A stratigraphic sequence of six thousand years : Preliminary report on the rescue excavation at the site of the former Óbuda Distillery (BUSZESZ)

Abstract

Árpád period pit houses with a stone oven, Roman period brick graves and public baths, debris from Middle Bronze Age buildings, an Early Bronze Age cemetery, and Late Copper Age clay pit complexes – the thousands of archaeological features that appeared one below the other in a several metres thick stratigraphic sequence, and the nearly thousand boxes of finds are only one side of the coin. The other is represented by the constant roar of the machines, the deafening noise and the dust clouds from the pneumatic drill, the rhythmical sound of the suburban railway, the hubbub of construction workers, and the tight archaeological deadlines. At the site of the former Óbuda Distillery, during the almost three years of test and rescue excavations, we have encountered nearly all known elements of urban archaeology. We also appreciate that, in spite of the difficulties, we were given a unique, extraordinary and perhaps unparalleled opportunity. The site, after all, lies at the edge of the historical cores of the Roman Military Town and medieval Óbuda. The excavation site is noteworthy not only in terms of its vertical but also its horizontal extent. Following the highly informative period of fieldwork, hopefully we can begin the analysis as soon as possible, through which we may understand, step by step, the significance of this special place, where, until now, there lay the stratigraphic sequence of six thousand years of human presence.