The short sides were closed with gable tiles,

Fig. 22. 28 Gundulieva Street, Sisak: southwestern cemetery, tomb 26 (photo: T. Lelekovi).

and the interior was never plastered.118 Examples of truetombs were very poorly preserved, hardly ever featuringmore than the bottom and foundations, suggesting thereforecompletely aboveground structures. The examples fromOsijek and Sisak testify to substantial buildings measuring2 by 3 m, with tiled and mortared walls, and even stonedoorframes, as in the case of a tomb from the southwesternSiscian cemetery ( g. 22). The Siscian tombs producedstone chests, whose use in terms of funerary ritual remainsinconclusive.119

3.1.2. Cremations

All cremations from the transitional phase appear to bebusta , as they feature burnt walls and contain the pyredebris mixed with the ashes and burnt grave goods. Someof the graves lack traces of burning on their walls, but thisshould not deprive them of the de nition asbusta (seesection 2.1.2.). One of the possible explanations is thatthe upper, presumably burnt portions of their walls, do notsurvive. The other possibility is that such graves were notbusta in the narrow meaning of the word, as cremating

118 Lelekovi 2011; Gricke-Luki 2011.119 Lelekovi 2009b, 294-295; see also note 105.


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Fig. 23. 120 Divaltova Street, Osijek: plan of theexcavated section of the south cemetery (photo:

V. Mesari).

Fig. 24. 120 DivaltovaStreet, Osijek, grave

31: stepped-sideincineration grave, 3 rd c. (photo: V. Mesari).


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might have occurred by the pit, which received the remainsonly subsequently. In general, the evidence testi es that thecustom of cremating remained deep into the 3rd century, butunderwent some changes, one of them being the shape ofthe bustum . While in the earlier periodbusta took shapesof oval or rectangular pits, characterised by intense burningof the walls and reduced grave inventories,busta of thetransitional phase are of two types: 1. irregular in shape,

with unevenly burnt walls; 2. featuring stepped sides(graves en tage). Besides these two types of pit-busta ,another form is typical of the 3rd century: atbusta undertumuli (see section 2.1.4.).

So far irregularbusta have been recovered only in recentexcavations of the southern cemetery of Mursa; the graveswere of the type with cremation by the pit (see above). Asmore evidence of such graves is still missing, they cannot bediscussed at any length. On the other hand, the graves withstepped sides ( en tage) and chambers on two levels, knownalso as Mala Kopanica-Sase type ( gs. 24 and 25), have been well studied in the Danube and Balkan provinces.120 The upper chamber is usually preserved to the depth of 0.40m, always taking rectangular shape and holding a smaller

120 Jovanovi 2000, 205.

oval or rectangular pit (the lower chamber) in its midst.Accordingly, the cross section is stepped, giving the nameto this type of grave. Three such graves were recoveredin the 2008 and 2009 excavations in Osijek - one in theeastern Mursan cemetery (Bana Jelaia Square) and two inthe southern (120 Divaltova Street). The eastern cemetery

(early 2nd

century) produced a stepped grave (sub-type A)whose upper chamber, measuring 2.72 by 1.15 m, was onlyslightly more spacious than the lower, which measured2.54 by 0.74 m. The graves (sub-type B) from the southerncemetery (early 3rd century) differ from the type A in thatthe upper chamber was signi cantly more spacious then thelower, and that the latter was covered with tiles. The mostconspicuous difference, however, is in the abundance ofgrave goods in graves of the type B. The chronological gapof nearly one hundred years between the discussed types ofgraves suggests that the sub-types A and B represent twochronological stages of development of stepped cremations.The sub-type B is presumably later, and is characterised by the development of wall extensions for the depositionof grave goods. Stepped graves of the sub-type B arewidespread in southeast Pannonia, Upper Moesia, and in parts of the neighbouring provinces. A. Jovanovi pointsout that the share ofbusta , especially the stepped type, isin these provinces disproportionately high in comparisonwith the rest of the Empire, with the percentage of 60% to90% in the cemeteries of Moesia and Sirmium, the latterstanding in the present context for southeast Pannonia (seesection 2.1.2.).121 Signi cantly, the percentage ofbustain Mursa is also at about 60%, its rst layer of burials inthe eastern cemetery corresponding to the distribution as presented by Jovanovi. On the other side, the share ofbusta in the transitional cemeteries of Mursa amounts to100%.122 On balance, the share ofbusta in north-CroatianRoman cemeteries cannot be studied in isolation, butwithin their chronological unfolding. A. Jovanovi failed toseparate busta of the early and transitional phases, renderingquestionable his theory of the origin and distribution ofbusta in the Balkan-Danube area, at least as far as southernPannonia is concerned. On the account of the concentrationof busta in Moesia, especially the stepped type, Jovanoviconsidered this burial custom as originating in the Balkannative communities, those in southern Pannonia included.

Nevertheless, the way and manner of its importation to therest of Pannonia remain unexplained, sincebusta appearalso in northern and western Pannonia. Two steppedbusta of the sub-type B have been evidenced in Intercisa; in oneof them both chambers held the pyre debris, and in anotherthe ashes were deposited in the lower chamber covered bya wooden plank, while the upper chamber held the gravegoods covered by the pyre debris free of bone.123 Thesuggestion has been put forward that it was the soldiersstationed in Pannonia in the 1st and 2 nd centuries whodisseminated busta to other regions of the Empire.124

121 Jovanovi 2000, 205-206.122 Lelekovi 2010, 49-50; Lelekovi 2011.123 Barkczi, Erd lyi and Ferenczy 1954, 43, 50.124 Pirling 2002, 524-526.

Fig. 25. 120 Divaltova Street, Osijek, grave 38: stepped-side incineration grave, 3 rd c. (photo: V. Mesari).


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In the context of the above discussion, a masonry tombfrom the western cemetery of Mursa, recovered in 1966,deserves attention. It was constructed of stone and tiles,covered by massive stone slabs, and plastered on theinside, measuring 2 (length) x 1.42 (width) x 0.60 (depth)m. Underneath was a lower chamber measuring 0.82 x

1.40 x 0.40 m, lined and covered with tiles and holdingthe pyre debris. Altogether, this tomb strongly resemblesstepped busta of the sub-type B. The grave inventory (two bronze pitchers and a tray, inkwell cover, collapsible ironstool and pottery vessels) is unusually lavish for Mursasstandards, but the precise ndspot of the grave goods withinth

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