Abstract

Site I in Wyszembork, the parish of Mrągowo, the voivodship of Olsztyn, was situated on the Lake Salęt, on a large island separated from the land by narrow, shallow straits. Archaeological excavations carried out here in 1974-1975 and 1977 led to the discovery of traces of human activity from several epochs. The oldest were loose finds fragments of pots ornamentated by cords prints and flint tools. These were the traces of a settlement or encampment of population of Corded Ware Culture. Considerably later, dated to 4-Sth century B.C. of the bronze age was a cementery of the Lusatian Culture of which only a few cremations have been preserved. These graves are furnished with typical, "lusatian" pots, with characterysticly smeared surfaces. Majority of the material however, was related to two-phase settlement dated to the first centuries AD. In the first phase, dating from the later part of stage В j to the end of the Late Roman Period, appeared numerous thick-walled pots of well fired clay, with pineched ornamentations on the rand Spoot, silimar to them thin-walled vessels, made with great precision and served most probably as "table" pottery and miniature vessels other features. Objects which might be dated to this phase are small rectangular houses with walls supported by irregularly placed posts and large storage pits, most probably used for storing corn. The second phase dates to the later stage of the Migration Period (6th-7th c). At that time there appeared very big pots of badly fired day with abundant mixing of coarse-grained break-stone, decorated with sticking listels; thin-walled beakers on void legs, decorated with prints of varions stamps and vessels of a more less cylindrical neck with flatly cut rand. Objects dated to this phase do not differ from those accurring in the Roman Age. Analysis of organic remnants found in the objects indicates that in that time the settlement economy did not undergo considerable changes, the basis of survival was agriculture with a considerable participation of animed breeding and fishing.