Clay and Pots from Eneolithic period

This paper was presented at the YRA Workshop 2025 in Budapest.

The Gumelnitsa culture is one of the most representative expressions of the Eneolithic in the northern Balkan Peninsula, with a range covering vast regions of southern Romania - Muntenia, eastern Oltenia, southeastern Moldavia and Dobrogea - as well as the southern Danubian territories of Bulgarian and Greek Thrace. This extension defines the Gumelnitsa-Kodžadermen-Karanovo VI cultural complex, whose communities evolved between 4600-3900 BC. Among the numerous archaeological sites identified, the tell of Popina-Bordușani (Ialomita county) is characterized by a complex stratigraphy, which reveals a succession of dwellings: from the Getic and Sarmatic to th Neolithic occupation, the latter being the most important and reaching, in places, a thickness of up to 8 meters. On the basis of chronological and cultural analysis, the tell is attributed to the A2 phase of the Gumelnitsa culture, reflecting a period of its maximum development. Among the essential aspects of daily life at that time was the production of pottery, a complex process involving careful selection of raw materials, shaping, decoration and firing in specialized kilns. The petrographic analyses carried out on the pottery from the tell of Popina-Bordușani have provided essential information on manufacturing technologies, the source of raw materials, but also the dynamics of craft traditions. The results of this research indicate the persistence of traditional customs and techniques in the process of making and using ceramic vessels, suggesting a cultural continuity deeply rooted within the local community.

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