J. Macháček at al., 2023: Copper-alloy belt fittings and elite networking in Early Medieval Central Europe

This paper attempts to change the traditional view of the Late Avar belt fittings, which in the 8th century AD delineated an extremely dense communication network within the Carpathian Basin and beyond, by using a groundbreaking combination of iconography, energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), lead isotope analysis, digital morphometry and 3D comparative prototyping. It presents a complex analysis of bronze belt ends decorated with an exceptional scene of a snake eating a frog-like creature, discovered in the last decade in Czech Republic, Hungary and Germany. According to the iconography, this motif represents an important cosmogonic and fertility myth, known to various early medieval populations living in Central Europe. Some of these belt ends come from the same workshop and/or are derived from a common model, even though they were found in very distant regions. The study also focuses on the provenance of the raw material used in the production of Avar-style belt fittings in general. For the first time, it was possible to locate the Early Medieval source of copper in the Slovak Ore Mountains, using lead isotope analysis.

New podcast aimed at the middle ages from an archaeology and arts perspective. prof. J. Macháček and prof. I. Foletti - Masaryk University

Different approaches are the basis of today's research in cultural heritage. Learn more about the past from different perspectives. ​Archaeologist J. Macháček and Art historian I. Foletti talks about the past and how it is reflected in today's society. The podcast is only in the Czech language. 

Report from the workplace - ​Ingrová et al., 2021: New Ancient DNA Research Team at the Department of Archaeology and Museology, Faculty of Arts, Masaryk University

At the beginning of 2021, it was established at the Institute of Archeology and museology of the Faculty of Arts of Masaryk University in Brno a new research team called aDNA Research Team, which is open to cooperation in the planning and implementation of research plans in this area. In the text, you can find more about cooperations, laboratory itself, aims and research goals. ​

Gnecchi-Ruscone et al., 2022: Ancient genomes reveal origin and rapid trans-Eurasian migration of 7th century Avar elites.

Work on which one of our researachers (Dr. Zuzana Hofmanová) colaborated on and it brings new inscriptions conected with formation of early medieval Moravia.

The Avars settled the Carpathian Basin in 567/68 CE, establishing an empire lasting over 200 years. Who they were and where they came from is highly debated. Contemporaries have disagreed about whether they were, as they claimed, the direct successors of the Mongolian Steppe Rouran empire that was destroyed by the Turks in ∼550 CE. Here, we analyze new genome-wide data from 66 pre-Avar and Avar-period Carpathian Basin individuals, including the 8 richest Avar-period burials and further elite sites from Avar’s empire core region. Our results provide support for a rapid long-distance trans-Eurasian migration of Avar-period elites. These individuals carried Northeast Asian ancestry matching the profile of preceding Mongolian Steppe populations, particularly a genome available from the Rouran period. Some of the later elite individuals carried an additional non-local ancestry component broadly matching the steppe, which could point to a later migration or reflect greater genetic diversity within the initial migrant population.

Organic residue analysis of Great Moravia medieval pottery from Pohansko and Lány.

Study by: Organic Geochemistry Unit, School of Chemistry, University of Bristol

The application of modern analytical techniques enables the identification and characterisation of these (organic residues) sometimes highly degraded remnants of natural commodities used in antiquity (Evershed 2008). Often, data obtained from the organic residue analysis of pottery or other organic material provides the only evidence for the processing of animal commodities, aquatic products or plant oils and waxes, particularly at sites exhibiting a paucity of environmental evidence.

This type of analysis was applied to Great Moravian ceramics from Pohansko and Lán (CZ). The results will be published soon.​

J. Macháček at al., 2021: Runes from Lány (Czech Republic) - The oldest inscription among Slavs. A new standard for multidisciplinary analysis of runic bones

When Roman administration and legions gradually withdrew from the outer provinces after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, they created a power void filled by various groups. The dynamic Migration Period that followed is usually considered to have ended when the Germanic Lombards allegedly left Central Europe and were replaced by Slavs. Whether or how Slavic and Germanic tribes interacted, however, is currently disputed. Here we report the first direct archaeological find in support of a contact: a bone fragment dated to ~600 AD incised with Germanic runes but found in Lány, Czechia, a contemporaneous settlement associated with Slavs. We documented and authenticated this artifact using a combined approach of use-wear analysis with SEM microscopy, direct radiocarbon dating, and ancient DNA analysis of the animal bone, thereby setting a new standard for the investigation of runic bones. The find is the first older fuþark inscription found in any non-Germanic context and suggests that the presumed ancestors of modern Slavic speakers encountered writing much earlier than previously thought.