A hillfort complex in Myślibórz in the Sudety Mountains

Abstract

The Myślibórz Gorge, located within the Kaczawy Foothills, is well-known to environmentalists and scholars studying the past. The investigations launched in the 1990s made it possible to determine the chronology of three of the archaeological sites in this area. In 2018, two hillforts – on the Kobylica and Golica hills – were investigated. Czech literature classifies such hillforts as the ostrožna-type. The excavations of these hillforts made it possible to establish to date them between the 9th and 10th centuries.The hillforts were located on hilltops with similar altitudes above the sea level, less than 200 m from each other. Such a spatial arrangement made it possible to control the gateway to the Myślibórz Gorge from the north-east. Reasons for developing a defensive system in the southern part of the gorge are obscure, as is the role that two other early medieval hillforts played in it. Was it simply a warning system, or rather part of a comprehensive network of defensive sites?

8th-10th century hillforts in the Sudetes – exploring current state of research and observations, towards new horizons

“…It is a multi-unit complex with an interesting and complicated embankment outline: some of its sections are 1 m wide at the base and 0.5 m high, while at the top of the mountain there are fragments reaching 3 m height and 4-5 m width at the base. Excavation and surface Ewa Lisowska, Krzysztof Jaworski studies carried out in 2018 (Lisowska, Rodak 2020) provided artifacts allowing to establish the chronology of both hillforts for the end of the 9 th and 10 th century. It was also confirmed by radiocarbon tests of coal samples taken from embankments and structures found in Myślibórz sites 2 and 4 (Lisowska, Rodak 2020).…”

“…For Central Europe, such studies based on shaded relief models, often supported by aerial photographs and non-invasive prospection, were undertaken for prehistoric, medieval and modern sites (Andrzejewski, Sikora 2017;Engel, Sobczak 2019;Furmanek et al 2015;Furmanek, Wroniecki 2018;Gojda, John, Starková, 2011;Kittel et al 2019;Rodak, Wroniecki 2019;Šebková, John 2014). So far, such analyses encompassing the Sudetes have been scarce, covering selected medieval and modern periods (Chorowska et al 2017;Duma et al 2020;Fokt, Legut-Pintal 2018;Legut-Pintal, Rajski 2019, Lisowska, Rodak 2020Migoń, Latocha 2018).…”