The Avar Period Settlement and the Ceramic Finds from the Cemetery in Zillingtal, Burgenland, Eastern Austria

Abstract

A settlement and a cemetery from the Avar period (7th to 8th century AD) were excavated near Zillingtal in Burgenland (Eastern Austria) between 1985 and 1997. In addition to Avar period settlement features, a building of a Roman villa disturbed by post-Roman settlement activity was excavated at the settlement site. Most of the settlement activity disturbing the villa building can be dated to the Avar period. The cemetery of Zillingtal comprised 797 graves and is thus the largest cemetery from the Avar period in Austria. The study briefly presented here analysed the Avar period settlement and the ceramic finds of the cemetery, concentrating on three main topics: (1) the relationship of settlements from the Roman and the Avar period, (2) pottery production and use in the Avar period and (3) the deposition of grave goods in the Zillingtal cemetery in relation to the age and gender of the deceased. This article offers a very short overview of those results that are directly connected to the site of Zillingtal.