Piatra Tomii
Encyclopedia
Piatra Tomii is a late Jurassic limestone outcrop forming a small hill near Răcătau village, Alba county, Romania
. It is most well known for the Chalcolithic to Bronze Age flint mining settlement located on and near to the hill. The settlement is late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age
. The people who occupied this site belonged to the Coțofeni culture
(phase 3). The chief investigator of this archaeological site is Dr. Cristian Popa
of the 1 Decembrie 1918 University, Alba Iulia
. The artefact collection from this site are housed at the university in Alba Iulia
. This site is significant as it is the first flint mine or quarry found so far in the Transylvanian basin. Petrographic analysis of the flint
materials found at this site link it to artifacts found at prehistoric sites from throughout the Mures Valley leading researchers to believe that this site may have served an important role in the commerce of the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. The large size of the settlement compared to its relative isolation high in the Apuseni Mountains tends to support this theory.
Although the majority of the artefacts so far found at the site are of Chalcolithic age, some researchers believe that the site may have already in use as a source of flint during the middle of the Neolithic by people of the Vinča culture
. This is based on initial comparisons of Neolithic chipped stone artifacts to the geological material at Piatra Tomii. This theory has not yet been confirmed by the archaeological record for the middle Neolithic period, but during test pitting in 2009, Petrești type pottery was found at the site, indicating that the site was in use long prior to the arrival of the Coțofeni population (and possibly abandoned until the late Coțofeni people arrived). The potsherts were found in and next to a flint extraction pit along with axes and chisels and an ashy soil, suggesting that they were also extracting the flint. It is possible that the material used during earlier cultures of the Neolithic period may have come from another flint source very near to but not at Piatra Tomii itself. Since only a small percentage of this site has been excavated, it is also possible that remains of Vinča culture simply have not yet been found at Piatra Tomii.
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. It is most well known for the Chalcolithic to Bronze Age flint mining settlement located on and near to the hill. The settlement is late Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
. The people who occupied this site belonged to the Coțofeni culture
Coțofeni culture
The Coţofeni culture is a Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age culture that existed for over 700 years in the south-eastern part of Central Europe....
(phase 3). The chief investigator of this archaeological site is Dr. Cristian Popa
Cristian Popa
Dr. Cristian Popa is a Romanian archaeologist at the 1 Decembrie 1918 University, Alba Iulia, Romania. He is one of the most extensively published experts on the Coţofeni culture and generally acknowledged as an authority on this prehistoric culture. He is also known for having discovered the flint...
of the 1 Decembrie 1918 University, Alba Iulia
1 Decembrie 1918 University, Alba Iulia
"1 Decembrie 1918" University, Alba Iulia is a public higher education and research institution founded in 1991 in Alba Iulia, Romania. It is a state institution, integrated into the national higher education system, which functions based on the Romanian Constitution, the Law of Education, the...
. The artefact collection from this site are housed at the university in Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia
Alba Iulia is a city in Alba County, Transylvania, Romania with a population of 66,747, located on the Mureş River. Since the High Middle Ages, the city has been the seat of Transylvania's Roman Catholic diocese. Between 1541 and 1690 it was the capital of the Principality of Transylvania...
. This site is significant as it is the first flint mine or quarry found so far in the Transylvanian basin. Petrographic analysis of the flint
Flint
Flint is a hard, sedimentary cryptocrystalline form of the mineral quartz, categorized as a variety of chert. It occurs chiefly as nodules and masses in sedimentary rocks, such as chalks and limestones. Inside the nodule, flint is usually dark grey, black, green, white, or brown in colour, and...
materials found at this site link it to artifacts found at prehistoric sites from throughout the Mures Valley leading researchers to believe that this site may have served an important role in the commerce of the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. The large size of the settlement compared to its relative isolation high in the Apuseni Mountains tends to support this theory.
Although the majority of the artefacts so far found at the site are of Chalcolithic age, some researchers believe that the site may have already in use as a source of flint during the middle of the Neolithic by people of the Vinča culture
Vinca culture
The Vinča culture is a Neolithic archaeological culture in Southeastern Europe, dated to the period 5500–4500 BCE. Named for its type site, Vinča-Belo Brdo, a large tell settlement discovered by Serbian archaeologist Miloje Vasić in 1908, it represents the material remains of a prehistoric society...
. This is based on initial comparisons of Neolithic chipped stone artifacts to the geological material at Piatra Tomii. This theory has not yet been confirmed by the archaeological record for the middle Neolithic period, but during test pitting in 2009, Petrești type pottery was found at the site, indicating that the site was in use long prior to the arrival of the Coțofeni population (and possibly abandoned until the late Coțofeni people arrived). The potsherts were found in and next to a flint extraction pit along with axes and chisels and an ashy soil, suggesting that they were also extracting the flint. It is possible that the material used during earlier cultures of the Neolithic period may have come from another flint source very near to but not at Piatra Tomii itself. Since only a small percentage of this site has been excavated, it is also possible that remains of Vinča culture simply have not yet been found at Piatra Tomii.