Schyłek okresu wędrówek ludów/wczesne średniowiecze
Authors: Wadyl Sławomir 
Published: December 2022

Pottery is the most abundant category of archaeological material discovered at Pasym. The analysed sherds were divided into sub-assemblages based on the stratigraphic units from which they were recovered. Each group of sherds collected from a specific feature or cultural layer was treated as a separate sub-assemblage. A total of 113 ceramic sub-assemblages were identified. The number of sherds analysed amounted to 20,199. Rim fragments accounted for 9.6% (1938 pieces) of all sherds. Base sherds were less numerous (602 pieces), accounting for 3%. The largest group consisted of body sherds (17,636 pieces), which made up 87% of the total. The assemblage is completed by 21 foot sherds and 8 handle fragments. The estimated maximum number of vessels is 2326. The minimum number of vessels was estimated using only those which were represented by characteristic fragments (rims, bases and foot sherds). This yielded a result of 1086 vessels. The different production techniques recognised in the examined assemblage served as the basis for dividing the pottery into technological groups. The first group (GT1) comprises handmade vessels with characteristically thick walls and, in most cases, a roughly finished exterior (classified as kitchenware). This group numbered 1232 vessels, accounting for 53% of all pottery. The second group (GT2) consists of handmade vessels with thin walls and well-finished surfaces (smoothed and/or burnished). A total of 1040 vessels were ascribed to this category, hence 45% of the entire assemblage. The next group (GT3) is made up of vessels which were hand-formed but then wheel-finished up to their maximum body diameter. Only four such vessels were recorded. The final group (GT4) is composed of hand-formed vessels that were fully wheel-finished. These were noted in greater number – 50 vessels were assigned to this group, representing 2% of the whole assemblage. Overall, however, GT3 and GT4 vessels account for a negligible proportion of all pottery. The ceramic assemblage from Pasym comprises two entirely different categories of pottery, referred to as kitchenware and tableware. The variety of vessel forms in the first category is fairly limited: the majority are relatively tall, slender, ovoid pots with a curved neck, most of them decorated with applied strips, finger impressions and pinched ornament. However, almost half of the vessels in this category were not decorated. The search for parallels to the identified pot types was restricted to materials from the Masurian Lakeland of late migration and early medieval date (7th–9th century). Given the widespread popularity of similar simple ovoid forms, it was deemed redundant to look for analogies further afield and of a different chronology. Migration period pottery production in the region of interest shows only very limited continuity of the ceramic traditions of the period of Roman influences. Tableware is a specific regional feature of pottery produced by the Olsztyn group, which lasted well into the early medieval period. Contrary to previous opinion, it is just as numerously represented at settlement sites as kitchenware. It comes in a range of forms and is variously decorated. Although not all vessels in this assemblage are decorated, over 60% are. The most typical are low, squat forms of jars. The search for analogies was limited to materials from the Masurian Lakeland dating from the late migration and early medieval periods (8th–9th century), as no similar types of vessel occur outside this region. It is worth highlighting that pottery of the forms identified at Pasym does not appear in burial assemblages at cemetery sites attributable to the terminal phase of the Olsztyn group. The greatest number of parallels come from the well-documented and published excavations at settlement sites in Tumiany and Wyszembork. Many features of pottery production at Pasym have no close analogies, which points to the distinctive character of ceramic craft in this part of the Masurian Lakeland in the early medieval period. To a large extent, this picture reflects the current state of research. The excavations at Pasym show unequivocally that that two different ceramic traditions coexisted during the period from the late 7th to the 9th century. Kitchenware was probably used for cooking, whilst most tableware was used for serving food. VI.3.2. Small finds VI.3.2.1. Household equipment Items of household equipment are found in large numbers during every excavation. They are not always easy to identify, mainly due to their fragmentary state of preservation. The most numerous were ceramic vessels, which formed an essential part of every household’s equipment. No wooden vessels were found because conditions were not favourable for their preservation. However, bucket fittings did survive, evidencing that wooden vessels were quite common. Some iron and copper fittings appear to have come from items of domestic equipment. There is a large assemblage of nails and rivets which were probably used to connect structural components of buildings. Querns and rubbers were important articles in every household. Two types of quern were identified: saddle querns and rotary querns. These were used in conjunction with stone rubbers to grind grain. Households were also equipped with other stone tools such as pestles, smoothers and polishers. Some may have been used in craft production. VI.3.2.2. Iron and non-ferrous metal processing equipment Certain artefacts recovered during excavation (lumps of iron ore, slag and crucibles) suggest that iron and non-ferrous metals may have been processed on site. No furnaces for smelting or any other fire-related processes came to light. The discovery of metallurgical ceramics was particularly interesting. These finds took the form of three crucibles used for smelting non-ferrous metals. Analysis of the crucibles’ inner surfaces revealed residues of silver and non-ferrous metal alloys. Residues of tin (Sn), copper (Cu), zinc (Zn) and lead (Pb) alloys were detected in one crucible, while residues of silver alloys were found in great abundance in another crucible, embedded in its walls in the form of small droplets. Most of them had a very high content of silver (Ag), ranging from 93% to 97%. VI.3.2.3. Bone and antler artefacts Some of the objects made of bone and antler show that these raw materials were processed by craftspeople. These were primarily combs, pins and sleeves. Some of the simpler items did not require a high level of skill and could have been homemade. This is all the more likely given that bone and antler were widely available and relatively easy to work with. Bone- and antler-working was modestly attested by the discovery of product blanks. All of these came from the fill of houses or pits, providing further evidence that these raw materials were processed on site. VI.3.2.4. Spinning and weaving tools Textile making was an everyday activity during the early medieval period. The production of clothing involved several stages: spinning, weaving and further processing of fabrics. The first task was to produce linen or woollen yarn. Tools found at Pasym which were used in this process include spindle whorls, spindle hooks, carding-comb teeth and loom weights. Twelve spindle whorls were recovered from excavation. One of them was made of amber, and the rest of clay. Three types were distinguished: biconical with angular carination; biconical with rounded carination; and round spindle whorls. Using the criteria of weight and diameter, the whorls can be divided into two groups: small spindle whorls and medium-sized ones. Those in the first group have diameters of 22–29 mm and weigh 8–17 g. The second group of whorls have diameters of 31–36 mm and weigh 25–32 g. Spindles were integral to the use of whorls. Although spindles themselves do not survive at Pasym, there is a certain group of finds that can be associated with them, namely hooks with twisted shanks. Six items of this type were found in feature 4/18. These hooks were probably screwed into the top of the spindle so that it could be attach to the yarn and suspended from it during spinning. The use of carding combs is attested by the presence of small iron needles or teeth, which were originally set in a wooden base. Nine such teeth, probably used for combing linen or woollen fibres, were recorded. The discovery of loom weights and their fragments was significant, as it pointed to the existence of a weaving workshop furnished with a loom. This would doubtless have been a vertical loom. There were 228 loom-weight fragments representing around 20 specimens. The majority weighed between 450 g and 520 g. They were 94–104 mm high, with a base diameter of 78–82 mm. VI.3.2.5. Multipurpose tools This category encompasses a whole range of essential household items, primarily various types of tools and implements, many of which could be put to a multitude of uses. They include general purpose tools such as knives, needles and spikes, as well as rather more specialist ones, dedicated to specific tasks (punches and perforators). Knives are among the most common tools. They were widely used in everyday life and in many crafts and trades. A total of 53 knives of various types were found at Pasym. One of the most interesting was a pivoting knife with two blades. No similar examples have ever been found in areas inhabited by Western Balts during the early medieval period. The nearest analogies in geographical terms come from Belarus, Veliky Novogrod, from a cemetery site in Madi, Estonia, and from Hybbestad in southern Norway. Other parallels are known from Frisian Dorestad and the British Isles, where the greatest number of comparable knives have been noted. Other interesting knives include small specimens with an oval protrusion at the tip of the blade, probably used for skinning animals. The materials from Pasym include two truncated conical sleeves made of deer antler. These were used to reinforce the knife handle. One of the sleeves is decorated with two bands of horizontal lines bordering a series of crosshatched lines. Iron punches represent another group of versatile tools. They were most often used by blacksmiths and jewellers to produce punched ornament and for engraving, incising and other types of precision work, predominantly to execute decoration. Fourteen tools of this type were identified among the finds from the Pasym stronghold. Iron awls are universal tools used in the processing of organic materials, particularly leather. They served primarily for making holes and tracing cutting patterns onto leather. They were also doubtless used to repair leather goods. Three awls were discovered at Pasym; two of them survived with part of their wooden handle. Chisels were also universal tools, utilised in woodworking, metallurgy and jewellery production. Another group of universal tools is represented by whetstones, of which 21 were found. These were divided into roughly made (group A) and finely worked (group B) specimens. Group A was by far the more numerous. Two of the group B whetstones had been perforated for suspension. Needles constitute another group of multipurpose tools. Most of these small utensils with eyelets are made of bone; only a few are made of antler. They were mainly used for sewing clothes, weaving, and repairing fishing nets. Larger needles were used in making woollen clothing by a method known as knotless knitting or needle binding (from the Danish: Nålebinding). Fifteen bone needles were identified among the finds from Pasym. Two larger stitching tools in the form of awls were also recovered. The assemblage is completed by 20 iron sewing needles. There was also a group of curved tools with a pointed tip, which were made of antler. Six items of this type were found at z Pasym. Two of them had a suspension hole at one end. They were probably used for making fishing nets. VI.3.2.6. Weapons This category of finds includes a series of arrowheads and the remains of a spearhead and an axehead. A total of 15 iron arrowheads and two probable arrowheads made of antler came to light. Some were recovered from ditches, others from the slopes facing the lake, though a few were found in houses and in the stronghold’s central space. All bar one are socketed and barbed. Two have a twisted socket. They can be classified to Andrzej Nadolski’s type I (1954, 64) or to type 2 of Alexander Medvedev’s typology (1966, 63). The socketed and barbed arrowheads are among the most commonly encountered in the early medieval period, and have an extremely wide territorial distribution. The materials from Pasym include two deer antler arrowheads. They were made from the tips of antler tines, which were subsequently carefully smoothed and honed. A funnel-shaped recess at the blunt end acted as a socket for mounting the projectile on a shaft. There are no details to report about the fragmentary spearhead and axehead. VI.3.2.7. Personal accessories This category of finds includes personal ornaments, dress accessories and personal grooming items, as well as fish hooks, crampons and ice skates. Ornaments and dress accessories (Sławomir Wadyl, Sylwia Wajda) Particularly notable are two bronze plate fibulae of the Wólka Prusinowska type. They are small (total length c. 5 cm) with a relatively large head, decorated with small, radiating knobs. To date no more than 20 such fibulae have been found. Almost all of them came from burial contexts and most were discovered before 1939 at cemetery sites of the Olsztyn group. Fibulae of this type are considered to be characteristic of the terminal phase of the Olsztyn group (latter half of the 7th century). The assemblage also includes a cruciform fibula. This variant of a disc brooch has four arms with oval terminals extending from a small, central disc. The spring mechanism of this brooch survives on its underside. The brooch also features an extant fragment of chain composed of double links. Chains were used in conjunction with dress fasteners and ornaments. The metalwork from Pasym included two items with chains and three individual links. Bone pins are an interesting category of artefacts. Three specimens were found, two of them decorated. They are usually interpreted as fasteners for clothing or hair. Buckles are distinctive dress accessories. They were made of both iron and non-ferrous metals. Twelve buckles were identified in the analysed assemblage. Five were sufficiently well preserved to identify them to type. Two of them had rectangular frames, two had profiled trapezoidal frames, and the fifth was a D-shaped buckle. The metalwork from Pasym also includes five elongated, rectangular items deemed to be belt fittings. They are decorated with double lines along their longer edges. Two small oval studs are also thought to be belt parts. The ornaments in this assemblage include four lozenge-shaped and two trapezoidal pendants made from sheet bronze. A dozen or so finds of this type have been recorded in the Masurian Lakeland. They are usually attributed to contact with Slavic peoples. Bronze beads are represented by two specimens: one biconical and one tubular. The biconical bead is made from thin spirally coiled wire, whilst the tubular one is made from a thin, rolled-up strip. These beads were doubtless part of a necklace. Four glass beads were recovered during excavation, three of them complete and one a half-fragment. Two are seed beads made of dark blue, clear glass, while the other two are segmented metal foil beads. All four were made from a drawn glass tube, the metal foil being sandwiched between two layers of glass. Beads of this type were probably produced in Byzantine or Islamic workshops, from where they were taken to various destinations, including Europe. The list of ornaments is completed by a bracelet and two finger-rings made from a strip of sheet copper. There is also a penannular item with hook and eye terminals forming a fastening. Finds of this type are usually associated with female dress. It has been suggested that they may have been bracelets, armlets or earrings. Toilet accessories A set of artefacts relating to personal hygiene was recovered from excavations at Okrągła Góra, consisting of combs, a pair of tweezers, and an ear scoop. Combs are the most common toiletry items. Three examples were found at Pasym. All of them are composite, single-sided combs. The connecting plates are of various forms, and on this basis the combs can be classified as different types. Each comb is ornately decorated. Chronological and stratigraphic analysis indicates that they date from the 8th–9th century. It is highly likely that they were made by an itinerant craftsman. The tweezers were made from a thin, quadrilateral sheet of metal measuring 3 mm in width. The closed end of the tweezers is oval in shape. The whole tweezers are only 25 mm long. The ear scoop is square in cross-section, shaped into a spoon at one end and a loop at the other. Each surface is decorated with a single row of punched dots. Crampons, skates and fish hooks Crampons are devices that assist movement on slippery surfaces, particularly ice. Some were designed to be driven into horses’ hooves, making it possible to use horse-drawn vehicles in winter conditions. Two crampons were found at Pasym. Both are of a type that have a single spike, and were made from a strip of iron with sharp, narrow ends. The crampon would have been fixed to a leather or wooden base and then tied on to the shoe. Skates were worn to move across ice. A pair of skates made from horse shin bones came to light at Pasym. Hooks are among the most characteristic objects associated with fishing. Eleven iron hooks were discovered at Pasym. They include both small, delicate examples made of thin wire, and far more robust specimens. The stronghold’s lakeside setting meant that fishing was an important activity for its inhabitants, and one of the basic ways in which they acquired food. VI.3.2.8. Coin One coin was found at Pasym – a Sasanian drachma of Khosrow II (Persian ruler of the Sasanian dynasty from 591 to 628). Part of the name of Khosrow II and a year coinciding with the third decade of his reign appear on the obverse (the end of the date features on the reverse). Approximately one-third of the coin survives (extant length 15 mm, width 11 mm), though this is a result of it having been cut into smaller pieces for transaction purposes rather than because of damage. The coin also features numerous cut marks. It is made of a silver alloy with the evident addition of gold, lead and mercury. No Arabian coins had previously been found in or around Pasym. The nearest discoveries come from Olsztyn-Las Miejski and Ramsowo (c. 30 km to the north). The fact that the coin survives in fragmentary form and has cut marks on it indicates that it did not reach Pasym before the end of the 8th century, or possibly even the beginning of the 9th century, hence during the period when there was a mass influx of Arabian dirhams to the Baltic area. VI.3.2.9. Other A numerous group of artefacts could not be identified, primarily because of their fragmentary state. Most of them are made of iron, with single objects of copper alloy, bone and clay.