Late Hallstatt female head/hair decoration in Donja Dolina and the southern Carpathian basin (II)

Various kinds of temple rings played an important role in female body decoration in the southern Carpathian Basin during the Early Iron Age. Based on finds from graves, especially at the cemetery in Donja Dolina, four basic types of temple rings have been distinguished, according to differences in the design of their terminals, while different variants were recognized based on the method of shaping of the body. Temple rings were most commonly made of a copper alloy, but during the Late Hallstatt period, silver temple rings with twisted bodies also appeared. As the finds show, particularly in older graves at Donja Dolina, combinations of different temple rings were often worn, whereas temple rings of the same shape appear more frequently in younger graves. After analysing temple rings of the Ciumbrud and Donja Dolina types, we examine two other basic types with variants found in women?s graves in the southern Carpathian Basin. These temple rings are rare outside this area, which may indicate cultural connectivity between different Late Hallstatt communities, possibly including matrimonial alliances. Notably, they are common in the Donja Dolina cemetery. Conversely, they appear in smaller numbers in graves of the Syrmian group in the Danube region, mostly as the silver twisted-body type, which is the youngest form. The wearing of different temple rings throughout almost the entire Early Iron Age, and even at the very beginning of the Late Iron Age, testifies to the fact that they were an important part of the visual identity of women and constituted an integral element of Late Hallstatt female body decoration.