International team of archaeologists discovered remains of a possibly 20-metre long house in Nicolaevca near Balti, Moldova. The remains of the first “long house” feature found in the country are believed to date 7000 years.

The find made by Polish archaeologists from Rzeszów University, Universität Regensburg and High Anthropological School University from Kishinev, is the first of the kind from Moldova, indicating that the people of the Linear Pottery culture constructed houses in this area. The culture stretched from West Europe to Kiev in the East and its people lived in very characteristic houses. In the nearby Ukraine  numerous sites of this kind are known, meanwhile none have been found yet in Romania, indicating present Moldova being a boundary of the culture’s reach. Archaeologist state that this type of house developed about 5500 years ago. The 20-metre long, 6-7-metre wide gable-roof structure was strengthened with wooden pillars mounted in the ground, with the inner spaces filled with wattle plastered with clay. Part of the inner area is believed to have been used to shelter animals. Near the house a pit with remains of a cow was found, believed to be a ritual deposit. The excavations were preceded by geophysical measurements which also were applied to survey other areas in search for archaeological features dating back thousands of years.

(after Nauka w Polsce & Maciej Dąbiec)