Cercetări Arheologice Preventive La Biserica Fortificată Din Șeica Mică, Jud. Sibiu Campania Anului 2021

Abstract The 2021 excavations indicate that the church’s ground plan has not undergone major changes. In the chancel area, the buttress foundation is bonded with the choir foundation, and both foundation soles lie at the same depth (c. –204 cm). By contrast, in the nave the buttress foundation is not bonded with the nave foundation, indicating a later addition. Notably, nave buttresses occur only on the south side, with no corresponding elements on the north. The chancel and buttress investigated in Trench C8 show a c. 10 cm-wide offset, suggesting a subsequent structural modification. This observation is consistent with the historiography, which notes that in the early 16th century the choir was heightened by adding a fortified level with loopholes and that the buttresses were extended (Fabini 2012, 130). The stratigraphic sequence supports a relative chronology with three principal phases: (1) an initial construction stage of the church, associated with an early burial horizon dated to the 14th–15th centuries; (2) alterations to the choir, corresponding to a second burial horizon; and (3) later modifications to the nave, including the abandonment of the collateral aisles, associated with late burials characterized by very deep grave pits. In addition to church-related contexts, the excavations documented earlier occupation evidence. In C6, below the burial layers, two ovens were identified, predating the church. In C7, also beneath the burial level, features interpreted as a dwelling—most likely of Early Iron Age date—were recorded. (The ceramic assemblages from these contexts have not yet been analyzed.)