The artifact is a battle axe made from magmatic rock (diabase) of gray-brown color. It was accidentally discovered in 1966 within the territory of Aluniș village, Rîșcani district. Based on its morphological characteristics, the artifact can be attributed to the Catacomb culture (29th-22nd centuries BCE).
The axe features a massive, elongated naviform body with slightly pronounced shoulders, a short and narrow edge that is flat and circular in cross-section. The blade is slightly curved. The hole was drilled in the maximum width of the object. It is circular in shape with a diameter of 2.2 cm. The surface of the artifact is meticulously polished, worked with great care, and shows no signs of damage or chipping.
Dimensions: Length: 20.0 cm; Maximum width: 8.4 cm; Edge diameter: 5.0 cm; Blade width: 7.0 cm; Weight: 2.3 kg.
Stone battle axes are characteristic of the Catacomb culture communities and are most often found as grave goods, deposited in tombs. Their presence in funerary complexes suggests a multifaceted functionality: weapons, social symbols, and ritual objects. Initially used as weapons, the axes became social symbols for their owners, later acquiring votive significance when deposited in tombs to serve the deceased in the afterlife.
The social symbolic function of stone battle axes is indicated by the high-quality rocks used for their manufacture and the exceptionally meticulous craftsmanship. The large dimensions of the axe from Aluniș support this hypothesis and distinguish it from other examples.
The discovery of stone battle axes outside a funerary complex may indicate their votive deposition. It is difficult to imagine that these exceptionally well-crafted pieces, made from high-quality rocks transported over great distances, could have been abandoned or lost accidentally. It is far more likely that they were deposited for magical-religious purposes, a possibility that may also apply to the stone axe discovered at Aluniș.
Additions and clarifications on the biography of Ioan Pelivan
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. VII [XXII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
The article contains a number of additions and clarifications regarding the biography of Ioan Pelivan - a prominent person of political and national liberation movement of the Bessarabian Romanians against Tsarist rule.
There are given more information about the ancestry of Ioan Pelivan, as well as his study at the Religious School and the Theological Seminary in Chisinau.
In 1901, while studying law at the Yuryev (Dorpat) University (1898-1903), he was granted a scholarship of the Executive Board (Uprava) of the Bessarabian Provincial Zemstvo.
In 1912, against I. Pelivan, who at the time served as city judge in Balti, a complaint was filed in which he was accused of insulting. Finally, the application was considered by the Governing Senate, which acquitted him.
In the final part, based on previously unpublished archival documents there is indicated the real cause for the offset of Ioan Pelivan from the position of Balti city judge. Copies of the documents are annexed to the article.
Dinu Poștarencu
Ioan Halippa – passionate researcher of the history of Bessarabia
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IX [XXIV], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2015
Dinu Poștarencu
The Bessarabian aristocrats Dicescu
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. IV [XIX], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Dinu Poștarencu
Mihail Ozmidov, the first architect and land surveyor of the tsarist Bessarabia
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. I [XVI], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie Chișinău, 2007
Dinu Poștarencu
Petitions of the Bessarabian nobility for the teaching of Romanian language in schools of the province
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. V [XX], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
Dinu Poștarencu
Administrative-territorial division of Bessarabia in the Tzarist period
Tyragetia, serie nouă, vol. III [XVIII], nr. 2, Istorie. Muzeologie
The artifact is a battle axe made from magmatic rock (diabase) of gray-brown color. It was accidentally discovered in 1966 within the territory of Aluniș village, Rîșcani district. Based on its morphological characteristics, the artifact can be attributed to the Catacomb culture (29th-22nd centuries BCE)...
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
The National Museum of History of Moldova takes place among the most significant museum institutions of the Republic of Moldova, in terms of both its collection and scientific reputation.
31 August 1989 St., 121 A, MD 2012, Chisinau, Republic of Moldova
