Recent data from Sajóbábony-Méhész-tetö open-air site : chronostratigraphy and palaeoenvironmental records of the eponymous Bábonyian (Hungary)

The Sajóbábony site of Méhész-tetö is situated at about 207 m above sea level on the highest point of a small hill which forms the north-eastern end of the foothills of the Bükk mountains. The Sajó is the main river in the area. Several previous excavations have taken place at Méhész-tetö, none of which provided any clear description of the stratigraphy or linking the site to the environment of the hill. A new field campaign, which started in 2019 still in progress, has made the reinvestigation of many studies possible, like the composition of clays, the characterisation of charcoal, the magnetism of the sediments and their composition elemental variations (XRF) and datings. A medium scale geomorphological study was carried out with the aim of integrating the archaeological site and its immediate environment. The study consisted of 5 manually dug holes (3 m deep) situated across the slope of the hill. Our objective was to check the conservation of the first pedostratigraphic observations. Next to the main excavation (12 m2), a manual open-hole-survey was also conducted. This revealed stratigraphy (2 m long by 1.80 m deep) from which a sedimentary column of 36 samples and 6 OSL dates were collected. The principal outcomes of our investigation demonstrated the development of a silty sequence older than 243 ka and also identified the last glacial/interglacial cycle (Eemian/Weichselian) in which the archaeological occupation levels were located. Using a multidisciplinary approach and original data, the purpose of this communication is to review the environmental evolution of the site in order to clarify the chronology of environmental and human events.