Alternative names | Usatove culture |
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Period | Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age, c. 3500 and 2500 BC |
The Coţofeni culture (Serbian: Kocofeni), also known as Usatove culture, is a Chalcolithic to Early Bronze Age archaeological culture that existed for over 700 years in south-eastern Central Europe facing the Black Sea between the mouths of the Bug River and the Danube, in present-day Romania, Serbia, Bulgaria, Moldova, and southern Ukraine.
The first report of a Coţofeni find was made by Fr. Schuster in 1865 from the Râpa Roşie site in Sebeş (present-day Alba County, Romania). Since then this culture has been studied by a number of people to varying degrees. Some of the more prominent contributors to the study of this culture include C. Gooss, K. Benkő, B. Orbán, G. Téglas, K. Herepey, S. Fenichel, Julius Teutsch, Cezar Bolliac, V. Christescu, Teohari Antonescu, and Cristian Popa.
The Coţofeni culture area can be seen from two perspectives, as a fluctuation zone, or in its maximum area of extent. This covers present day Maramureş, some areas in Sătmar, the mountainous and hilly areas of Crişana, Transylvania,Banat,Oltenia,Muntenia (not including the North-East), and across the Danube in present-day north-eastern Serbia and northwestern Bulgaria.
Bronze Age in Romania Unfortunately, most of the Coţofeni culture chronology is based on just three samples collected at three different Coţofeni sites. Based on these radiocarbon dates, this culture can be placed between roughly 3500 and 2500 BCE.