Mitteilungen des Archäologischen Instituts der Ungarischen Akademie der Wissenschaften 5, 1974–75

In a recently published note Dávid Whipp has pointed out certain inadequacies in N. Vlassa's account of the discovery of the Tartaria tablets and the subsequent interpretation of Vlassa's section by Sinclair Hood. As a result it is considered necessary to reconsider the problems connected with the tablets. This course seems to be advisable mainly because Vlassa's preliminary publications contain, in fact, some insignificant deficiencies, and those who are not intimately acquainted with the problems connected with the Vinfia-Tordos culture (or those who do not agree with the application of a low chronology) may misuse these deficiencies for questioning the authenticity of the find circumstances and for changing the dating in an arbitrary way. In our opinion the fact that the preliminary report does not contain an illustration of a cross-section of the sacrificial pit containing the tablets is not sufficient ground for doubting the Vinfca-Tordos dating of the pit. As a matter of fact, the published photograph clearly shows the dark, thick and undisturbed layer 0,5 m above the mouth of the pit but at least 1 m under the Cofofeni level.