# WAY OF LIFE #### ECONOMY CRAFTSMANSHIP SETTLEMENT AND DWELLING PLACES EVERYDAY LIFE ### ECONOMY Due to a lack of sources, the Hungarians' ancient way of life and economy is difficult to characterize. The complexity of economy at the age of the Conquest is shown by the fact that it consisted not only of nomadic grazing, hunting and fishing, but also of agriculture. #### Animal husbandry Animal bone findings at excavations point to the fact that animal husbandry was probably multifold and rich. The remains of altogether 10 species of animals were found (horse, cattle, sheep, goat, swine, camel, dog, hen, goose and duck). Presumably two further species - donkey and cat - were also included in the live-stock. Besides European species, the remains of animals brought from abroad (tarpan horse, ancient sheep, camel and buffalo) were also found. According to an admittedly exaggerating contemporary source, the Hungarians "used to travel, think, stand and talk on horseback." Their horses, which could bear all the vicissitudes of outdoor life, did not require stables, though people knew how to store fodder for the winter. In compliance with pagan traditions, the ancestors of the Hungarians ate horse meat during animal sacrifices and funeral ceremonies, but there are no traces of them eating raw meat. According to a widespread, but false belief, the Hungarians ate meat softened under the saddle. The origin of this might be the tradition, which still exists among Central-Asian equestrian people, that they put raw meat under the saddle so as to heal the wounded backs of horses (due to hard wooden frames). From this point of view this tale may be a valuable piece of information in case it refers to ancient animal healing. The horses of the conquering Hungarians originate from tarpanes. The majority of their horses were Eastern-type horses, but they also had smaller Western-type and tall Iranian horses. Their appearance was not considered to be important. Their physical characteristic features were important though. They kept their horses in rigorous weather conditions. A stud of 20-25 horses contained 5-6 mares, some stallions and some foals. The stud was grazed further from their quarter. The horses, which were used every day, grazed near their dwelling-place all through the year. Foals were ridden from 2 years old. They made kumis from the milk of mares. Keeping horses in studs and stables brought a drastic change in horse-breeding. Hungarian horses became more and more popular abroad, and trade in horses began. The Hungarian cattle were also hardy animals. The herd lived in the open air. On the basis of bone findings from the 10th-11th centuries their short-horned cattle were about 1 meter high. A unique archaeological finding from the age of the Conquest, a silver belt- mount, shows cattle of this kind. Ox-bone findings show that they were also used as draught animals, besides being kept for their meat and milk. The third animal of typical nomadism is sheep. The Hungarians' ancestors had sheep with horizontally directed, widely twisted horns. The ewes of this species were sometimes hornless. The sheep is a utilitarian domestic animal, all its body-parts can be made use of. Its fleece is a first class basic material for making felt, its skin can be used for making clothes. In the meals of nomadic people mutton came only after beef in order of importance. Only a few archaeological findings refer to the keeping of goats at the age of the Conquest - goat bones can be distinguished from those of sheep by comparing their skulls. Goats have horn stumps. Pork was fundamentally less significant in the diet of ancient Hungarians. They brought this red, calf-size animal from the East, too - which proves a certain stage of settled life-style in Etelköz. This species is a direct-line descendant of the boar; they bear striped piglets even today. The greyhound-like hunting dog of the Hungarians is represented not only in the pictures in Képes Krónika (Illustrated Chronicle), but also archaeological findings from the age of the Conquest give evidence of this fact. Usually a dog was buried with a set of blue pearls around its neck (against evil spirits). In all probability the "kuvasz" (a Hungarian sheep dog) was also a contemporary hunting dog. Due to its courage and strength it was used during hunts for big games. Dogs of this kind can be found all through the steppe, from Mongolia to the Carpathian Basin. When hunting with hawks clever, obedient pointers and greyhounds were used. The hens of the conquering Hungarians were reddish-brown. They were small with partridge-like plumage. They weighed about 750 grams, their eggs were half as big as the eggs today. The wild goose, and the duck were also domesticated (from the eggs of wild ducks). Along the southern edge of the Hungarians' route to the Carpathian Basin camels can be found everywhere, so they must have been familiar with it, although camel bones were not uncovered where other objects from the age of the Conquest were found. The representations of the Képes Krónika (Illustrated Chronicle) are, of course, not decisive proofs concerning the date of their adoption. Only one thing is certain, namely, that king Béla III gave three camels to Frederick Barbarossa's army of crusaders. #### Hunting Hunting played an important role in the life of stock-breeding nomadic people. It was not only a means of obtaining food, but also served as military exercise. Its most popular from was hawking. Besides hunting with hawks and bows and arrows, they killed smaller animals with the help of traps, daggers, snares, pitfalls and digging holes. #### Fishing In the life of nomadic people, fishing was a winter activity. In winter the nomads moved to valleys - especially near the banks of bigger rivers - with their animals, and caught fish, to supplement their winter food-supply. The oldest form of fishing is barrage-fishing, but the ancestors of the Hungarians also knew of the net, harpoon and fishing rods. #### Farming and gathering The ancestors of the Hungarians had already encountered farming on the South-Russian steppe. Seeds were simply thrown onto the unbroken soil, and then the soil was turned over with ploughs. Their most important seeds were millet, wheat and barley. The grown crops were harvested with sickles. They used grinding stones or hand mills for grinding. They also had short scythes and spades with iron attachments. This kind of farming was the same as today's localised, manuring farming, as they sometimes abandoned the fallow lands and cultivated others. This was the beginning of soil-changing cultivation. Besides this the ancient Hungarians' subsistence extended to wild fruits, edible mushrooms and natural honeys. They found honey in nature, but they might have known forest bee-keeping as well. The richness of the Hungarian word-stock referring to vine-growing gives evidence that the ancient Hungarians were no strangers to either wine or beer. They drank various other spiced drinks, including kumis, made from the milk of mares. ### CRAFTSMANSHIP Alongside keeping animals, hunting, fishing and farming, different handicraft activities came into existence - undoubtedly to produce the necessary tools. Archaeological findings from the age of the Conquest and the founding of the state refer to the following trades: manufacture of bows and arrows, smithery, making of saddles, goldsmithery, leather-work, bone-work, conversion of timber and pottery. For the makers of bows and arrows the basic material, glue, was provided by fish, with the help of which they made such fearful weapons that terrorized the whole Western world. Bows were made of hard and soft wood, elastic animal sinews placed into layers. The layers were pressed and tied together, or sticked together with glue gained from boiled fish-bladders. Using backstriking, so-called reflex-bows, reinforced by bone-plates carved from antlers, required special skills. For this reason, their users must have practised it from early childhood. The different-shaped arrow-heads for feathered arrows - in accordance with their purpose - were produced not by bow and arrow makers, but by smiths. Besides arrow-heads, smiths made various weapons (axes, spears and spontoons), harnesses (curb-bits, stirrups and strap-clips) and tools used in agriculture (ploughs, spades, sickles, axes). Among the archaeological remains are found smithery workrooms in pits, workrooms half-dug into the ground and surface workrooms, and mounds. Among the findings were forged knives and indented sickles, on which we can see iron and steel layers welded together. Forges and iron furnaces separated in the 11th-12th centuries. Although contemporary written sources do not mention them, archaeological findings unambiguously verify that the conquering Hungarians knew about precious metal and iron-smelting. Saddle-makers made pommels from hard linden-wood, and pads from soft poplar- or birch-wood. Stirrups, - that make riding safer - were fastened to the sides of the saddle. Their bottoms were rounded, consequently the ancestors of the Hungarians must have ridden their horses in soft-soled boots. The smithery of the age of the Conquest is known from archaeological findings. The most popular basic material besides bronze, was the holy metal, silver, which was either cast or embossed from plates. The background was richly gilt, so floral patterns were further emphasised. The most well-known objects from the age of the Conquest may be the variously formed pouch-plates that also served as indicators of social status. On discs and bracelets - attached to women's clothing - there are animal-shaped decorations. Typical jewels used by ordinary people were hair-rings with S-endings, half-moon shaped hangers, band-rings, bracelets. The jewellery of dignitaries was different from those of common people. Dignitaries had jewels made of gold, while common people wore bronze or silver jewels. With the founding of the state, smithery inherited from the ancient world view of the age of the Conquest, was broken off. Numerous written sources, ecclesiastical inventories and place names refer to 11th century smithery. Consecrations of altars are mentioned in king St Stephen's legends, though real objects survived only in very small numbers. Royal minting in Esztergom was made in the forge of the court, and it also satisfied the unique orders of ecclesiastical and secular dignitaries. Initially, leather-work was considered as an activity only done by women. The basic material was sheep- and rarely cattle-skin. From ancient tanning methods, the Hungarians used grease- and alum-tanning. Alummed Hungarian leather soaked in warm tallow became famous throughout Europe. Primarily it was used for making harness (saddle, bridle and reins). (Alummed leather was called Hungarian-style currying by the French in the Middle Ages.) Other objects of every-day use or objects of clothing that were made of leather - for example: leather bottles, pouches, belts - were the products of saddlers, or in the case of clothes, were products of furriers. Bone is an ancient basic material for making every day objects. Bones, antlers, teeth or tusk of game and domestic animals were used. Clips, awls, needles, crucibles, bow stiffeners and various toys were made of bone. Amulets were made of teeth, combs and the decorations on the end of sticks were made of antlers. Drinking horns were made from cattle-horns. The ancient Hungarians' carpentry tools were hatchets and axes. A vast quantity of wood was needed for mining and smelting ores. Excellent-quality wood was used for making every day objects and weapons (saddles, yurts, bows, scabbards of swords and sabres). The most frequent archaeological findings are products of contemporary pottery. Objects were placed in graves during food- and drink sacrifices. Clay pots have been found and assume various forms, according to the possibilities of use. They were usually made on hand discs, and decorated with various engraved lines. Remains characteristic of nomadic grazing are clay cauldrons used for open-air cooking. ### SETTLEMENT AND DWELLING PLACES Continuous movement and migration to supply animals with the necessary grazing grounds, were essential parts of life in the steppe. Its customary rhythm was determined by the alternation of seasons. A typical feature of the nomadic life-style was the use of round tents, the so-called yurts, that were portable and easy to take apart and put together. Yurts have dome-shaped roofs, grated sidewalls and were covered with multi-layered felt. During migrations, they were carried on pack animals, though sometimes they were fastened to carts. Their inner space division was strictly determined. Facing the door, men owned the right side, women had the left side, and the place next to the door was the place of daily work. The fire-place was in the center and its smoke could leave freely through a hole on top of the yurt. This hole could be closed by a blanket that was pulled by a string, and the door was covered with a carpet. The house thus consisted of only one room. People's properties, clothes and foods were kept in leather sacks or wooden chests placed near the wall, covered by carpets. Weapons and objects of every day use were hanged on the wall, which was made of laths. The Hungarians used these yurts as their summer place of living long after the Conquest. The network of settlements of the Hungarians was not unified when arriving in the Carpathian Basin. The layers of contemporary society can be reconstructed from the types of dwelling-places. The majority of the population lived in the so-called summer or winter quarters. Then, winter quarters grew into villages. Courts of tribal and clan leaders were different, they also functioned as market places. This network of settlements was not influenced by the organisation of the state and church at the turn of the millennium. Besides changing summer quarters - as the importance of farming grew - the permanent winter quarters became village-like settlements. In the villages of the 10th century mud houses half-dug into the ground came into general use, then dwelling- and outhouses appeared built on the surface. These buildings were the equivalents of house-types that were widespread all through contemporary Eastern-Europe. The changing of settlements and house-types can be explained by the economic changes. At the beginning the conquering Hungarians led a nomadic life-style. Accordingly they grazed their herds from spring to autumn, though they had permanent winter quarters surrounded by cultivated lands. As a result of their permanent settling down following the Conquest, smaller villages were formed. The village with fixed borders (villa), the leader of which was the villicus, appeared already in King Stephen's laws and deeds of gift - as dwelling-places of common people. As elements of the forming county-system, wooden or timber fortresses were built, also serving as centers of clans and castle districts. Fortresses were dwelling-places of a different type and size, protected by entrenchments or mounds. Fortresses in the 10th-11th centuries were typically built on small hills emerging from flood planes of rivers, or on peninsulas or ridges of hills, in other words, on a place of strategic importance. Medieval towns in Hungary - legally - appeared only at the turn of the 12th-13th centuries, though there were settlements formerly that functioned as towns, or played an important role in the regional division of work. First of all, places with consumption needs bigger than the average, or places that served as a forum for the primitive exchange of goods could be counted as urban settlements, including principal and ecclesiastical centers. Under the protection of the lord's fortified place of living, there may have been markets as well. Around market places there were villages of artisan servants or ethnic groups engaged in trade. During the foundation of the state, the king's most frequent residence was the fortress of Esztergom. This was also the residence of the first Hungarian archbishopric at the same time. Székesfehérvár became - first of all - a sacred center, since the founder of the state was buried here. For this reason, it later became the coronation and burial place of Hungarian kings, and the crown jewels were also kept here. The Hungarians - even in their home at Etelköz - lived along important international commercial routes. They took part in fur-, wax- and the slave-trade. Trading with the Byzantine and the Arabs did not stop after their arrival in the Carpathian Basin either. There are written sources mentioning the export of slaves and horses, and the import of tin and fur. Although the main branch of economy was subsistence farming, towns already appeared at the age of the foundation of the state to settle the necessary exchange of goods. Firmly paved roads built by the Romans in Pannonia and rivers suitable for shipping played an important role in medieval communication. Sources from the 11th century already mention boat traffic on the Danube, but landing places were also known. In land communication the most important animal was henceforward the horse. In the 10th-12th centuries merchants carried their goods on horses or for shorter trips on foot. The means for long-distance transport of goods had formerly been the two- or four-wheeled carts. They were hardly ever used for transporting people, as a horseman could move about 100 kilometres a day, while a cart could only travel 20-30 kilometres. King Stephen's orders extended to the system of measurements as well. The foot of Bavarian-Caroling origin, that was 16 inches or 1/10 fathom, was the basic unit of linear measure. The royal fathom became the basic unit of land measure, the original of which - made of rope - is kept in the treasury at Székesfehérvár. According to the Roman tradition widespread in Europe and the local Hungarian practice of ploughing, the measurement of the royal acre - that was 12 x 72 royal fathoms - was formed. Coins had an important role in the forming of weight measurements. The units of volumetry were established in the realm of corp-, hay- and hemp work: such as a sheaf of, a handful of and cart of something. Besides royal measurements, general and local measurements were created. Although widespread, these measures were not at all precise. ### EVERYDAY LIFE #### Labour Division Between Genders In the life of the Hungarians' ancestors men's and women's work was separated. Women had to do the cooking and baking. They used vegetables, onions, peas, horse-radish and various kinds of lettuce. Big clay cauldrons were used for cooking. Different kinds of pots may have been made from wood or leather. Griddle bread was made by pouring batter on the hot griddle in the oven. Women had to make clothes, carpets and felt, they directed the moving and the setting up of portable felt-tents. Women dealt with tasks concerning the house but they also had to take part in hoeing the garden. Duties connected to animal husbandry were done by men, of course. Thus milking was men's work, while women had to make the kumis according to the tradition of nomadic people. Spindles were used for spinning, horizontal waving looms were used for weaving. After the Conquest weaving looms with treadles were adopted. Girls and women made felt (it is a textile made from the fleece of sheep) that was used for various purposes: clothes (coats, boots and caps), pouches, blankets, coarses under saddles and - most important of all - tent covers were made from it. ### Clothing Presumably both sexes wore similar items of clothing: shirts made of hemp or flaxen linen, kaftans or coat-like upper garments, loose trousers and boots with a slightly rising toe. Shiny mounts also decorated their clothes according to social rank, age and dignity. The arrangement of objects found by archaeologists in graves helps us to reconstruct part of the clothing. A typical indicator of rank of equestrian nomadic men was the mounted belt. Boys were initiated as men by receiving a belt. The quantity and quality of belt mounts showed the social status of its owner. Their weapons and pouches containing their tools were hanged onto this. Men wore pointed leather or felt high caps, the sides of which could be turned down to protect their ears. Women wore clothes that may have been more richly decorated than men's clothes. Girls wore headdresses, richer women wore high caps decorated with disc and hanger mounts or fur. Their jewels were various ear rings, braid rings or discs, beads strung onto a necklace, half-moon shaped hangers, bracelets and rings. Diamond shapes mounts and double mounts with hangers were sewn onto the stand-up shirt collars of women and children's clothes. They wore a brocade or silk caftan over their shirts decorated with beads or metal buttons (pityke) hemmed with square or half-moon shaped mounts with hangers or pressed rosettas. They braided polished shells and beads into their plaits and put decorated discs at the ends. Bracelets gathered up the sleeves of their clothes. Hair rings with S-endings made of bronze or silver were typical common jewels at the age of the Conquest and the foundation of the state. Bracelets ending in animal head decorations might have had a protective role. They were quite popular at that age. The clothing of high society was the skived fur upper garment, the "suba". Gowns might have been felt blankets, put on the shoulder in bad weather. Other typical items of clothing were the patterned tunic, gloves, short fur upper garment (smock-frock), boots sewn on the side with rivets and decorated uppers and silk shirt closing in the middle or at the left shoulder. After adopting Christianity usually only simple leather or textile belts were buried - iron and bronze buckles show this. People wore hollowed relic holder crosses on their neck or cast chest crosses. Hairstyle has indicated the difference between genders and generations since ancient times. It may have denoted social rank as well, and in the case of women it might have been a traditional sign. #### Healing We have hardly any data about how people at the age of the Conquest diagnosed and healed diseases. The fact that they knew some herbs and healing techniques and relevant traces of the ancient belief provide some information about the topic. The only thing we surely know is that trepanation - which requires serious anatomical and surgical knowledge - was widespread among the ancestors of the Hungarians. |