Institute of Archaeology
Archaeological sources to early historic times and Early Middle Ages in the Middle Danube region
Archeologické pramene k včasnej dobe dejinnej a začiatku stredoveku v strednom Podunajsku
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Pieta Karol DrSc. |
| Annotation: | By processing, evaluating and publishing research on central sites from key stages of the Early Historical Period and the Early Middle Ages, the project will provide an overall picture of the historical development of the Central Danube region. The concept includes building on the previous results of the research team, making valuable new materials available and refining the dating of these phases through a new series of natural history analyses. |
Fords, bridges, long-distance routes. Ancient roads and seats in the regions of Požitavie and Pohronie with use of underwater archaeology
Brody, mosty, diaľkové cesty. Dávnoveké komunikácie a sídla na Požitaví a Pohroní s využitím archeológie pod vodou
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Daňová Klaudia PhD. |
| Annotation: | The project is a continuation of the previous VEGA project (2/0146/18) focused on investigation of the Váh and Nitra rivers. In the final phase of the project and associated activities, a whole range of methodologies was applied in the survey and research of Slovak rivers, new sites were discovered and first results of the research were published. The project included Slovakia in the European map of underwater archaeology. The goal of the submitted project is to continue in the search for and documentation of mainly immovable finds in underwater environment, continue in creation of a database of finds focused on these sites and, thus, bring new information on the currently unknown world under water. |
Good Servant, Bad Master. Archaeological Evidence of the Use of Fire from the Prehistoric to Modern Period
Dobrý sluha, zlý pán. Archeologické doklady využitia ohňa z praveku až novoveku
| Duration: | 1.1.2024 - 30.12.2027 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Mitáš Vladimír PhD. |
| Annotation: | Archaeological research is permanently confronted with evidence of the use of fire both in the field research phase and in the analysis and evaluation of the material. In most cases, the artefacts and ecofacts themselves are more important in the research process than the issues of fire establishment, maintenance and control. Pyrotechnologies are hidden in most objects and artefacts from archaeological contexts. This project will attempt to look at the fire in a holistic way, studying it at different levels through the lens of pyroarchaeology, which involves a range of sub-research tasks and challenges. These include pottery making, non-ferrous metallurgy, faience and glass making, pyrotechnologies associated with building/destroying things/structures, cremation, food preparation and food preservation techniques, the place of fire in nicotinism, heating systems, landscape reshaping techniques, warfare techniques, etc. There is a wide range of possibilities for research, including the use of modern methods. |
Roman Period Elites of the Suebi People in the Central Europe
Elity doby rímskej u stredoeurópskych Svébov
| Duration: | 1.7.2022 - 30.6.2026 |
| Program: | SRDA |
| Project leader: | prof. doc. PhDr. Droberjar Eduard Ph.D. |
| Annotation: | The basic idea of the project is to provide a balanced account of the contribution of domestic tradition, external contacts and movements to the formation of social elites and their manifestations during the Roman period. The geographical framework for the study of Germanic elites is defined by Central Europe, i.e. the territory of the Polabian Germanics (Suebi), i.e. south-western Slovakia, Bohemia and Moravia. The basic starting point of the project is the numerous source material with high narrative value, collected as a result of intensive field archaeological research in the area of interest. |
The exploitation of natural resources from the Early Historic Period to the Modern Times in selected Slovak regions
Exploatácia prírodných zdrojov vo včasnej dobe dejinnej až novoveku vo vybraných regiónoch Slovenska
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Bednár Peter CSc. |
| Annotation: | The project aims to identify defunct mining sites based on LIDAR scans, site prospections in selected Slovak regions (Považský Inovec, Tribeč, Pohronský Inovec, Javorie, Revúcka vrchovina, Vihorlat, Slanské vrchy), mapping and cataloguing, detailed documentation and acquiring samples/finds for dating and enhanced interpretation through micro-surveys. The contribution of the project will include specification of sites chosen for more detailed research, basic documentation of the sites, sampling, detailed analysis and evaluation. Thanks to the solution of the project, qualitatively new information on ancient mining activities in Slovakia will be obtained. |
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Hospodárske zázemie "centier" vo včasnom a na počiatku vrcholného stredoveku na severe Karpatskej kotliny.
| Duration: | 1.1.2024 - 31.12.2027 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | doc. PhDr. Ruttkay Matej CSc. |
Chronological and regional aspects of the early medieval ceramics from the regions Ponitrie and Považie
Chronologické a regionálne aspekty včasnostredovekej keramiky z oblastí Ponitria a Považia
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Fottová Eva PhD. |
| Annotation: | Monothematic project which focuses on actual problems of study of the early medieval ceramics at the territory of Western Slovakia (regions Považie and Ponitrie). Ceramics is, as the most numerous archaeological find and at the same time basic archaeological source, the subject of interest. Scientific value of it is raised by the collaboration of social and natural sciences. Ceramics from the different areas as hillforts, settlements, cemeteries and barrows will be present in the evaluated sets of finds. Within the project there will be examined the method of evaluation of ceramic sets, terminology, further also typological, chronological and functional analysis of ceramics and the scientific value of statistical analyses of ceramic sets. Natural science analyses will be applied to the studies as one of the goals of project is to rise information potential of ceramics. Output will be the publication of results in the form of studies. |
The interaction of man and the environment in the context of prehistoric cave settlements in Slovakia
Interakcia človeka a prírodného prostredia v kontexte pravekého osídlenia jaskýň na Slovensku.
| Duration: | 1.7.2024 - 30.6.2028 |
| Program: | SRDA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Nemergut Adrián Ph.D. |
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Každodený život v hrade v stredoveku a na počiatku novoveku.
| Duration: | 1.9.2023 - 30.6.2026 |
| Program: | |
| Project leader: | Mgr. (DŠ) Hulková Ferenčíková Dominika |
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Krajina pod mračnom bodov - potenciál špecializovaného spracovania leteckého laserového skenovania s veľmi vysokým rozlíšením pre ochranu kultúrneho dedičstva na Slovensku
| Duration: | 1.7.2023 - 30.6.2027 |
| Program: | SRDA |
| Project leader: | doc. PhDr. Ruttkay Matej CSc. |
Late Bronze Age Cemetery of Lusatian Culture in Žilina-Bytčica
Late Bronze Age Cemetery of Lusatian Culture in Žilina-Bytčica
| Duration: | 1.1.2025 - 31.12.2026 |
| Program: | Other projects |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Śmigielska Urszula PhD. |
| Annotation: | The primary objective of the project is to produce a complete publication of the excavation results from the Lusatian culture cemetery in Žilina-Bytčica (second largest known burial ground of this culture in Slovakia). This includes a comprehensive archaeological, anthropological, spatial, and statistical analysis, supplemented by environmental (archaeobotanical and archaeozoological) and isotopic studies (C14 dating, strontium isotopes). The data collected will then be compared to previously published results for other Lusatian culture cemeteries. As an outcome of the project, the number of Lusatian graves in Slovakia for which data are published will increase by nearly 30%, and the number of available information on the biological characteristics of individuals buried in these graves is estimated to increase by over 60%. The statistical, environmental and isotopic analyses will contribute to a more accurate picture of the funerary rites of the Lusatian culture in Slovakia. |
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Modely sídliskových areálov v neolite a eneolite na území Slovenska.
| Duration: | 1.1.2025 - 31.12.2029 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Gabulová Monika PhD. |
New perspectives on old finds: textile production in the territory of Slovakia from the Bronze Age to the late antiquity
Nové perspektívy starých nálezov: textilná produkcia na území Slovenska od doby bronzovej po neskorú antiku
| Duration: | 1.9.2025 - 30.8.2029 |
| Program: | SRDA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Štolcová Tereza PhD. |
| Annotation: | Textiles represent a key cultural element of societies from prehistory to the present, yet they rarely survive in archaeological contexts. In Slovakia, textile fragments are often preserved in a highly degraded state, frequently appearing as mineralized residues on metal artifacts in graves. As a result, these valuable finds are often overlooked or insufficiently analysed. The PERTEX project aims to fundamentally reassess existing textile finds through an interdisciplinary and technologically advanced approach. The project will employ state-of-the-art analytical methods, including microscopic techniques (e.g., scanning electron microscopy), scientific analyses (C14 dating, metallography, isotope studies), and comprehensive technological studies of textile production. The research will be further enriched by ethnographic, archaeobotanical, and archaeozoological data, enabling a holistic understanding of textile production from the Bronze Age to the Migration Period (2nd millennium BCE – 6th century CE). Beyond textile fragments themselves, the project will also focus on the analysis of tools used in textile production (e.g., spindle whorls, loom weights) and textile processing (e.g., combs, needles). Comparing Slovak finds with textile-related artifacts from other parts of Central Europe will allow for the reconstruction of prehistoric manufacturing techniques, the identification of raw materials, and a deeper understanding of the economic, social, and cultural aspects of textile production. An important aspect of the project will also be the analysis of grave finds associated with clothing, such as jewellery (fibulae, dress fasteners, belt fittings), which provide valuable insights into the use and visual representation of textiles in prehistoric societies. The results of the PERTEX project will offer a fresh perspective on the development of textile production and its broader significance within European archaeology. |
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Po stopách najstarších plavidiel sveta. Problematika monoxylov na Slovensku.
| Duration: | 1.7.2024 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Olšav Štefan PhD. |
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Praveká keramika – viacrozmerná cesta do minulosti.
| Duration: | 1.7.2024 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Gašpar Adam Ph.D. |
Relics of cultural landscape – identification and interpretation
Relikty kultúrnej krajiny – identifikácia a interpretácia
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Benediková Lucia PhD. |
| Annotation: | The project focuses on identification and interpretation of relics of cultural landscape identified in LiDAR images and orthophoto images. It studies historical structures and their relations in the landscape: settlements, burial grounds, historical routes, relics documenting economic activities. The project includes prevention at protection of the cultural heritage, as the published sites are endangered by treasure hunters’ activities. Verification and functional interpretation of the relics will be carried out in microregions with several types of historical structures by means of comparison of archaeological and paleoenvironmental data. Field excavations will use procedures of multiple disciplines (archaeology, geophysics, archaeobotany, palynology, pedology, geology), methods of absolute dating (radiocarbon and OSL) and other analyses (isotopes). A suitable methodology of identification, research and interpretation of the detected archaeological areas will be also the outputs of the project. |
Roman fort at Iža – part of the UNESCO world heritage
Rímsky tábor v Iži - súčasť svetového kultúrneho dedičstva UNESCO
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Rajtár Ján CSc. |
| Annotation: | The focus of the project is the scientific analysis, evaluation and publication of existing knowledge about the Roman fort at Iža, a site this is enter in the UNESCO World Heritage List. It was the only fort on the northern borders of Pannonia that was situated on the left bank of the Danube. The project will document, analyse and interpret selected groups of material sources related to the architectural and historical developmental stages of the fort in a wider context. It will focus on the first, unique earth-and-timber phase of the fortification, and on ten temporary field camps in its vicinity dating from the period of the Marcomannic wars. The project aims to confirm the scientific hypothesis about the link between the camps and the Roman military campaigns against the Quadi. The main output will be monographs and studies. The results will be presented at conferences and to the public, and implemented into the study programmes in classical archaeology at Trnava University. |
Settlement, house and household among the Celts and Germans
Sídlo, dom a domácnosť u Keltov a Germánov
| Duration: | 1.1.2025 - 31.12.2028 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | doc. PhDr. Březinová Gertrúda CSc. |
| Annotation: | In the last decades, it was possible to evaluate and publish several important settlements from the LaTene and Roman periods. We know their internal structure, economic activities and the material culture of their inhabitants. The presented scientific objective wants to follow from the successful projects in the past and move our knowledge higher from the level of an individual settlement. The objective is a mutual comparison of settlements with various economic activities (farmers’ settlements versus production areas) and various social status (open villages versus fenced princely manors). Similarities and differences will be monitored not only in the architectural expression (settlement structure, house) but also in the material culture (items in a household). The ambition of the project will be to detect and define the basic trends of development of the habitation structures in the last centuries of the pre-Slavic settlement in the regions between the Danube River and the ridges of the western Carpathians. |
Strategy of settlement of eastern Slovakia in the context of prehistoric development of the Northern Tisza region
Stratégia osídlenia východného Slovenska v kontexte pravekého vývoja severného Potisia
| Duration: | 1.1.2022 - 31.12.2025 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Horváthová Eva PhD. |
| Annotation: | The suggested project provides continuity of scientific research in eastern Slovakia. It focuses on investigation of several topics from selected periods of the early and late prehistory which are being processed. In the geographically limited territory of the central part of the Košická kotlina basin, it publishes results of recognized models of environmental indicators influencing the dynamics and changes in the settlement strategy. It studies the accompanying phenomena of establishing and construction of fortified or enclosed settlements from the period of the Middle Eneolithic. It also complexly evaluates development and structure of settlement in the Middle Bronze Age (the Piliny culture in particular) and in the Hallstatt period. The obtained scientific observations are confronted with our knowledge from the wider geographical environment of northeastern Europe. |
Middle Nitra Region in the Early Middle Ages. Ad fontes.
Stredné Ponitrie vo včasnom stredoveku. Ad fontes.
| Duration: | 1.1.2024 - 31.12.2027 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Robak Zbigniew PhD. |
| Annotation: | The main goal of the project is mapping, verification and chronological classification of early medieval (6th-11th c.) archaeological and historical sites in the Middle Nitra River basin and adjacent mountain areas: Tribeč, Strážovské vrchy and Považský Inovec. The goal of the project is to create a comprehensive catalogue of sites (settlements, hillforts, burial grounds) including basic information about dating. The catalogue will then serve as the primary basis for reconstructing the historical development of the region in the Early Middle Ages. The project will also summarise and verify the source base, which will be supplemented by new scientific analyses of already available or newly obtained samples. The project solution also includes an evaluation of the source base and the publication of these analyses in partial studies. The project also envisages making available to the public the latest research results of IA SAS on the most important archaeological sites in Middle Nitra Region. |
Technical ceramics in the Hornád basin from Prehistory to Migration period. Multi-analytical scientific approach
Technická keramika v povodí Hornádu od praveku po obdobie sťahovanie národov. Multi-analytický vedecký prístup
| Duration: | 1.1.2025 - 31.12.2029 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Olšav Štefan PhD. |
| Annotation: | Ceramics are among the most common archaeological artifacts. They are a cornerstone for identifying archaeological cultures at sites, studying mutual interactions, and dating archaeological contexts. Therefore, prominent ceramic forms, often richly decorated, which present sets of ceramic vessels of past communities, stand at the forefront of archaeological research. On the periphery of scientific investigation appears primarily the so-called technical ceramics, mainly due to the complexity of interpreting these objects. Yet, technical ceramics have a very high potential for studying past technologies. In some cases, they may demonstrate the production of goods for which no archaeological evidence has previously been available. Most crucial, however, is the verification of hypotheses regarding specific types of technical ceramics, for which we lack clear evidence of their function. The current spectrum of multidisciplinary analyses allows archaeological questions to be answered through exact data. Addressing questions concerning the purpose of individual technological ceramic devices, their manufacturing processes, and their handling requires a wide range of analyses. Thanks to interdisciplinary cooperation with the natural sciences, we can identify vessels used for producing and storing technical materials (such as pigments) or foodstuffs (specialized vessels for salt or cheese precipitation). Microscopy enables the examination and sampling of residues on surfaces, as well as the application of trace analysis to study wear marks (e.g., clay disks). Through petrography, spectrometry, and other analytical methods, we can determine the material properties and describe the manufacturing technology of specialized objects (such as metallurgical crucibles, censers, or loom weights), as well as address the provenance of raw materials used for ceramic production. Chromatographic chemical methods make it possible to identify organic remains within the ceramic matrix (candlesticks and lamps, clay spoons, dispensers, distillation devices). To ensure the reliability of interpretations based on analytical results, we will experimentally test the individual procedures in practice. |
Validation of Late Prehistoric sites in selected regions by interdisciplinary and non-destructive research
Validácia nálezísk mladšieho praveku vo vybraných regiónoch metódami interdisciplinárnej a nedeštruktívnej archeológie
| Duration: | 1.1.2024 - 31.12.2027 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Oravkinová Dominika PhD. |
| Annotation: | Social transformations of the Late Prehistory Slovakia are mainly identified with changes in material culture and settlement structures. These can be better understood by evaluating previously documented archaeological records within various spatiotemporal contexts. As the current knowledge of socio-economic oscillations and their causes varies across periods and regions, further research must be conducted through a series of concurrent and independent tasks. The heuristic is aimed to supplement the source base allowing for an assessment of the general settlement dynamics. Its content will be refined by analyzing selected artifacts and ecofacts using standard interdisciplinary methods. Finally, we will focus on verifying the sites with future research potential through non-destructive and minimally destructive field surveys. The acquired knowledge will be applied in the methodology, in the refinement of interpretative models, as well as in further research conceptions and archaeological heritage protection. |
Verification of the Late Middle Palaeolithic and Early Upper Palaeolithic archaeological contexts from caves in Slovakia
Verifikácia jaskynných archeologických kontextov zo sklonku stredného a počiatku mladého paleolitu na Slovensku
| Duration: | 1.1.2023 - 31.12.2026 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | Mgr. Nemergut Adrián Ph.D. |
| Annotation: | The project deals with the transition between the Late Middle Palaeolithic and Early Upper Palaeolithic, when Neanderthals disappear from archaeological contexts and the finds of anatomically modern humans gradually emerge and expand. The Middle Danube region plays an important role in this topic. Recently, research of this issue in the surrounding countries has shifted considerably, especially in connection with new or re-evaluation of older data from archaeological excavations carried out in the 19th-20th centuries. Particularly important are the archaeological contexts deposited in the caves. Despite the fact that we know many important cave sites in Slovakia, research of this issue has not progressed significantly in recent years. The project builds on new results from Hungary, Moravia and Poland. The project aims to verify cave contexts from this period in Slovakia and their interdisciplinary evaluation. |
Old finds rediscovered. The contribution of archival materials to the knowledge of our earlier medieval history.
Znovuobjavené staré nálezy. Prínos archívnych materiálov pre poznanie našich starších stredovekých dejín.
| Duration: | 1.1.2024 - 31.12.2027 |
| Program: | VEGA |
| Project leader: | PhDr. Fusek Gabriel CSc. |
| Annotation: | In the archives and deposits of scientific institutions there is documentation from large-scale archaeological excavations carried out several decades ago, which have never been completely processed. The aim of the project is to make available and scientifically evaluate archival holdings from several phases of the Middle Ages (7th – 13th centuries). The basic source base is represented by large settlements and cemeteries from western Slovakia, supplemented by smaller material collections. |
The total number of projects: 24