FRAGMENTA MINERALOGICA E T PALAEONTOLOGICA 10. 1981 p. 97-106

The skulls of Mammoth in Hungary B y

I. V Ö R Ö S

(Received November 30, 1980)

A b s t r a c t : The author rev iews the localit ies and finds of mammoth sku l l s in Hungary. The description of find was based part ly on the l i terature , partly on the skul ls and s k u l l -fragments in the collections of museums. The paper includes also the C 1 4 dates of three localit ies of mammoth s k u l l s .

F r o m the large mammals l ived during the Late Pleistocene the remains of the MammuthuB primigenius (Blumenbach, 1799) have came to light from most localit ies and in the greatest quantity in Hungary (VÖRÖS 1974). Because of their s izes remainB of mammoths draw the col lectors' atten­tion much rather than those of other large mammal species of s m a l l e r s ize incidentally found at the same local i ty. Thus mammoth finds get into the collections of museums in a great quantity and the museums usually make severa l r e s c u e excavations annually in site where new finds have been reported.

In Hungary there are 535 s tray finds of the pleistocene large mammals from which 373 (70%) include also the mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius) (JÁNOSSY & VÖRÖS 1979).

According to an e a r l i e r investigation 1547 pieces of Elephantidae finds came to light from the Carpathian B a s i n of which 908 pieces (58%) represent the head-region (VÖRÖS 1974):

About half of the mammoth finds (46%) consists of molars or fragments of molars which are highly res is tant . The numbers gained by the new data of finds also corroborate this observation.

The number of mammoth skul l finds in Hungary - although outnumbers the pieces registered in the Carpathian B a s i n in 1974 - i s s m a l l ; 23 skul ls or skul l fragments of s e v e r a l Individuals are known from 21 local i t ies (5.6%, F i g . 1 ) . The localit ies of the skul l fragments are Hatvan, Mende and T a t a .

In the l i s t of skul l finds only those localit ies are recorded where either Intact or broken skul l s were found containing always the brain case . The cause of this res tr i c t ion i s not an ana­tomical one, It i s neces sary f irst of a l l from the point of view of the local izat ion of the taphono-mic p lace . The mammoth skul l does not res iBt to long distance transport and/or roll ing by water . I f the skul l i s washed away from the autochthonous locality the maxi l la and praemaxl l la usually break off the large s ized hollowed neurocranlum because of the ponderosity of the teeth and tusks . The alveolar bones are usually broken off from the teeth and the tusks and become disintegrated.

P i e c e s skul l , skul l f r . maxi l la , max i l l a f r . tusk, tusk f r . mandibula, mandibula f r . molar , m o l a r f r .

14 8

117 55

714

908

F i g . 1. Local i t ies of mammoth skul ls in Hungary. 1. Z a l a e g e r s z e g - B e s e n y ő i s z ő l ő k - 2. T a t a -Porhanyó bánya - 3. P é c s b á n y a t e l e p - 4. Dunafö ldvár-GöböTjárás - 5. D u n a f ö l d v á r - F e l s ő g ö b ö l j á r á s - 6. N a g y m a r o s - T ö r ö k t e l e k m e z ő - 7. Nagymaros-"kurzer Riegel" - 8. H o n t - T é g l a v e t ő - 9. S á m ­s o n h á z a - 10. M á t r a d e r e c s k e - 11. A p c - K a v i c s b á n y a - 12. H a t v a n - S ó d e r b á n y a - 13. M e n d e - T é g l a -g y á r - 14. The bed of T i s z a at Fegyvernek - 15. The bed of T i s z a at Fokoru - 16. The bed of T i s z a at Szolnok - 17. The bed of T i s z a at T ó s z e g - 18. T i s z a f ö l d v á r - T é g l a g y á r - 19. N a g y r é v -

20. Gyoma - 21. E g e r s z ó l á t

T h a t i s why the upper molars and tusks can be found so often and in a great quantity without the alveolar bones. F r o m the occurence of mammoth bones it can be observed that - except the "mammoth brecc ia" at Jobbágyi , the quarry in the Mexiko Val ley and the Paleolithic site at B o d -rogkeresztur (VÖRÖS in press ) - the maxi l la and praemaxi l la finds came to light from those l o c a ­l i t ies where also the skulls (neurocrania) were found. Furthermore we can observe that at 12 local i t ies of skul ls from the 21 ones also the skeleton or skeletal remains of mammoth have been found. 11 mammoth skulls originate from r i v e r beds.

The finding site of the neurocrania of skulls must be the place of death of the animal (autoch­thonous position of the skull and skeleton) or at least the place very near to it (allochthonous po­sition of the skul l and skeleton).

L O C A L I T I E S AND FINDS O F MAMMOTH S K U L L ( F i g . 1)

1. Z a l a e g e r s z e g - B e s e n y ő i s z ő l ő k ( B e s e n y ő i Vineyards)

On a hi l l of the B e s e n y ő i s z ő l ő k named H o s s z u - J á n k a , a nearly intact skeleton of a mammoth was unearthed in 1900 from the sandy loess of a gorge being in the right side of the Horgos V a l ­ley (BÖCKH 1904, K A D I C 1911, JÁNOSSY & VÖRÖS 1979). The skeleton was in allochthonous po­s i t ion. F r o m the skul l and the tusk only their disintegrated fragments remained . F i r s t l y the finds were transported to the General G r a m m a r School at Zalaegerszeg and la ter into the Museum of the Hungarian Royal Geological Institute. In 1906 the two maxillae remained with dentition from the skull-bones were built in the skul l made of plaster of P a r i s during the preparation of the skeleton of the "Zalaegerszeg mammoth" erected in the Geological Institute (BÖCKH 1906, K A D I C 1911). The finds are in the P a l é o n t o l o g i e a l Department of the Hungarian Natural History Museum (Inv.no.:

V . 7 9 . 1 4 9 - 1 6 0 ) . The mammoth was 30-40 years o ld. The skeleton Is the paratype of the M a m m u ­ thus primigenius hungaricus K r e t z o l , 1941 ( K R E T Z O I 1941). The data of the broken s i n . et dext. M a are in Table 1.

Table 1.

Dimensions of Molars of the Mammuthus primigenius hungaricus (in mm)

Skull M á t r a d e ­

Szolnok B . Szolnok C . Z a l a ­ P é c s b á n y a ­

recske Szolnok C .

egerszeg telep

Sex 0* ? juv . Ö* a*

M 3 d . M 3 d . M 3 s . M 2 d . M 3 d . M 3 s . M 3 d . M 3 s .

Length of crown 300 - - 147 260 - 250 238 Length of grlndig-surface 192 140 150 125 - - 175 173 Number of ridge-plates of grindlng-surface 16 1Ü 13 14 - 10 15 14 Breadth of crown 94 87 85 07 91 90 112 112 Physio logical height of crown 120 125 120 60 87 - - -L a m i n a r frequency In 100 mm 9 9 9 10 .5 7 6 .5 7 7 Thick of ridge-plate 7 8 8 6 .5 9 9 8 8 Enamel thickness 2 2 2 1.6 2 .2 2 .2 2 .2 2.2

2 . T a t a - P o r h a n y ó b á n y a (Porhanyó Quarry)

Middle Paleolithic Site F r o m the well-known Middle Paleolithic site a travertine Intracrania l brain cast of a m a m ­

moth got into the collection of the Hungarian Geological Institute in 1937 ( inv.no.: Ob-5013). The r a r e find was published by TASNÁDI-KUBACSKA (1944). The travertine has infilled the cavity of the forebrain so it conserved the anteriordorsal wa l l of the cerebra l cavity . The anterior, n a r ­rower end of the intracrania l bra in cast corresponds to the olfactorlus of the rhinencephalus lobus. The shallow fossa l ong i tud iná l i s c erebr i can be found between the olfactory lobes dorsa l ly . In the lower part of the Intracranial brain cast the fragment of the c r i s t a gall l remained in s i tu . In the place of the perforated lamina cr ibrosa s m a l l travert ine pins were created. F r o m the shape of the in tracran ia l brain cast it i s c l ear that It was formed within a skul l lying on its forehead.

In the "Camp-si te of mammoth calves ' hunters" a skull of a mammoth calf came to light in fragmentary condition during the 1958 excavation of L . V É R T E S ( K R E T Z O I 1964).

3 . P é c s b á n y a t e l e p

F r o m the argillaceous loess sediment of the sandpit of the K á p o s z t á s Val ley in the miners ' settlement an almost complete mammoth skeleton was unearthed by L . R I H M E R , between 1928-32 (RIHMER 1935). The skeleton was in allochthonous position. F r o m the skul l bones only the condyle occipitale dext. has remained. The two tusks are in fragmentary condition, the length of right tusk fragment i s 2000 m m . The skeleton belonged to a mammoth bull of 35-40 years old ( R I H M E R 1935). The skeleton is the holotype of the Mammuthus primigenius hungaricus Kretzo i , 1941 ( K R E T Z O I 1941). Data of s i n . et dext. M 3 are included In Table 1.

4. D u n a f ö l d v á r - G ö b ö l j arás Upper Paleol i thic Site In the southern vicinity of Dunafö ldvár a skeleton of a young mammoth calf was washed out •

by r a i n from the ditch of a road called G ö b ö l j á r á s In 1934 ( C S A L O G O V I T S 1936). The skeleton was lying on its left side in autochthonous position on a surface consisting of burned c h a r c o a l . The left side of the skull Is heavily damaged. The p r a e m a x l l l a was broken off during the rescue e x c a ­vation. Present ly the skeleton of the mammoth ca l f i s exhibited in B i t u in the Balogh Á d á m Museum at S z e k s z á r d ( lnv.no.: 1.935).

5. Dunafóldvár-FelBÓ' (Upper) G ö b ö l j á r á s

15-20 m northwards from the 1934 finds in the cartroad cal led F e l s ő G ö b ö l j á r á s leading toward the Solt f e r r y a new find of mammoth bones was washed out by ra in in 1966. Among the bone finds there was also a skul l with dentition. After the rescue excavation made by Gy. R O Z N E R , the bone got into the Balogh Á d á m Museum in S z e k s z á r d ( R O Z N E R 1966).

6. N a g y m a r o s - T ö r ö k t e l e k m e z ő

hi the second half of the forties of the last century during ra i lway constructions "a whole head of an ancient elephant with i ts teeth" was found in the depth of 1 m . It could not be saved because of its bad condition ( K U B I N Y I 1864, K O C H 1900).

7. Nagymaros " K u r z e r Riegel"

On the southern side of the so-ca l led "kurzer Riege l" fragments of a skul l and parts of a skeleton were found in gravel below loess (SZABO 1873). The skeleton was certainly in allochtho­nous position. The find does not exist any more .

8. H o n t - T é g l a v e t ő

In 1793 a great quantity of mammoth bones was washed out by r a i n from a br ickyard near Hont ( S A R T O R I 1810, p . 152 . , TANÁRKY 1814, p . 3 6 . , L E N G Y E L 1893, K U B I N Y I 1842, 1864, S Z A B Ó 1873, K O C H 1900). The tusks which came to light from a depth of "4 feet" (1220 mm) disintegrated during the excavations. The remained parts of the skul l were transported to the National Museum in 1851 ( M N M . G Á O . J . ) . The skeleton was in allochthonous position, it belonged to a young calf (VÖRÖS in p r e s s ) .

9. S á m s o n h a z a

In 1810 from a ravine of a depth of 2 m two tusks and "a skul l with teeth" came to light. The length of the tusk i s "8 feet" (2440 mm), that of the skul l i s "3 feet" (920 m m ) . It collapsed when it was r a i s e d ( Z I P S E R 1813, B E U D A N T 1822, p . 5 3 5 . , K U B I N Y I 1864, K O C H 1900).

10. M á t r a d e r e c s k e

In 1949 from the sand pit situated at the side of the garden of F . ZÁM a skeleton of a mammoth was found In a depth of 2, 5 m (VÉRTES 1954, D A N C ZA 1972, VÖRÖS 1975). The s k e ­leton was lying in autochthonous position on its left s ide . It was leaning on its tusks and was in an almost vert ica l posit ion. The length of the tusks w a s 3200 m m . When he ra i sed the skeleton, D A N C Z A found a big crudely manufactured chalcedone blade which reminds mostly of the blades of the E a r l y Szeleta culture (VÉRTES 1954, Table I I . 3; V É R T E S 1985).

In the course of the excavation and later , during the storage the skull col lapsed. In the course of mounting of the skeleton the fragments of skul l and the miss ing parts were completed and replaced by p las ter of P a r i s . In 1970 under the direction of D . JÁNOSSY, the skeleton of the mammoth was erected in the exhibition of the M á t r a Museum at G y ö n g y ö s by using an inner f rame . On the bas i s of the age determination made by the aid of the s i z e and the degree of abrasion of the molars the mammoth bull per ished when he was 50-55 y o r s a old (VÖRÖS 1975). The data of the M 3 dext. are in Table 1.

11. A p c - K a v i c s b á n y a (Grave l -P i t )

In 1961 a skeleton of a young mammoth w a B found in the loess layer of the gravel pit . The rescue excavation was made by D . JÁNOSSY; the finds are in the Paleontological Department of the Hungarian Natural History Museum (Inv.no.: V . 7 9 . 5 2 . , and V . 7 2 . 8 2 . ) . The skeleton was in allochthonous position, the skul l was found as fallen into dust (VÖRÖS in p r e s s ) . The mammoth perished when it was 15-20 y e a r s old.

12. H a t v a n - S ó d e r b á n y a (Grave l -P i t )

A great quantity of mammoth bones got into the Paleontological Collection of the Mátra M u ­seum from the grave l pit at Hatvan (JÁNOSSY & VÖRÖS 1979, VÖRÖS in p r e s s ) . Among the finds skul l fragments of s e v e r a l ca lves have been also detected. Isolated specimens of M 1 a n d M 2 were

found in a remarkably great quantity. The mammoth finds together with the remains of other a n i ­ma l s (JÄNOSSY & VÖRÖS 1979) were in allochthonous position.

13. M e n d e - T é g l a g y á r ( B r i c k - F i e l d )

In 1961 mandibulae and skeletal par t s came to light from the quarry of the br ick- f ie ld more exactly from the bottom of a quarry profile being 17-18 m deep ( K E M E N C Z E I 1961). L a t e r on a d ­ditional mammoth remains of also allochthonous position were found between 9 and 10 m from a sandy loess layer (PÉCSI 1965). The r e m a i n s of several individuals of various ages have been transported to the Collection of the Hungarian Geological Institute. F r o m an incomplete skeleton of an animal of 30-40 y e a r s old only the fragments of praemax i l l a and of frontale are preserved .

An extremely r i c h paleontological m a t e r i a l have been coming to ligth from the T i s z a Val ley , f i rs t of al l from the a r e a of the Middle T i s z a Va l l ey . The intact or fragmentary s k u l l B existing even today originated from this a r e a .

14. The bed of T i s z a at Fegyvernek

The find was dredged out from the T i s z a at the end of the last century, it consists of the left half of the neurocranium. The find i s in the Paleontological Department of the Hungarian N a ­tura l History Museum ( inv.no. : V . 6 3 . 3 5 . ) .

The maxil la with the molars and the praemaxi l la are broken off. The frontal ridge of the skul l i s fragmented. On the medial fracture of the skul l the enormous sinus frontalis , c r i s t a and laminae ossae can wel l be seen . The sm a l l e s t height of the diploe (cerebral cavity-forehead) i s 300 m m . The median-sagittal length of the cerebra l cavity i s 265 mm, its height is 120 m m . The r o s t r u m of the nasa l bone is intact, long (150 mm), its base i s wide (210 m m ) .

The skull fragment belongs to a mature bul l . The data of the skul l are in Table 2 .

15. The bed of T i s z a at Fokoru

At the end of the last century a near ly complete skul l got into the Hungarian National M u ­seum ( K O C H 1900). The find does not exis t any more .

16. The bed of T i s z a at Szolnok A . In 1813 a skul l fragment was dredged out from the T i s z a ( K U B I N Y I 1864, K O C H 1900).

The find does not exist any more . B . A completely intact skul l with dentition in situ was dredged out from the T i s z a . It i s

s m a l l e r than the previous one ( K U B I N Y I 1864, K O C H 1900). It haB been transported the National Museum in 1850 ( M N M . G Ä O . J . ) . Now the sku l l can be seen in the Paleontological Exhibition of the Hungarian Natural History Museum (Inv .no . : V . 6 0 . 1 7 9 9 . ) ( P l . I . , F i g . 1)

It i s a skul l of a mature mammoth cow. The frontal ridge of the skul l i s damaged at the right s ide . The tusks are m i s s i n g . C o m ­

paring the skull with that of a mammoth bull found at Debica (Poland, K U B I A K 1980) the following can be established: - our mammoth skul l i s s m a l l e r , Its surface is more rounded; - it i s vert ical ly lower, horizontally longer; - the region of the occipitale i s leaning forward to a greater degree, its acrocranion is of ante­

r i o r position; - its forehead plane i s slightly convex; - the nostr i l s are narrower , - the praemaxi l la 1B shorter , narrower , it i s leaning forward to a l e s s e r degree; - the fossa praemax i l l ar i s i s shallow; - there i s a deep fossa between the p r a e m a x i l l a and maxi l la and the foramines supraorbitales.

The skull was measured by D U B R O V O ' B method (DUBROVO 1960) ( F i g . 2 ) . T h e data of the skul l are in Table 2 . T h e only parts remained are the M 3 s i n . et dext. in the max i l l a . In the anterior part of

m a x i l l a p r o c . alveolus - in front of the M 3 - the alveoli of the already fallen out M 2 are found. The alveoli of the M 2 , at the left hand side are already c losed, and on the surfaces within the s h e l f of the a l v e o l u B a B h a l l o w scabrous impress ion was created . It i s highly possible that the right side M 2 was fallen out later because the alveoli of roots are s t i l l open. The data of M 3 s i n .

et dext. are in Table 1. According to the age determination made by the aid of the measurements and the abrasion

of molars ( G U E N T H E R 1955) the age of the mammoth cow was 40-50 y e a r s . C . In the exhibition of the Damianich J á n o s Museum at Szolnok there was another skul l f rag-

ment which originated from the T i s z a at Szolnok. The skul l with dentition in situ M ^ 0 (!) s i n . et dext. , i s in fragmentary condition, it belongs to a young bull ca l f ( P l . I . , F i g . 2 -4 ) . The p r a e ­maxi l la was broken off together with the tusks. The frontal ridge is damaged at both sides of the neurocranium. The zygomaticl are damaged. The nasa l bone Is broken, the ros trum is mis s ing . The length of basioccipltale i s 160 m m .

13 F i g . 2. Measurement of mammoth skull after Dubrovo (1960)

The suturae of bones of the skul l namely the s . frontalis, s . frontonasalia, s . nasoprae-m a x i l l a r i s , s . frontomaxil laris , s . frontopraemaxil laris , s . maxi l lopraemaxi l lar i s , s . maxi l lo -sphenoidalis and s . in terpraemaxi l lar i s are opened. It Is a r a r e phenomenon that all molars ( M 1 " 2 " 3 ) remained within the p a r s alveoli of maxi l lae . The aboral part of M 1 had s t i l l a role in chewing, while the M 3 has not penetrated the wall of alveolus. The molars are s m a l l , thin and g r a c i l e . The oral part of the crown of M 1 i s abraded until the roots on its aboral part the bases of ridge-plates s t i l l exist . The enamel pattern of ridge-plates i s double l aminar . The number of the existing ridge-plates Is 5. The breadth of the ridge-plates i s 63 m m . On the 85% of the crown of M 2 the grinding Burface was already developed.

The data of the M 2 dext. are in Table 1. On the basis of the age determination made by the aid of the s i ze and abrasion of the molars

( G U E N T H E R 1955) aB well as on the basis of tooth-replacement the age of the mammoth bull was 20-25 y e a r s .

The data of the skul l are in Table 2. D . At B á r t s z i r t in the right bank of the R i v e r T i s z a an occipital fragment was found in blue

c lay in 1958. The find got into the Damjanich J á n o s Museum at Szolnok (Inv.no.: 5 9 . 6 , 1 ) . The find does not exist any more .

E . F r o m the T i s z a near Szolnok a fragment of skul l together with molars got into the Hun­garian Geological Institute in 1909 (Inv.no.: Ob-2419). The find does not exist now.

17. The bed of T i s z a at T ó s z e g

A . In 1881 a skul l fragment of a young mammoth got Into the National Museum ( M N M . G Á O . J . ) . The find does not exist any m o r e .

B . In 1956 at the cliff near T ó s z e g a praemax i l l a fragment was found. The find i s in the Damjanich J á n o s Museum at Szolnok ( Inr .no . : 5 9 . 2 1 . 1 . ) .

18. T i s z a f ö l d v á r - T é g l a g y á r ( B r l c k - F i e l d )

In 1970 from the sandy layer of the quarry of the b r i c k field'fragments of a skull and parts of the skeleton were found (VARGA 1973). The finds were i n allochthonous position. The finds are under conservation in the Tiszazug Geographical Museum at T i s z a f ö l d v á r (VARGA 1973, JÁNOSSY & VÖRÖS 1979).

19. N a g y r é v

In 1884 a left side fragment of a skul l was found in the dead channel of the T i s z a ( S C H A F A R -Z I K 1884). The find consists of the left praemaxi l la , max i l l a , zygomaticum and frontale of the s k u l l . The finds' were transported to the Collection of the Hungarian' Geological Institute ( Inv .no . : Ob-470), but it does not exist any m o r e .

20, Gyoma

In 1893 a fragment of a skull was dredged out from the K ö r ö s R i v e r . The find has got into the CoHection of the Hungarian Geological Institute ( Inv .no . : O b - 9 8 7 . ) . The find does not exist any m o r e .

21. E g e r s z ó l á t

In 1878 remains of a mammoth go into the Hungarian National Museum from E g e r s z ó l á t aming which fragments of lskulls were also existing ( M N M . G Á O . J . ) . The find does not exist e i ther.

D A T A T O T H E C H R O N O L O G Y O F M A M M O T H IN H U N G A R Y

, The chronological position of Mammuthus primigenius (Blumenbach 1799) in Hungary i s r e l a ­tively well-known (VÖRÖS in p r e s s ) . The "earl ier primigenius" and the "later primigenius" ( M A Y E T & R O M A N 1923) conventionally distinguished within the specific evolutional (dental evolu­tional) trend of the Mammuthus primigenius macrospecies can be also separated quite well in the case of skul l finds having mo lars .

The dentition of skulls from Zalaegerszeg, P é c s b á n y a t e l e p , Hont ( ? ) , Ape, M á t r a d e r e c s k e , T i s z a f ö l d v á r and Szolnok B . and C . are of "ear l ier primigenius" type. But, the dentition of skul ls from Zalaegerszeg and P é c s b á n y a t e l e p are more a r c h a i c . So, it could not be a mere chance that the' holotypes as wel l as the paratypes of Mamuthus primigenius hungaricus Kretzo i 1941 adapted even al lometrical ly to the woodland mi l ieu belong to " e a r l i e r primigenius" types. Yet we do not know that - in the evolutionary trend of the primigenius macrospecies - at which level of the "ear l i er primigenius" phase (Middle-Upper Pleistocene) the short legged, low withers-height, woodland M . primigenius hungaricus could have lived in the C a r p a t h i a n - B a s i n .

The dentition of skul ls from Tata , Dunafö ldvár , Mende and Hatvan belongs to the "later primigenius" tipe. The skull f i n d s of the "later primigenius" type originate from the Subalyuk-I s t á l l ó s k ő phase of the Utrecht faunal wave.

R A D I O M E T R I C D A T A

Unfortunately, radiocarbon age determination has not been made so far on mammoth bones. The absolute chronological data of the "later primigenius" types from another bone, charcoal and wal l - rock samples originate from the localit ies are the following:

1. T a t a - P o r h a n y ó bánya ( P o r h a n y ó Quarry) Middle Paleol i thic Site 1 .1 . T r a v e r t i n e (No.2.) G R O 2538: 50 000 + 2 500 B P . 1 .2 . Bone G R N 3023: 33 600 + 1 100 B P . ( V R I E S & WAARD 1964) 1 .3 . Traver t ine originated from the layer below the culture l a y e r . Univ . of F l o r a T h 230/

U 234 70 000 ± 17 500 B P . ( K R O L O P P 1977) The mammoth could have lived near the hot springs of Tata in all the three p e r l o d B m e a ­

sured . 2. M e n d e - T é g l a g y á r ( B r l c k - F i e l d )

2 . 1 . charcoal Mo 422: 29 800 ± 600 B P . ( G E Y H et a l . 1969) 2.2 1-3430: 27 200 + 1 400 B P . ( K R O L O P P 1977).

The mammoth remains came to light from the upper leve l (9-10 m) from the layer containing the charcoal sample .

3 . Dunaföld v á r - G ö b ö l j á r á s Upper Paleol i thic Site The age determination was made on the charcoal sample came to light during the 1934

rescue excavation ( G E Y H et a l . 1969): HV-1657: 12 110 ± 325 B P . L . V É R T E S considers the C 1 4

age for the find as archaeologlcally acceptable ( G E Y H et a l . 1969), however paleontologically it i s too young.

In Hungary authentic find of Mammuthus primiKenius I s unknown from the period after the I s t á l l ó s k ő phase of the Utrecht faunal wave (VÖRÖS in p r e s s ) .

R E F E R E N C E S

B E U D A N T , F . S . (1822): Voyage m i n é r a l o g l q u e et g é o l o g i q u e en Hongrie, pendant l ' a n n é e 1818. -P a r i s I .

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7. - Frankfurt am Main: 585.

Author ' s address: D r . I . VÖRÖS

Archaeological Department Hungarian National Museum H-1088 Budapest M ú z e u m körut 14-16. Hungary.

E X P L A N A T I O N T O P L A T E

P L A T E I .

F l g . l . Mammuthus primigenius hungaricus Kretzoi , 1941. Szolnok B . sku l l . Fronta l view. About 1/9 natural s ize

F i g . 2. Mammuthus primigenius hungaricus Kretzoi , 1941, Szolnok C . sku l l . Fronta l view. About l / l l natural s ize (photo by K . Kozma)

F l g . 3. Mammuthus primigenius hungaricus Kretzoi , 1941. Szolnok C . s k u l l . L a t e r a l view. About 1/11 natural s ize (photo by K . Kozma)

F i g . 4 a, b. Mammuthus primigenius hungaricus Kretzoi 1941. Szolnok C . s k u l l , a: palatal view. b: occipital view. About l / l l natural s ize (photo by K . Kozma)

Table 2.

Measurements of the Skulls of Mammoth from the T i s z a R i v e r (in mm)

Skull Szolnok B , Szolnok C . Fegyvernek

Sex o juv .o* or"

1. (1) Prof i l length ( A c - P r ) 1050 2 . (2) B a s a l length (ß-pr) 820 3. (3) Short frontal length ( A c - E c t ) 430 410 4. (4) Greatest frontal length (Ae- infer ior part

of nares) 460 506 5. (5) Length of praemaxi l lare ( N s - P r ) 590 6. Distance between the f. inf. orbit 320 7. (9) Smallest medial breadth of praemaxi l l are 270 290 8. (10) Breadth of the lower part of praemaxi l lare 340 9. (12) Inferomedial thickness of praemaxi l lare 65

10. (14) Horizontal length of tusk alveol 170 11. (13) V e r t i c a l length of tusk alveol 110 12. (6a) Breadth of nares 310 380 13. (6b) Height of nares 105 14. B a s a l breadth of ros t rum of the nasal 105 - 210 15. Length of ros t rum of the nasa l 75 - 150 16. (19) Length of the zygomatic arch 410 420 400 17. (18) Thickness of the zygomatic a r c h 43 60 50 18. (7) Zygomatic breadth ( Z y - Z y ) 610 19. (8) Breadth of the neurocranium (eu-eu) 600 570 20. (11) Smallest breadth of frontal (fs-fs) 290 310 21. (15) Height of skul l (Ac -ora l Une of the grindig-

surface of M 3 ) 760 680 22. (16) Height of the neurocranium (B-ac ) 480 485 23 . (17) Length of the Bas ion (B) to the aboral line of

the aboral line of the grlnding-surface of M 3 350 380 24. Length of the skul l basal ( B - r h i ) 530 550 25 . Horizontal length of facial (pterygoid proc , of

alisphenoid-anterior part of praemaxi l lare ) 470 26. Greatest breadth of frontal ( E c t - E c t ) 610 610 27. Smallest frontal breadth between the orbits

(Ent-Ent) 460 465 28. V e r t i c a l length of the orbit 170 145 29. Breadth of the fossa mandibulae 140 30. Breadth of the occipital condyles (c-c) 180 225 230 31. Breadth of the for.magnum 92 85 90 32. Height of the for.magnum 77 75 78 33 . Breadth of the arcus alveoli on the anterior

part of max. 230 220 34. Greatest breadth accrosB the outer borders of

the M 3 alveoli 230 190 35. Length of the palatal 200 200 36. Breadth of the palatal 60 54 37. Height of the pterygoid p r o c . of alisphenoid 300 320 38. B a s a l breadth of the pterygoid p r o c . of

alisphenoid 145 170 39. Length of the baeioccipital - 160

Number B In parentheses are those of D U B R O V O (1960)