Abstract
Despite the fact that the yoke fittings are not the common finds on the territory of "Germania libera", the number has recently grown due to the metal detector prospecting. The paper presents the finds of guide rings from provincial-type yokes (from the Czech Republic).
The example from Svitavy-Předměstí together with an almond shaped fitting could be an evidence of the route between Bohemia and Moravia. This route had been in existence during the Roman period, moreover it have been used during different prehistoric periods (Vích 2014, 129-130).
On the other hand the guide ring from Nebovidy is an example of an uncommon use of a yoke fitting as a grave good for the cremation burial on the barbarian territory. On the provincial nature of the fitting indicates the lost Pannonian round-shape fibula, known only from the photo evidence.
The presented paper focuses on the problematic of the yoke horse harness both in Germania Magna and Roman provinces in Central Europe. It is necessary to mention, that the problematic of yokes hasn't been analyzed in detail yet.
Though the data are relatively well summarized, it is still hard to identify the production areas of the small yoke and harness fittings. A relative discrepancy between the presence of the yoke finds on the provincial territory and their absence on the territory of Germania Magna was not caused by the fact that the ox or horse harness hadn't been used on the barbarian territory.
It remains still very possible that the "barbarian" yokes were made from organic material without using metal components. There are several finds of the preserved wooden yokes, which comes from the environs suitable for the organic material preservation (La Tène in Switzeland, Ezinge in Netherlands, Lundgaardshede/Bredmose in Denmark, etc.).
The finds of yokes in Germania Magna could not have been a result of a direct import (as it is in case of tableware and small jewelers), it is more possible that it was an example of transport activities between German tribes and Roman provinces, whether it had peaceful or military character. This phenomenon intensified distinctly during the end of the 2nd and the 3rd centuries A.D.