BKISZ Sewer Line
Site ID: 72911
Keywords: Prehistory, Neolithic, Copper Age, Bronze Age, settlement, stray finds, Roman Age, settlement, stray finds, Modern Period, road, layer finds
Between March 26 and September 8, 2020, archaeological monitoring was conducted by the Budapest History Museum during the seventh phase of the “Budapest Complex Integrated Wastewater Drainage” (BKISZ) project. The excavation yielded stray prehistoric (Neolithic, possibly Early Bronze Age) finds, settlement traces, and Roman-period building debris.
The main sewer line, constructed in 2020, extended from the connection point beneath Mocsárosdűlő at Aranyvölgy Street to the intersection of Bécsi Road and Szőlővész Street. It was constructed using open-trench methods over a 1,250-meter route, with a trench width of 80–150 cm, covering a total area of approximately 1,500 m². The trench depth varied between 3.2 and 5 meters depending on the surface level. The pipeline route was planned to run beneath the bicycle path located between the roadway and the paved sidewalk.
The trench starting elevation ranged from 107.30 to 113.85 a.B.S.l. from Aranyhegyi Road to the 17th property, rising to 114.52 a.B.S.l. at Óvár Street and reaching 115.30 a.B.S.L. at Szőlővész Street (Fig. 1).
In accordance with earlier observations, beginning at Aranyhegyi Road, a one-meter-thick modern fill was followed by 40–50 cm of blackish-brown clayey sand, then yellow clayey sand, and from −1.75 m, dolomitic gravel alluvium interspersed with sandy bands and cemented pockets. This natural sequence—common throughout Aranyvölgy and the Mocsárosdűlő area—was observed continuously from the corner of Aranyhegyi Road to house no. 1. Cleaning revealed stray Roman and prehistoric (Neolithic, possibly Copper Age) material, an unknown (possibly Roman) ditch, and several small prehistoric pits.
Further west, in front of house no. 4, the gravel layer appeared at a relative depth of 3.10 m, covered by silty sand washed down from Arany Hill. In front of house no. 5, this layer was 180 cm thick, increasing to 310 cm in front of house no. 7 due to a rise in terrain. The gravel alluvium was no longer reached beyond this point.
Between 160 and 280 cm below the pavement, a dark yellowish-brown loessic clay layer was found, containing numerous small daub fragments and stray prehistoric (Copper and Bronze Age) ceramic sherds. This displaced cultural layer was traceable between houses 5 and 7.
Between properties 9 and 13 lay the former clay pit of the Aranyhegy Brickworks. The yellow, calcareous clay layer was overlain by burnt clay debris, brick fragments, and firing waste. The original topsoil had been lost in this area.
In front of houses 15–16, 60 cm of fill was followed by a blackish-brown clay layer. Below this, yellow calcareous clay was observed down to 5.60 m.
Westward from the manhole in front of house no. 17, the original humic layer appeared beneath 60 cm of modern fill. Roman roof tile fragments (tegulae) were found in the upper horizon, and a shallow prehistoric pit with eroded sides was visible in the underlying clayey subsoil (Fig. 2).
The Roman debris matched the eastern extent of the collapse zone associated with previously documented Roman building remains beneath 19/A Aranyvölgy Street, observed during railway construction and roadworks on Route 10. The zone also extended in front of house no. 18 but could not be traced past no. 19.
From house no. 20 westward, the clayey subsoil gradually disappeared. In front of house no. 23, it was still visible at 220 cm depth at the base of the trench, covered by soft silty sand from multiple slope wash events. Modern fill layers contained ceramics and iron even at 1.90 m depth, although these finds diminished westward and eventually disappeared. At the corner of Aranyvölgy Street and Óvár Street, silty sand appeared at a depth of 170 cm.
In the terminal pit dug to connect with the Óvár Street branch, a modern stone-paved road made of limestone ashlar blocks was cut at a depth of 150 cm. Beyond Óvár Street toward the endpoint at Bécsi Road, sandy layers from hill wash continued. Yellow sandy subsoil was measurable at depths of 2 to 2.8 m, but had disappeared in front of houses 45–46. There, dark grey silty sand was covered by coarse sandy debris with stones, possibly related to the 19th-century phase of the old Bécsi Road. Between house no. 19 and the Bécsi Road endpoint, no archaeological features were observed.
The Roman building remains documented in November 2014 beneath 19/A Aranyvölgy Street, those observed during the 2013–2014 Budapest–Esztergom railway renovation, and road reconstruction works carried out for the Route 10 bypass confirmed the archaeological sites documented during sewer construction. The Roman settlement remains correspond to entries recorded in the field journal of Géza Alföldy.
The stray prehistoric find on the hillside had also been encountered during the railway project. Neolithic settlement remains had been previously uncovered at the intersection of Pomázi Road and Aranyhegyi Road, on the southern side of the railway tracks.
The prehistoric pit found in front of house no. 17 on Aranyvölgy Street represents previously undocumented settlement activity in an area previously known only for Roman-period features.
Contributors: Barbara Hajdu (archaeologist), Gabriella Fényes (archaeologist), Gábor Gyenes (archaeological field technician)
Gábor Gyenes