Hungarian National Museum, Budapest, Hungary

Based on the apparent similarity to the stag-shaped appliqué from Zöldhalompuszta (Catalog No. 100), the electrum appliqué from Tápiószentmárton might have belonged to a person of exceptional social status. It is possible that the object was found in a tumulus, but its precise find location and context are unknown. At the time of discovery, the object was rolled up and therefore could not have served its original function, presumably as the decoration of a quiver.

This golden appliqué came from the burial mound of a member of the Iron Age elite of the eastern Carpathian Basin.

This spiral pendant is part of a hoard that was found in 1847 by a cowherd after heavy rain exposed the objects, which were lying on the surface of the ground. The original assemblage consisted of several kilograms of gold, but because the collection was looted, many objects ended up in private collections. A significant part, however, was confiscated by the Treasury of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. Currently, the remaining objects are divided between the Hungarian National Museum and the National History Museum of Romania.

This exceptional object was acquired by the Hungarian National Museum at the end of the nineteenth century. Based on its stylistic analogies, it was most likely manufactured in Slovakia or northeastern Hungary. The artifact has a hollow body and attached loops for hanging, and it was cast using the lost-wax technique, a technology which is most appropriate for producing objects with complex geometry.

This large bronze vessel, a so-called ‘hydria,’ was part of the burial assemblage of a chiefly member of the Iron Age society of the Great Hungarian Plain. The assemblage also contained weapons and personal adornments, including a gold diadem, characteristic of the elite of likely Scythian origin of the Middle Iron Age in the region.

This unique gold sheet armband with high silver content lacks exact parallels—only an armband from Bilje in Croatia and another specimen from Tápióbicske in Hungary show similarities with the object.

This bronze helmet was part of an elite warrior hoard deposited in a large ceramic vessel. It was placed in a situla (bucket-shaped vessel), covered with a cauldron, along with two arm spirals. The helmet’s body was embossed from a flat disc, and cast-on technology was used to produce the knob. It is a thick and quite efficient piece of armor that was fixed onto an organic padding with rivets.

This bracelet is part of a hoard that consists of a total of twenty gold bracelets with tapering ends, of which nine are featured in the exhibition, and four heavy gold bracelets with spiral ends. The assemblage represents a characteristic deposition tradition that emerged in the territory of the upper Tisza region and Transylvania during the thirteenth century BC. These gold bracelet hoards show similarities in terms of object types, and they were most likely communal offerings of several individuals.

The Neolithic farming communities of the Carpathian Basin produced elaborate ceramics with incised and painted decorations, including objects of special purpose, probably conveying sacral messages. One of the most spectacular examples of these objects is this ceramic altar. The manufacturer placed stylized ram heads on the four corners and engraved spiral and meander patterns on the sides. It is likely that the vessel was not intended for everyday purposes but was utilized during rituals.

To the east of the Tisza River, in the eastern part of the Great Hungarian Plain and in Transylvania, following the Neolithic tradition of the use of Spondylus shells and jewelry of colored stone beads, copper and gold objects started to be manufactured in large numbers during the Copper Age. These artifacts, such as heavy copper axes and gold anthropomorphic pendants that were fastened to clothing, were frequently deposited in hoards and burials (see Catalog Nos. 19, 20, 23, and 24).