In the 1980s, the Hungarian National Museum was the first in Europe to start systematic research and collection of samples of prehistoric stone tools, thanks to the work of Katalin T. Biró. Lithoteca thus gives researchers the opportunity to find out about the social network and migration routes of prehistoric people.
The establishment of the collection was initiated by the international conference "Prehistoric flint mining and the identification of stone tool raw materials in the Carpathian Basin", organised by Katalin T. Biró in Sümeg in 1986. Initially, the collection was enhanced by samples brought by participants from abroad. In addition, over the years, significant collection material has accumulated in various public collections, mainly from the former Hungarian State Geological Institute (now the Mining and Geological Survey of Hungary), fieldwork and private individuals. Since 1986, the Lithoteca has been continuously growing, with Katalin T. Biró and Viola T. Dobosi and András Markó collecting numerous specimens. Our primary focus is on raw materials from the Carpathian Basin, and nowadays the collection is based on special research programmes. In this context, since 2000, an increasingly important role has been given to the identification of raw materials worked by means other than knapping (e.g. identification of raw material sources for whetstones, polished tools) and examination of building stones used for historical buildings. Lithoteca also provides an opportunity to analyses of rocks both destructive and non-destructive.
Collection material is accessible in two printed volumes and partly online.
Contact: Dr. György Lengyel, lengyel.gyorgy@hnm.hu
