in: Die Archöologie der prähistorischen Spiritualität in dem Karpathen-Pontus-Donau-Raum, Symposium 27-29 März 2007, Constanţa 2009 65

THE ARCHITECTURE OF TEMPLES\SA�CTUARIES I� BA�AT A�D

TRA�SYLVA�IA DURI�G �EOLITHIC A�D COPPER AGE PERIODS

by

Gheorghe Lazarovici, Cornelia-Magda Lazarovici

Published in : „Arheologia spiritualiăţii preistorice în ţinuturile carpato-ponto-danubiene”,

Fundaţia „Rădăcinile Europei”, Constanţa 2009, p. 65-76.

Definitions, generalities

In our opinion, a temple is a monumental cult building that has several altars and sanctuaries,

domestic shrines where religious rituals were performed.

Fig. 1. Parţa cultic places: a) level 7c-6 ▲; b) level 5c

A typical temple example is Sanctuary or Temple 2 at Parţa (Banat culture: Lazarovici Gh. 1998,

10, 2/3: Lazarovici Gh. et alii 2001, 220, 226, 230-234, 237-238, 240, 240; C.-M. Lazarovici, Gh.

Lazarovici 2006a, 300 sq.) The Temple 2 was reconstructed in Banat Museum, at Timişoara. The temple

was in the central part of site, other cultic constructions are in different part (fig. 1).

The Sanctuary contents

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Fig. 2 The Temples/Sanctuaries ▲ 1 and 2▼ from Parţa

in: Die Archöologie der prähistorischen Spiritualität in dem Karpathen-Pontus-Donau-Raum, Symposium 27-29 März 2007, Constanţa 2009 67

Interior installations of different cult constructions of Neo-Eneolithic time show many analogies

between those from Near East and Anatolia and those from South-East Europe.

Generally, a Temple has a monumental statue, one or more monumental altars or cultic tables,

special places for burning products (fumigation), cultic grinding, blood offering (mactatio), liquid offering

and other (Lazarovici Gh. 1991, 13-19 and bibl.).

A new domestic altar has been noticed when we have reanalyze some pieces discovered at Gura

Baciului, in the Starčevo – Criş culture. The only domestic sanctuary might be P24 ( Gh. Lazarovici,

Maxim 1995, 109-111, 145-146, 186-187, fig. 13/4, 21/7; fig. 33 area M7). Here on the walking level we

have founded a stella made by a local sandstone (16,5 x 11 cm, 15 mm thin, but in the beginning it seems

to have about 25 cm), with inferior part broken. This represents a bust and the breasts are two orifices: this

stella is a schematic representation of the Big Mother. On the dorsal part it is a half moon, a lozenge

phallus head and two-three alveolus that suggest the sacred seed; this pieces is related with the fertility and

fecundity cult (Lazarovici Gh., Lazarovici C.-M. 2006).

Gura Baciului, Starčevo – Criş culture, phase II, domestic altar with stella

Fig. 3 Gura Baciului, Starčevo - Criş culture, House 24, stone stella

This stella was in house P24, where a stone head was on the top of an incinerated skeleton. The

problems related with skull cult and domestic sanctuary at Gura Baciului has been presented in other article

(Lazarovici Gh., Lazarovici C.-M. 2006).

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Communitarian Shrine at Zorlenţu Mare

Fig. 4 Zorlenţu Mare, central place with shrine (L4)

At Zorlenţu Mare, in Vinča culture, phase A3/B1, in the central part of site, in the first level have

been discovered one house with a monumental human had, stocked on the wall. This house has any sort of

inventory, fact that seems very strange. One part of the house was suspended, the earth being in slope. We

believe that here it was a shrine.

in: Die Archöologie der prähistorischen Spiritualität in dem Karpathen-Pontus-Donau-Raum, Symposium 27-29 März 2007, Constanţa 2009 69

Fig. 5. Zorlenţu Mare, Vinča culture, phase A3/B1, monumental statue from a communitarian sanctuary

Fig. 6. Liubcova, leg from a monumental altar or statue

Shrine at Parţa in P126

In house 126 at Parţa, over the ruins of a vault oven (with hearth in front of it) a domestic altar

was built. On the older hearth a rectangle post was set on which a clay bull head was modeled; a clay ear

similar with those from Sanctuary 2 was found. In the same building it was a conic idol (Lazarovici Gh. et

alii I.2, 2001, fig. 49/6), another conic idol with sacred signs such as lozenge, “W” or “M”, symbolizing

star constellations, Cassiopeia (Lazarovici Gh. et alii I.2, 2001, fig. 49/3 : database cod 151d, 189; 189e,

163: Lazarovici Gh. 2004, 49-55), a horn fragment maybe from the bull head, a stone tool and fragment

from four–five pots destroyed by clay sling balls. In the area of the building other 20 entire big clay sling

balls have been discovered as well as fragments from others.

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Fig.7. Parţa: P 126, the hearth with the trace of the post▲, b) cult objects destroyed by sling clay balls

in: Die Archöologie der prähistorischen Spiritualität in dem Karpathen-Pontus-Donau-Raum, Symposium 27-29 März 2007, Constanţa 2009 71

Fig. 8.Parţa, P126, cult objects destroyed by sling clay balls, first part of the discovery

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Pianul de Jos altar

At Pianul de Jos, in Petreşti AB layer a monumental table –altar have been discovered. This has a

triangle shape and was decorated on the border with an in relief garland. On this table it was several cult

pots (painted cups, pot-stand) and under the table was a big provision pot (in the sanctuary it was 10 pots).

Iuliu Paul who has discovered this table-altar also mentions a grinding stone and an anthropomorphic (Paul

1965, 5 ff., fig. 1-4, pl. I-II; 1992, 104-106, LII/2-3; DEAVR 1980, 297: Gimbutas 1984, 81, fig. 34:

Monah 1997, 34: Lazarovici Gh. et alii 2001 I.1, 268, 234).

Fig. 9. Pianul de Jos, altar, Petreşti culture

Other monumental pieces

Other monumental pieces from domestic or communitarian altars have been discovered by Sabin Adrian

Luca at Liubcova (Luca 1998, 209, fig. 43/5, 51 ff.). Some of them have strong analogies with those one

from house no. 5 (cult house) at Isaiia (Ursulescu, Tencariu 2006, pl. XI/6-7).

in: Die Archöologie der prähistorischen Spiritualität in dem Karpathen-Pontus-Donau-Raum, Symposium 27-29 März 2007, Constanţa 2009 73

The three pieces are parts of big altars similar to

those discovered in other sanctuaries such as Véstő-Mágor

(Hegedűs, Makkay 1987, abb. 3-4, 7-8), Parţa (P154 or Oven

House/Casa cuptorului: Lazarovici C. M., Lazarovici Gh.

2006a, 266-267, fig. IIIb 70-71) or at Ruginoasa (excavation

M. & Gh. Lazarovici, not published yet). The pieces from

Ruginoasa are not so well fired, or they have just been backed

when the house was fired. Such pieces have been also

discovered at Parţa in “Casa cuptorului” and Uivar (W. Schier

presentation November 2007, Timişoara).

The mention pieces have analogies in Late Neolithic

at Véstő-Mágor. Here there are many monumental pieces

(altars, big pots, throne-pots: Hegedűs, Makkay 1987, abb. 3-

4: Gimbutas 1991a, 3-27). At Véstő-Mágor, on the big altar

table we can see (fig.11a) another big table, with many foots.

This last has very strong analogies with a later piece

discovered in an domestic altar at Reci, Bodrogkeresztúr

culture (or a synthesis between this and Cucuteni: Bartok

2005, 62, 66, fig. 16) and with the quadrilateral pot from

Isaiia sanctuary 2 (Ursulescu 2001, 53-54; Ursulescu,

Tencariu 2006; Lazarovici C.-M., Lazarovici Gh. 2006a,

565).

Véstő-Mágor discoveries show the place these

pieces have been kept and the context of their use.

There are other many monumental pieces such as

thrones, throne-pots, big anthropomorphic pots, even

Fig. 10. Ruginoasa, pieces from

monumental altars

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Fig. 11 a) Véstő-Mágor, Tisza culture▲, 11b) Reci ▼, Bodrogkeresztúr culture

in: Die Archöologie der prähistorischen Spiritualität in dem Karpathen-Pontus-Donau-Raum, Symposium 27-29 März 2007, Constanţa 2009 75

similar altars such as those discovered at Véstő-Mágor or others from Tisza or Szakálhát cultures (over 20

pieces: The Late Neolithic 1997, 14-17, 53, 55, 59, 72, 77, 78, 87, 91, 94).

Such monumental pieces there are even in Romanian territory during Copper Age: at Tangâru a

monumental statue was on a throne (Lazarovici C.-M., Lazarovici Gh. 2007. Capitolul Vc. Cultura

Gumelniţa); in the same building, the walls have been painted with white and brown on a red background;

a clay column was on the S part (Berciu D. 1961, 420-421; Marinescu-Bîlcu apud Ursulescu 1998, 103,

27/3; Andreescu 2002, 15).

In the last period we have written several studies related with sanctuaries and monumental pieces

(Lazarovici C.- M. 2003; 2004; Lazarovici Gh., Lazarovici C.-M. 2003; 2006a; Lazarovici Gh. Roma

2007) because they are very important to understand the religion and cult practices of the civilizations we

are investigating. Their life and activities have been very much related with sacred.

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