An old Hungarian burial ground from the 10th century on the territory of the future Valaliky Strategic Park, where archaeologists discovered more than 260 graves on June 20, 2023 in Valaliky, near Košice. (source: TASR)
A popular quip about eastern Slovakia – most often related by people from the country’s west – says "there’s nothing out there".
However, in at least one place that has proved not be the case.
In July last year Swedish carmaker Volvo announced that it had chosen the Valaliky industrial park near Košice as the site of its new electric vehicle production plant. In addition, German engineering and technology company Bosch decided to expand its production in the region. Both choices showed that eastern Slovakia appeals to some of the world's biggest companies.
But as archaeological research is now showing, Valaliky and the surrounding area also held appeal for people in the distant past.
Archaeologists from the Institute of Archaeology of the Slovak Academy of Sciences (SAV) have just completed their first six months of investigations at the site. Led by Marek Vojteček and Michal Cheben, researchers have found the remains of settlements, burial mounds and a burial site, and many other unique finds.
The burial site in particular is one of the largest of its kind in the northern area of the River Tisa (a major tributary of the Danube).
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