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A unique archaeological finding of five individuals buried in an early medieval pit house was discovered in Podersdorf am See (Austria). Three of those individuals were buried in narrow grave pits that had been deepened into the house floor; two of them were lying on the pit floor in a crouched position. Pit houses with six-post construction are known since Roman times and were particularly widespread during the Migration Period. On the basis of radiocarbon analyses of charcoal from the hearth, the use phase of the pit house of Podersdorf am See can be dated to the sixth century AD. The burials took place around the same time in the second half of the seventh century AD, when the house lost its original function. Around that time, regular burials took place in the cemetery in the immediate vicinity of the house. The anthropological examination of the five skeletons showed no significant differences in comparison to the ones that were buried in the cemetery. By means of aDNA analyses, it could be established that at least two of the individuals were closely related to each other.

International audience; The understanding of the glass trade in the first millennium CE relies on the characterisation of well-dated compositional groups and the identification of their primary production sites. 275 Byzantine glass weights from the British Museum and the Bibliothèque nationale de France dating to the sixth and seventh century were analysed by LA-ICP-MS. Multivariate statistical and graphical data analysis discriminated between six main primary glass types. Primary glass sources were differentiated based on multi-dimensional comparison of silica-derived elements (MgO, Al2O3, CaO, TiO2, Fe2O3, ZrO2) and components associated with the alkali source (Li2O, B2O3). Along with Egyptian and Levantine origins of the glassmaking sands, variations in the natron source possibly point to the exploitation of two different natron deposits. Differences in strontium to calcium ratios revealed variations in the carbonate fractions in the sand. At least two cobalt sources were employed as colouring agents, one of which shows strong correlations with nickel, indicating a specific post-Roman cobalt source. Typological evidence identified chronological developments in the use of the different glass groups. Throughout the sixth century, Byzantine glass weights were predominately produced from two glasses that are probably of an Egyptian origin (Foy-2 and Foy-2 high Fe). Towards the second half of the sixth century a new but related plant-ash glass type emerged (Magby). Levantine I was likewise found among the late sixth- to early seventh-century samples. The use of different dies for the same batch testifies to large-scale, centralised production of the weights, while the same die used for different primary production groups demonstrates the co-existence of alternative sources of supply. Given the comprehensive design of our study, these results can be extrapolated to the wider early Byzantine glass industry and its changes at large.

1897 und 1898 wurde in Wien-Mariahilfer Gürtel ein frühmittelalterliches Reihengräberfeld unter der Leitung von Matthias Much ausgegraben. Anhand neu entdeckter Archivunterlagen und des Gräberfeldplans können die Lage des Gräberfelds genau bestimmt und einige der Grabbefunde rekonstruiert werden. Die noch erhaltenen archäologischen und anthropologischen Funde werden heute im Wien Museum aufbewahrt und nun zum ersten Mal vollständig vorgelegt.Zur Zeit seiner Auffindung erregte der Schädel einer alten Frau, der künstlich deformiert war, besondere Aufmerksamkeit. Wie zahlreiche Beispiele aus dem westlichen Karpatenbecken zeigen, erreichte die Sitte der künstlichen Schädeldeformation in der Mitte des 5. Jahrhunderts ihren Höhepunkt. Die Zusammenstellung der Befunde ergab eine Häufung von Kinderbestattungen mit Schädeldeformationen in der ersten Hälfte des 5. Jahrhunderts, während ihre Zahl nach der Jahrhundertmitte drastisch abnimmt. Im 6. Jahrhundert treffen wir nunmehr auf Individuen fortgeschrittenen Alters. Daraus kann geschlossen werden, dass die Sitte, Schädel künstlich zu deformieren, etwa am Ende des zweiten Drittels bzw. im Laufe des letzten Drittels des 5. Jahrhunderts aufgegeben wurde. Anscheinend veränderten sich die Lebensbedingungen nach dem Zusammenbruch des Attila-Reiches. Archäologisch auffallend bei dem Gräberfeld am Mariahilfer Gürtel ist das Fehlen von Gefäßbeigaben. Dies ist ein charakteristischer Bestattungsbrauch für das Wiener Becken, das westliche Neusiedlerseegebiet und das östliche Tullnerfeld. Insofern schließt es an die von István Bóna definierten Beigabensitten der Hegykő- Gruppe an. Unter den spärlichen Resten der bereits beraubt vorgefundenen Gräber kamen zweireihige Dreilagenkämme zutage, die auf ein Weiterleben älterer Beigabenbräuche verweisen. Gerade diese länger tradierten Sitten lassen es nicht zu, das archäologische Fundmaterial des Wiener Beckens und seiner Umgebung ohne Weiteres an das Chronologiesystem des süddeutschen und niederrheinischen Raumes anzuhängen. Vor allem der Brauch, die Verstorbenen ohne Keramikbeigabe zu bestatten, lässt sich in diesem Gebiet noch bei den awarenzeitlichen Gräbern bis zur Mitte des 7. Jahrhunderts verfolgen. Letztendlich müssen wir mit einer Siedlungskontinuität in diesem Raum vom 5. bis zum 7. Jahrhundert rechnen., The early medieval »Reihengräberfeld« on the Mariahilfer Gürtel in Vienna was discovered and excavated by Matthias Much in 1897 and 1898. Recently discovered archival documents and the site-plan allow the exact location of the cemetery and the reconstruction of some of the grave assemblages. The few remaining human remains and grave-goods are currently held in the Wien Museum and are presented here for the first time in their totality. At the time of its discovery the artificially deformed skull of an elderly female caused particular interest. As numerous examples from the western Carpathian Basin demonstrate, the practice of artificial cranial deformation reached its peak during the mid-5th century. The compilation of the features yielded a frequent occurrence of child-burials with cranial deformations during the first half of the 5th century, whereas their number decreased considerably after the mid-century. In the 6th century deformed skulls were mostly discov ered in older individuals. This finding suggests that the tradition of cranial modification was abandoned around the end of the second third or during the final third of the 5th century. Seemingly, living conditions changed after the breakdown of Attila’s empire. Archaeologically striking is the lack of grave-goods in the cemetery on the Mariahilfer Gürtel. This is a characteristic burial ritual for the Viennese Basin, the western region of Lake Neusiedl and the eastern Tullnerfeld. Consequently, it conforms to the grave-good rituals of the Hegykő-Gruppe as defined by István Bóna. Among the few remains of the previously robbed graves double-indented, tripartite combs came to light, which point to the persistence of older burial rites. Particularly these longer held rites do not allow the archaeological finds of the Viennese Basin and its surroundings to be easily linked to the chronological systems of southern Germany and the lower Rhineland. Rather, we must assume a continuity of settlement from the 5th to the 7th century.

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