Janez Dular | Research Centre of the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts (original) (raw)
Books by Janez Dular
E-Monographiae Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 10, 2021
The e-publication entitled Gradivo za topografijo Dolenjske, Posavja in Bele krajine v železni do... more The e-publication entitled Gradivo za topografijo Dolenjske, Posavja in Bele krajine v železni dobi (only in Slovenian, 'Available evidence for the topography of the Dolenjska, Posavje and Bela krajina regions in the Iron Age') presents over six hundred sites in the three regions of south-eastern Slovenia that date from this distant period of the past. It is a database that upgrades the first register of Slovene archaeological heritage (Arheološka najdišča Slovenije), published in 1975 by the Institute of Archaeology at the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts. This register was created with the data then available in literature, while field surveys were only performed on select sites or areas. It was followed up by a project devoting to the archaeological topography of Slovenia (Arheološke topografije Slovenije), the main objective of which was to accurately map the already known sites, as well as to discover new ones. Of all the regions of Slovenia, only the updated topography of three regions was published, among them Bela krajina, which was an integral part of the Dolenjska community in the Early Iron Age.
Filling the void was a project focused on the prehistoric fortified settlements in Dolenjska (Utrjena prazgodovinska naselja na Dolenjskem), but also other types of sites from the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages. As remote sensing technologies such as LiDAR were not yet available at that time, field surveys were conducted across the entire area. The characteristics of the Early Iron Age settlement in south-eastern Slovenia, with hillforts and tumulus cemeteries, partially predetermined the field surveying activities. In the framework of this project, archaeological sites were precisely located, measured, somewhere also trial trenched, and dated.
Studies of archival sources were a special segment of these investigations. Excavators at the end of the nineteenth and in the twentieth century, who opened many tumuli in Dolenjska, left behind not only valuable finds, but also a multitude of letters, reports and notes, important for the study of settlement structures. Based on the collected and evaluated archival sources, it was possible to reconstruct the history of research of individual sites.
The database thus created was used in a comprehensive study on the Early Iron Age settlement, economy and society in south-eastern Slovenia, published in 2007. The collected data and archival sources are upgraded in the present e-publication and openly available to interested researchers for their future investigations of this important period of the local ancient past.
E-Monographiae Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 10, 2021
E-Monographiae Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 10, 2021
Opera Instituti archaeologici Sloveniae 33, 2016
Most na Soči ranks among the most prominent prehistoric sites in Europe. It is mainly known for t... more Most na Soči ranks among the most prominent prehistoric sites in Europe. It is mainly known for the extensive cemetery from the Early Iron Age, which was first investigated in the late 19th century and revealed over 6000 burials. The rapid growth of the modern village of Most na Soči again led to large-scale archaeological excavations in the 1970s. These were conducted in the span of eleven years and unearthed one of the most significant Iron Age settlements in Slovenia and the wider south-eastern Alpine region.
The monographic publication on this settlement begins with a geographic outline of the site and its surroundings, which is followed by a detailed history of research complete with a list of contributions and reports on the subject published thus far.
The main part of the book is dedicated to presenting the settlement structures that include thirty-six houses excavated in the eastern part of the modern village. It is the most comprehensive publication of an Iron Age settlement to date in Slovenia, which offers new insights into the living conditions of the Iron Age population inhabiting the area of Caput Adriae or the south-eastern Alps. The multitude of data gained from the excavations enabled a reconstruction of the settlement’s plan and provided an understanding of the construction methods and numerous technical details, revealing how drainage walls, dividing walls and foundations were built, and also revealing the appearance of the floors, wooden wall constructions, drainage ditches and pits used in different production processes (for instance metallurgy, pottery). The text is illustrated with 229 plans and photos that complement the detailed descriptions of the structures.
The book concludes with the illustrations of small finds recovered in the houses, presented on a hundred plates. These predominantly consist of pottery sherds, but also include numerous stone, bone and metal items. Those of metal are particularly important because they are chronologically diagnostic and allow the archaeologists to precisely date individual houses and their phases, but also reveal the remarkable technical skills that the craftsmen of the day possessed.
The territory of present-day Slovenia reached one of its economic and cultural peaks in the 1st m... more The territory of present-day Slovenia reached one of its economic and cultural peaks in the 1st millennium BC, when the Hallstatt Culture prospered, its achievements being comparable with the most developed cultures in Ancient Europe. This culture arose from Urnfield Culture roots under the influence of the Mediterranean world; they adopted the new technology of iron production, implemented a new social pattern and fully developed their artistic inspiration.
This important period of prehistory is the topic of the present monograph. The first three chapters deal with the history of research, the methodology and techniques of data acquisition, and a critical discussion of the archaeological sources. The next two chapters discuss the geographic features and characteristics of the region of SE Slovenia, with an explanation of the chronological system used in the research.
The main subject of the monograph is the settlements structures from the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age including the geographical position and the shape of the settlements, the fortification techniques and the period of occupation. Particular attention was paid to the interior layout of the settlements, the construction of building, and the house equipment. Furthermore, specific features of the settlement pattern, i.e. cemetries and hoards, are also included in the analyses.
The dynamics of the colonization processes throughout the Late Bronze Age, and Early and Late Iron Age are presented in chapter 7. This takes into consideration the characteristics of the settlement patterns, the integration process, the relationship between lowland and upland settlements, and the issue of extra muros settlement, as represented by hamlets and farmsteads in the vicinity of major centres.
The hierarchy of the settlements is defined in chapter 8. All the centres are fully described with maps, plans, and images.
The next chapter is focused on the density of settlement network in relation to natural resources (ore deposits, fertile soil, water sources) and communications, and in fact, to those factors that have a substantial impact on economic subsistence and social power.
The last chapter is dedicated to the social organization and historical turning points, which significantly marked the long-term development of this region.
This publication presents fifty-four Hallstatt necropolises from central Slovenia, which are cruc... more This publication presents fifty-four Hallstatt necropolises from central Slovenia, which are crucial to the course of researching the settlement and social structures of the Early Iron Age. Topographic sources are proffered as well as all the excavated materials, among which are also unique specimens.
The book is divided into three parts. The first section extends a review of the history of excavations of Hallstatt tumuli, from the very onset and all through to WWI. It is a comprehensive study of the history of archaeology in Slovenia, posing the development of museology, the heritage protection profession and the professional and scientific efforts of the then investigators. Numerous illustrations of yet unpublished documents, preserved mainly in foreign museums and archives, are incorporated in the text.
The second section is dedicated to the issue of chronology and the cultural- historical evaluation of Hallstatt necropolises in the Dolenjska region, which regarding their richness easily compare with the most important of necropolises in neighboring countries. It is precisely the tumulus necropolises from the Dolenjska region that form the foundations for the concept of the southeastern Alpine Hallstatt culture, which during the first millennium BC represented one of the most developed cultures in Europe.
The third part of the book presents the necropolises equipped with a detailed description of each site, a concise history of investigations and a catalogue of the excavated materials, all published in the plates.
The monograph presents the settlement of north-eastern Slovenia during the Late Bronze Age. I... more The monograph presents the settlement of north-eastern Slovenia during the Late Bronze Age. It is divided into three parts. The first brings an analysis of the settlements, cemeteries, hoards and stray finds, i.e. all the structures that define the cultural landscape. The analysis shows a relatively dense habitation in the Early Bronze Age, followed first by a lull and then a peak, with the settlement network becoming densest towards the end of the second millennium BC.
This is followed by a discussion on the typochronology of the pottery from the Bronze Age settlements at Ormož, Ptuj and Gornja Radgona.
The last chapter of the first part offers an overview of the Late Bronze Age in north-eastern Slovenia and presents the living conditions, the process of forming centres, the economic basis as well as the contacts with distant places.
The second and third parts of the book present the field investigations and finds from Grajski grič in Ptuj and Grajski hrib in Gornja Radgona. These two important hilltop settlements represented, together with the fortified settlement at Ormož, important Bronze Age centres in the settlement network of north-eastern Slovenia.
Ormož ranks among the most important archaeological sites in Slovenia. The fortified settlement f... more Ormož ranks among the most important archaeological sites in Slovenia. The fortified settlement from the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age extended over the area where the town stands today. It developed on a high-lying terrace on the left bank of the river Drava, which forms a broad bend right at the foothills. This site was intentionally selected, since towards the river it was protected by a steep slope, and to the east and west by relatively deep natural dykes.
In the present monograph a survey is given of the results of the excavations which were carried out in Ormož during the period from 1974 to 1981. First, the fortification system is presented, particularly the massive rampart, which protected the settlement on the north side. Then follows a description of the structures in the interior, among which mention should be made particularly of the hearths, fireplaces, wells and storage pits, around which life revolved in prehistory.
A separate chapter is devoted to dealing with the animal bone material, which enables one to gain an insight into the nutritional habits of the people of that time.
Of great importance is also the reconstruction of the buildings, for which it has been established that they were without exception constructed by earthfast posts, i.e. using a building technique which in the Late Bronze Age was customary also in other regions of Central Europe. Then follows a reconstruction of the ground plan of the settlement which, despite certain constant features, such as the positioning and orientation of the buildings, does not reflect any clearly delineated functional and social differences. This was to be expected, since in the Late Bronze Age society was also arranged on more or less egalitarian lines.
The second part of the monograph comprises the catalogue of material, which is presented in 171 plates.
Archaeological sites whose importance extends beyond a Slovenian framework undoubtedly include th... more Archaeological sites whose importance extends beyond a Slovenian framework undoubtedly include the Bronze Age settlement of Oloris near Doljni Lakoš. The site was excavated in the eighties by staff of the Regional Museum in Murska Sobota and members of the Institute of Archaeology, ZRC SAZU, from Ljubljana.
The first part of the publication presents the settlement, which was located in one of the bends of the Črnec stream. It was surrounded by a wooden palisade, for which oak was mostly used. The greatest settlement density was discovered inside the settlement in two gently raised sections. All that was preserved of the former dwellings were traces of holes for the vertical beams and parts of the demolished walls. In the southern part of Oloris, where a larger area was excavated, it can be seen from the plan that the houses stood closely together, with narrow passages between them. This was a crowded arrangement of dwellings around a courtyard area, where everyday life took place. Four ovens were discovered in the courtyard among the buildings. The settlement at Dolnji Lakoš was inhabited in the late 14th and in the 13th century BC, and remains the only systematically excavated settlement of that period in Slovenia.
Kučar near Podzemelj represents one of the most significant archaeological sites not only in Slov... more Kučar near Podzemelj represents one of the most significant archaeological sites not only in Slovenia but also in the wider southeastern alpine region. It is an extensive complex composed of an Iron Age and Late Roman settlement upon the hill Kučar, as well as numerous necropoli that are distributed throughout the villages of Podzemelj, Zemelj, Škrilje and Grm. The site is well-known all over the world for its elaborate material finds originating from the cemeteries there. The book presents the results from rescue excavations that were carried out between the years 1975 and 1979 on the northern top of Kučar by the Institute for Archaeology. Substantial remains of a settlement dating to the Early and Late Iron Ages (8th –1st centuries BC) were excavated, as well as the even more surprising discovery of an Early Christian building complex (5th century AD) incorporating two churches, a baptistery and a large building with an enclosing wall that was reinforced with two towers.
Edited Books by Janez Dular
Opera Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 34, 2018
Most na Soči is among the most prominent Iron Age sites in Slovenia. Already upon its discovery i... more Most na Soči is among the most prominent Iron Age sites in Slovenia. Already upon its discovery in the mid-19th century, it attracted the attention of scholars who, mainly focused on the cemetery. The two most active were Carlo Marchesetti from Trieste and Josef Szombathy from Vienna. Between 1884 and 1902, they excavated more than 6000 graves above the confluence of the Rivers Idrijca and Soča, which ranks Most na Soči at the very top of the investigated prehistoric cemeteries in central Europe. The later rescue excavations of the settlement also raised much interest. They were conducted in a very precise and efficient manner in spite of the fact that there were no proper standards for archaeological heritage protection at that time and the investigation was under great pressure by the reconstruction activities following a massive earthquake that had hit the Posočje region. The results of these success¬ful excavations offer a unique and comprehensive glimpse into the interior structure of the settlement, which would certainly not be possible were it not for the experienced head of the excavations, Drago Svoljšak, whose previous work included fieldwork at Stična. It is important to remember that the foundations of modern excavation procedures in Slovenia were laid at these very two sites, Stična and Most na Soči, but also that the standards in place today result in a considerable measure in the achievements and efforts from that period!
The second volume on the Iron Age settlement at Most na Soči evaluates the structures and small finds. It is the culmination of a three-year project, titled Iron Age settlement at Most na Soči − the beginnings of urbanism in the southeastern Alps (J6-6835), which was finacially supported by the Slovenian Research Agency. The project was man¬aged by Janez Dular and Sneža Tecco Hvala. The multifariousness of the site’s structures and small finds required the expertise of several archaeologists and other collaborators to present the settlement as comprehensively as possible.
The first section of the book opens with the chronology of the settlement based on the metal and ceramic finds. This is followed by a chapter on the architecture in Posočje, more precisely on the construction techniques and the careful choice of building locations. These results discuss the remains that are very well preserved and therefore of great importance as they offer a good insight into the Iron Age constructions in the south-eastern Alpine region. The following chapter present the small finds. These include metal artefacts that mainly consist of jewellery, but also tools and other objects that the inhabitants of Most na Soči used in their everyday activities. Pottery is also numerously rep¬resented and presented here as to the composition of the fabrics, the typology of forms and their chronological spans.
The second section presents the analyses of some of the raw materials that the artisans used in their work: clay temper, bronze, iron and stone. The results reveal their composition and the origin of the raw materials, which is significant as there are no major ore deposits in the area of Most na Soči.
The third section presents the organic remains. Firstly, there are the remains of the structural wood used in house construction. Over a hundred samples of wood were analysed, which is the largest collection of charred wood in Slovenia to date. The settlement also yielded crop plants, mainly cereals, but also fruit that they either gathered locally or imported from areas with a warmer climate. A special study presents the scarce remains of textile. This section is rounded off with the discussion on the remains of animals that were reared and consumed in this part of Posočje during the Iron Age.
The results and findings of these expertise are brought together in the introductory study that also provides a broader cultural and historical context of the site and underlines its place among the most important centres of the south-eastern Alpine Hallstatt culture.
Papers by Janez Dular
Kronika 72/1, 2024
Članek obravnava ceste in poti, ki so vodile v Belo krajino in Žumberk čez sleme Gorjancev. Ugoto... more Članek obravnava ceste in poti, ki so vodile v Belo krajino in Žumberk čez sleme Gorjancev. Ugotovljenih je bilo sedem glavnih smeri, ki so bile glede na čas in politične razmere enkrat bolj in drugič manj frekventne. Prav v vseh obdobjih pa je bila najpomembnejša povezava med Dolenjsko in Belo krajino smer preko prelaza Vahta, ki se je iz prazgodovinske tovorne poti postopoma spremenila v vozno. Resnejšo rekonstrukcijo je doživela šele v osemdesetih letih 19. stoletja, ko so s številnimi serpentinami ublažili najnevarnejše klance.
The paper deals with roads and trails that used to lead to Bela Krajina and Žumberak across the Gorjanci Ridge. Seven main routes have been identified that were sometimes more and sometimes less frequented, depending on the time and political circumstances. In all periods, however, the most important link between the regions of Dolenjska and Bela Krajina was the communication through the Vahta Pass, which gradually changed from a prehistoric path to a road. It was only in the 1880s that it underwent a thorough reconstruction, during which the most dangerous gradients were smoothed out with a series of hairpin bends.
Goriški letnik 45, 2021
The article presents the activity of Josef Szombathy (1853−1943), Viennese prehistorian and anthr... more The article presents the activity of Josef Szombathy (1853−1943), Viennese prehistorian and anthropologist, in the regions of Notranjska (Inner Carniola) and Primorska (Slovenian Littoral). Between 1879 and 1911 he organized and participated in extensive archaeological excavations in the Križna jama cave near Lož, in the village of Šmihel pod Nanosom, in the village of Most na Soči (called Sveta Lucija at the time), in the village of Idrija pri Bači, and in the caves Mušja jama and Okostna jama near Škocjan; these excavations have greatly broadened our knowledge of the oldest periods in this part of Slovenia. He regularly presented his findings at the meetings of the Anthropological Society and wrote two compelling papers on the necropolis in Idrija pri Bači and on the transregional cult sites in Škocjan, which have preserved their scientifi c value to this day.
Arheološki vestnik 71, 2020
The available evidence on the settlement of southeastern Slovenia in the Early Iron Age was compr... more The available evidence on the settlement of southeastern Slovenia in the Early Iron Age was comprehensively discussed in a book published more than a decade ago. This contribution reexamines the topic in light of new discoveries and also with the aim of assessing the reliability of the methods and predictive modelling used in the past.
Članek obravnava poselitev jugovzhodne Slovenije v starejši železni dobi. Ker je bila problematika že predstavljena v samostojni publikaciji, smo v pričujoči razpravi na kratko povzeli znane ugotovitve in jih soočili z novimi podatki. Na ta način je bilo mogoče preveriti uporabnost metod in napovednih modelov, uporabljenih pred poldrugim desetletjem.
Argo 62/1, 2019
Vaška situla je najdragocenejši in hkrati najbolj prepoznaven predmet, kar jih v svojih zbirkah h... more Vaška situla je najdragocenejši in hkrati najbolj prepoznaven predmet, kar jih v svojih zbirkah hranijo slovenski muzeji. Z njo so se ukvarjali arheologi, umetnostni zgodovinarji in muzealci, postala pa je tudi hvaležna snov za sprostitev domišljije številnim laikom, ki so skušali vsak s svojega zornega kota pojasniti izvor in pomen tega edinstvenega kulturnega spomenika. Naša razprava o vaški situli ne bo segla na področje njene motivike, ki je bila najpogostejša tema razprav in interpretacij. V ospredje želimo postaviti njeno življenjsko zgodbo in sicer zadnji del, ko je po več kot dveh tisočletjih ležanja v zemlji znova zagledala luč sveta in postala muzejski eksponat. Takrat se je pravzaprav začela njena pot k svetovni slavi, ki jo kot eden najizvirnejših umetniških izdelkov železnodobne civilizacije nedvomno zasluži.
The Vače situla is both more valuable and more recognisable than any other object in the collections held by Slovenian museums. It has occupied archaeologists, art historians and museum professionals and has fired the imaginations of countless amateurs seeking to understand the origin and significance of this unique cultural artefact. This paper will not deal with the motifs on the Vače situla, as those have
been covered extensively elsewhere. It will focus instead on its life story, with particular emphasis on the most recent part of it, when it finally came to light after lying buried in the ground for more than two millennia, and was put in a museum. It was then that it started to gain the world fame that, as one of the most distinctive Iron Age artistic objects, it undoubtedly deserves.
Opera Instituti archaeologici Sloveniae 34, 2018
Opera Instituti archaeologici Sloveniae 34, 2018, 147-166
E-Monographiae Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 10, 2021
The e-publication entitled Gradivo za topografijo Dolenjske, Posavja in Bele krajine v železni do... more The e-publication entitled Gradivo za topografijo Dolenjske, Posavja in Bele krajine v železni dobi (only in Slovenian, 'Available evidence for the topography of the Dolenjska, Posavje and Bela krajina regions in the Iron Age') presents over six hundred sites in the three regions of south-eastern Slovenia that date from this distant period of the past. It is a database that upgrades the first register of Slovene archaeological heritage (Arheološka najdišča Slovenije), published in 1975 by the Institute of Archaeology at the Slovenian Academy of Sciences and Arts. This register was created with the data then available in literature, while field surveys were only performed on select sites or areas. It was followed up by a project devoting to the archaeological topography of Slovenia (Arheološke topografije Slovenije), the main objective of which was to accurately map the already known sites, as well as to discover new ones. Of all the regions of Slovenia, only the updated topography of three regions was published, among them Bela krajina, which was an integral part of the Dolenjska community in the Early Iron Age.
Filling the void was a project focused on the prehistoric fortified settlements in Dolenjska (Utrjena prazgodovinska naselja na Dolenjskem), but also other types of sites from the Late Bronze and Early Iron Ages. As remote sensing technologies such as LiDAR were not yet available at that time, field surveys were conducted across the entire area. The characteristics of the Early Iron Age settlement in south-eastern Slovenia, with hillforts and tumulus cemeteries, partially predetermined the field surveying activities. In the framework of this project, archaeological sites were precisely located, measured, somewhere also trial trenched, and dated.
Studies of archival sources were a special segment of these investigations. Excavators at the end of the nineteenth and in the twentieth century, who opened many tumuli in Dolenjska, left behind not only valuable finds, but also a multitude of letters, reports and notes, important for the study of settlement structures. Based on the collected and evaluated archival sources, it was possible to reconstruct the history of research of individual sites.
The database thus created was used in a comprehensive study on the Early Iron Age settlement, economy and society in south-eastern Slovenia, published in 2007. The collected data and archival sources are upgraded in the present e-publication and openly available to interested researchers for their future investigations of this important period of the local ancient past.
E-Monographiae Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 10, 2021
E-Monographiae Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 10, 2021
Opera Instituti archaeologici Sloveniae 33, 2016
Most na Soči ranks among the most prominent prehistoric sites in Europe. It is mainly known for t... more Most na Soči ranks among the most prominent prehistoric sites in Europe. It is mainly known for the extensive cemetery from the Early Iron Age, which was first investigated in the late 19th century and revealed over 6000 burials. The rapid growth of the modern village of Most na Soči again led to large-scale archaeological excavations in the 1970s. These were conducted in the span of eleven years and unearthed one of the most significant Iron Age settlements in Slovenia and the wider south-eastern Alpine region.
The monographic publication on this settlement begins with a geographic outline of the site and its surroundings, which is followed by a detailed history of research complete with a list of contributions and reports on the subject published thus far.
The main part of the book is dedicated to presenting the settlement structures that include thirty-six houses excavated in the eastern part of the modern village. It is the most comprehensive publication of an Iron Age settlement to date in Slovenia, which offers new insights into the living conditions of the Iron Age population inhabiting the area of Caput Adriae or the south-eastern Alps. The multitude of data gained from the excavations enabled a reconstruction of the settlement’s plan and provided an understanding of the construction methods and numerous technical details, revealing how drainage walls, dividing walls and foundations were built, and also revealing the appearance of the floors, wooden wall constructions, drainage ditches and pits used in different production processes (for instance metallurgy, pottery). The text is illustrated with 229 plans and photos that complement the detailed descriptions of the structures.
The book concludes with the illustrations of small finds recovered in the houses, presented on a hundred plates. These predominantly consist of pottery sherds, but also include numerous stone, bone and metal items. Those of metal are particularly important because they are chronologically diagnostic and allow the archaeologists to precisely date individual houses and their phases, but also reveal the remarkable technical skills that the craftsmen of the day possessed.
The territory of present-day Slovenia reached one of its economic and cultural peaks in the 1st m... more The territory of present-day Slovenia reached one of its economic and cultural peaks in the 1st millennium BC, when the Hallstatt Culture prospered, its achievements being comparable with the most developed cultures in Ancient Europe. This culture arose from Urnfield Culture roots under the influence of the Mediterranean world; they adopted the new technology of iron production, implemented a new social pattern and fully developed their artistic inspiration.
This important period of prehistory is the topic of the present monograph. The first three chapters deal with the history of research, the methodology and techniques of data acquisition, and a critical discussion of the archaeological sources. The next two chapters discuss the geographic features and characteristics of the region of SE Slovenia, with an explanation of the chronological system used in the research.
The main subject of the monograph is the settlements structures from the Late Bronze Age and the Iron Age including the geographical position and the shape of the settlements, the fortification techniques and the period of occupation. Particular attention was paid to the interior layout of the settlements, the construction of building, and the house equipment. Furthermore, specific features of the settlement pattern, i.e. cemetries and hoards, are also included in the analyses.
The dynamics of the colonization processes throughout the Late Bronze Age, and Early and Late Iron Age are presented in chapter 7. This takes into consideration the characteristics of the settlement patterns, the integration process, the relationship between lowland and upland settlements, and the issue of extra muros settlement, as represented by hamlets and farmsteads in the vicinity of major centres.
The hierarchy of the settlements is defined in chapter 8. All the centres are fully described with maps, plans, and images.
The next chapter is focused on the density of settlement network in relation to natural resources (ore deposits, fertile soil, water sources) and communications, and in fact, to those factors that have a substantial impact on economic subsistence and social power.
The last chapter is dedicated to the social organization and historical turning points, which significantly marked the long-term development of this region.
This publication presents fifty-four Hallstatt necropolises from central Slovenia, which are cruc... more This publication presents fifty-four Hallstatt necropolises from central Slovenia, which are crucial to the course of researching the settlement and social structures of the Early Iron Age. Topographic sources are proffered as well as all the excavated materials, among which are also unique specimens.
The book is divided into three parts. The first section extends a review of the history of excavations of Hallstatt tumuli, from the very onset and all through to WWI. It is a comprehensive study of the history of archaeology in Slovenia, posing the development of museology, the heritage protection profession and the professional and scientific efforts of the then investigators. Numerous illustrations of yet unpublished documents, preserved mainly in foreign museums and archives, are incorporated in the text.
The second section is dedicated to the issue of chronology and the cultural- historical evaluation of Hallstatt necropolises in the Dolenjska region, which regarding their richness easily compare with the most important of necropolises in neighboring countries. It is precisely the tumulus necropolises from the Dolenjska region that form the foundations for the concept of the southeastern Alpine Hallstatt culture, which during the first millennium BC represented one of the most developed cultures in Europe.
The third part of the book presents the necropolises equipped with a detailed description of each site, a concise history of investigations and a catalogue of the excavated materials, all published in the plates.
The monograph presents the settlement of north-eastern Slovenia during the Late Bronze Age. I... more The monograph presents the settlement of north-eastern Slovenia during the Late Bronze Age. It is divided into three parts. The first brings an analysis of the settlements, cemeteries, hoards and stray finds, i.e. all the structures that define the cultural landscape. The analysis shows a relatively dense habitation in the Early Bronze Age, followed first by a lull and then a peak, with the settlement network becoming densest towards the end of the second millennium BC.
This is followed by a discussion on the typochronology of the pottery from the Bronze Age settlements at Ormož, Ptuj and Gornja Radgona.
The last chapter of the first part offers an overview of the Late Bronze Age in north-eastern Slovenia and presents the living conditions, the process of forming centres, the economic basis as well as the contacts with distant places.
The second and third parts of the book present the field investigations and finds from Grajski grič in Ptuj and Grajski hrib in Gornja Radgona. These two important hilltop settlements represented, together with the fortified settlement at Ormož, important Bronze Age centres in the settlement network of north-eastern Slovenia.
Ormož ranks among the most important archaeological sites in Slovenia. The fortified settlement f... more Ormož ranks among the most important archaeological sites in Slovenia. The fortified settlement from the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age extended over the area where the town stands today. It developed on a high-lying terrace on the left bank of the river Drava, which forms a broad bend right at the foothills. This site was intentionally selected, since towards the river it was protected by a steep slope, and to the east and west by relatively deep natural dykes.
In the present monograph a survey is given of the results of the excavations which were carried out in Ormož during the period from 1974 to 1981. First, the fortification system is presented, particularly the massive rampart, which protected the settlement on the north side. Then follows a description of the structures in the interior, among which mention should be made particularly of the hearths, fireplaces, wells and storage pits, around which life revolved in prehistory.
A separate chapter is devoted to dealing with the animal bone material, which enables one to gain an insight into the nutritional habits of the people of that time.
Of great importance is also the reconstruction of the buildings, for which it has been established that they were without exception constructed by earthfast posts, i.e. using a building technique which in the Late Bronze Age was customary also in other regions of Central Europe. Then follows a reconstruction of the ground plan of the settlement which, despite certain constant features, such as the positioning and orientation of the buildings, does not reflect any clearly delineated functional and social differences. This was to be expected, since in the Late Bronze Age society was also arranged on more or less egalitarian lines.
The second part of the monograph comprises the catalogue of material, which is presented in 171 plates.
Archaeological sites whose importance extends beyond a Slovenian framework undoubtedly include th... more Archaeological sites whose importance extends beyond a Slovenian framework undoubtedly include the Bronze Age settlement of Oloris near Doljni Lakoš. The site was excavated in the eighties by staff of the Regional Museum in Murska Sobota and members of the Institute of Archaeology, ZRC SAZU, from Ljubljana.
The first part of the publication presents the settlement, which was located in one of the bends of the Črnec stream. It was surrounded by a wooden palisade, for which oak was mostly used. The greatest settlement density was discovered inside the settlement in two gently raised sections. All that was preserved of the former dwellings were traces of holes for the vertical beams and parts of the demolished walls. In the southern part of Oloris, where a larger area was excavated, it can be seen from the plan that the houses stood closely together, with narrow passages between them. This was a crowded arrangement of dwellings around a courtyard area, where everyday life took place. Four ovens were discovered in the courtyard among the buildings. The settlement at Dolnji Lakoš was inhabited in the late 14th and in the 13th century BC, and remains the only systematically excavated settlement of that period in Slovenia.
Kučar near Podzemelj represents one of the most significant archaeological sites not only in Slov... more Kučar near Podzemelj represents one of the most significant archaeological sites not only in Slovenia but also in the wider southeastern alpine region. It is an extensive complex composed of an Iron Age and Late Roman settlement upon the hill Kučar, as well as numerous necropoli that are distributed throughout the villages of Podzemelj, Zemelj, Škrilje and Grm. The site is well-known all over the world for its elaborate material finds originating from the cemeteries there. The book presents the results from rescue excavations that were carried out between the years 1975 and 1979 on the northern top of Kučar by the Institute for Archaeology. Substantial remains of a settlement dating to the Early and Late Iron Ages (8th –1st centuries BC) were excavated, as well as the even more surprising discovery of an Early Christian building complex (5th century AD) incorporating two churches, a baptistery and a large building with an enclosing wall that was reinforced with two towers.
Opera Instituti Archaeologici Sloveniae 34, 2018
Most na Soči is among the most prominent Iron Age sites in Slovenia. Already upon its discovery i... more Most na Soči is among the most prominent Iron Age sites in Slovenia. Already upon its discovery in the mid-19th century, it attracted the attention of scholars who, mainly focused on the cemetery. The two most active were Carlo Marchesetti from Trieste and Josef Szombathy from Vienna. Between 1884 and 1902, they excavated more than 6000 graves above the confluence of the Rivers Idrijca and Soča, which ranks Most na Soči at the very top of the investigated prehistoric cemeteries in central Europe. The later rescue excavations of the settlement also raised much interest. They were conducted in a very precise and efficient manner in spite of the fact that there were no proper standards for archaeological heritage protection at that time and the investigation was under great pressure by the reconstruction activities following a massive earthquake that had hit the Posočje region. The results of these success¬ful excavations offer a unique and comprehensive glimpse into the interior structure of the settlement, which would certainly not be possible were it not for the experienced head of the excavations, Drago Svoljšak, whose previous work included fieldwork at Stična. It is important to remember that the foundations of modern excavation procedures in Slovenia were laid at these very two sites, Stična and Most na Soči, but also that the standards in place today result in a considerable measure in the achievements and efforts from that period!
The second volume on the Iron Age settlement at Most na Soči evaluates the structures and small finds. It is the culmination of a three-year project, titled Iron Age settlement at Most na Soči − the beginnings of urbanism in the southeastern Alps (J6-6835), which was finacially supported by the Slovenian Research Agency. The project was man¬aged by Janez Dular and Sneža Tecco Hvala. The multifariousness of the site’s structures and small finds required the expertise of several archaeologists and other collaborators to present the settlement as comprehensively as possible.
The first section of the book opens with the chronology of the settlement based on the metal and ceramic finds. This is followed by a chapter on the architecture in Posočje, more precisely on the construction techniques and the careful choice of building locations. These results discuss the remains that are very well preserved and therefore of great importance as they offer a good insight into the Iron Age constructions in the south-eastern Alpine region. The following chapter present the small finds. These include metal artefacts that mainly consist of jewellery, but also tools and other objects that the inhabitants of Most na Soči used in their everyday activities. Pottery is also numerously rep¬resented and presented here as to the composition of the fabrics, the typology of forms and their chronological spans.
The second section presents the analyses of some of the raw materials that the artisans used in their work: clay temper, bronze, iron and stone. The results reveal their composition and the origin of the raw materials, which is significant as there are no major ore deposits in the area of Most na Soči.
The third section presents the organic remains. Firstly, there are the remains of the structural wood used in house construction. Over a hundred samples of wood were analysed, which is the largest collection of charred wood in Slovenia to date. The settlement also yielded crop plants, mainly cereals, but also fruit that they either gathered locally or imported from areas with a warmer climate. A special study presents the scarce remains of textile. This section is rounded off with the discussion on the remains of animals that were reared and consumed in this part of Posočje during the Iron Age.
The results and findings of these expertise are brought together in the introductory study that also provides a broader cultural and historical context of the site and underlines its place among the most important centres of the south-eastern Alpine Hallstatt culture.
Kronika 72/1, 2024
Članek obravnava ceste in poti, ki so vodile v Belo krajino in Žumberk čez sleme Gorjancev. Ugoto... more Članek obravnava ceste in poti, ki so vodile v Belo krajino in Žumberk čez sleme Gorjancev. Ugotovljenih je bilo sedem glavnih smeri, ki so bile glede na čas in politične razmere enkrat bolj in drugič manj frekventne. Prav v vseh obdobjih pa je bila najpomembnejša povezava med Dolenjsko in Belo krajino smer preko prelaza Vahta, ki se je iz prazgodovinske tovorne poti postopoma spremenila v vozno. Resnejšo rekonstrukcijo je doživela šele v osemdesetih letih 19. stoletja, ko so s številnimi serpentinami ublažili najnevarnejše klance.
The paper deals with roads and trails that used to lead to Bela Krajina and Žumberak across the Gorjanci Ridge. Seven main routes have been identified that were sometimes more and sometimes less frequented, depending on the time and political circumstances. In all periods, however, the most important link between the regions of Dolenjska and Bela Krajina was the communication through the Vahta Pass, which gradually changed from a prehistoric path to a road. It was only in the 1880s that it underwent a thorough reconstruction, during which the most dangerous gradients were smoothed out with a series of hairpin bends.
Goriški letnik 45, 2021
The article presents the activity of Josef Szombathy (1853−1943), Viennese prehistorian and anthr... more The article presents the activity of Josef Szombathy (1853−1943), Viennese prehistorian and anthropologist, in the regions of Notranjska (Inner Carniola) and Primorska (Slovenian Littoral). Between 1879 and 1911 he organized and participated in extensive archaeological excavations in the Križna jama cave near Lož, in the village of Šmihel pod Nanosom, in the village of Most na Soči (called Sveta Lucija at the time), in the village of Idrija pri Bači, and in the caves Mušja jama and Okostna jama near Škocjan; these excavations have greatly broadened our knowledge of the oldest periods in this part of Slovenia. He regularly presented his findings at the meetings of the Anthropological Society and wrote two compelling papers on the necropolis in Idrija pri Bači and on the transregional cult sites in Škocjan, which have preserved their scientifi c value to this day.
Arheološki vestnik 71, 2020
The available evidence on the settlement of southeastern Slovenia in the Early Iron Age was compr... more The available evidence on the settlement of southeastern Slovenia in the Early Iron Age was comprehensively discussed in a book published more than a decade ago. This contribution reexamines the topic in light of new discoveries and also with the aim of assessing the reliability of the methods and predictive modelling used in the past.
Članek obravnava poselitev jugovzhodne Slovenije v starejši železni dobi. Ker je bila problematika že predstavljena v samostojni publikaciji, smo v pričujoči razpravi na kratko povzeli znane ugotovitve in jih soočili z novimi podatki. Na ta način je bilo mogoče preveriti uporabnost metod in napovednih modelov, uporabljenih pred poldrugim desetletjem.
Argo 62/1, 2019
Vaška situla je najdragocenejši in hkrati najbolj prepoznaven predmet, kar jih v svojih zbirkah h... more Vaška situla je najdragocenejši in hkrati najbolj prepoznaven predmet, kar jih v svojih zbirkah hranijo slovenski muzeji. Z njo so se ukvarjali arheologi, umetnostni zgodovinarji in muzealci, postala pa je tudi hvaležna snov za sprostitev domišljije številnim laikom, ki so skušali vsak s svojega zornega kota pojasniti izvor in pomen tega edinstvenega kulturnega spomenika. Naša razprava o vaški situli ne bo segla na področje njene motivike, ki je bila najpogostejša tema razprav in interpretacij. V ospredje želimo postaviti njeno življenjsko zgodbo in sicer zadnji del, ko je po več kot dveh tisočletjih ležanja v zemlji znova zagledala luč sveta in postala muzejski eksponat. Takrat se je pravzaprav začela njena pot k svetovni slavi, ki jo kot eden najizvirnejših umetniških izdelkov železnodobne civilizacije nedvomno zasluži.
The Vače situla is both more valuable and more recognisable than any other object in the collections held by Slovenian museums. It has occupied archaeologists, art historians and museum professionals and has fired the imaginations of countless amateurs seeking to understand the origin and significance of this unique cultural artefact. This paper will not deal with the motifs on the Vače situla, as those have
been covered extensively elsewhere. It will focus instead on its life story, with particular emphasis on the most recent part of it, when it finally came to light after lying buried in the ground for more than two millennia, and was put in a museum. It was then that it started to gain the world fame that, as one of the most distinctive Iron Age artistic objects, it undoubtedly deserves.
Opera Instituti archaeologici Sloveniae 34, 2018
Opera Instituti archaeologici Sloveniae 34, 2018, 147-166
[The Iron Age center of Vače and its military elite] The graves of warriors with helmets from Vač... more [The Iron Age center of Vače and its military elite] The graves of warriors with helmets from Vače are pre sented in the article. With the aid of the finds and their contexts a model was formed of the social structure, which at Vače was not based merely on the principle of ancestry. Chieftains had to exhibit other qualities (leadership ability, personal charisma, and heroic deeds), as can also be inferred from scenes of situla art. The place of Vače within the Lower Carniola Iron Age complex is analyzed. The economic prosperity of the center was enabled by the near vicinity of mines and the metallurgical activities related to them, while agrarian resources and the control of trade routes played a more minor role.
Arheološki vestnik 65, 2014
Two interesting graves with cremation burials from Ptuj are presented in the article, which diffe... more Two interesting graves with cremation burials from Ptuj are presented in the article, which differ from the usual grave of the Ruše Urnfield group in terms of the grave goods. The gradual stratification of society is reflected in them, which acquired a new form with the onset of the Early Iron Age.
Arheološki vestnik 64, 2013
This article presents the Early Iron Age remains found during the construction of a residential q... more This article presents the Early Iron Age remains found during the construction of a residential quarter south of Rabelčja vas in Ptuj. The remains are those of a settlement spread across a flat ridge delimited by two small streams. The area was heavily built-up during the Roman period, which affected the state of preservation of the prehistoric huts. Their postholes were documented in outlines and could, in two cases, be connected to form the ground plan.
Arheološki vestnik 62, 2011
The article discusses the developmental dynamics of the Bronze Age settlement of Oloris near Dol... more The article discusses the developmental dynamics of the
Bronze Age settlement of Oloris near Dolnji Lakoš, about
which varied opinions exist. Further analysis of several
forms of pottery and decoration and comparison of the
material with the radiocarbon dates of similar settlements
has shown that the settlement originated in the Middle
Bronze Age (MD III = Bd B2/C1), and reached its peak
of prosperity in the period of the Late Bronze Age (SD I =
Bd C2 and BD D).
Scripta in honorem Biba Teržan, Situla 44, 2007
Annales, Ser. hist. sociol. 18/2, 2008
Wilcock, J & K Lockyear (eds), Computer Applications and Quantitative Methods in Archaeology, 1993 (BAR International Series 598, 1995, 161-164. Oxford.
Dela
V slovenski arheologiji je že od začetka osemdesetih let prisotna temeljna usmeritev v arheologij... more V slovenski arheologiji je že od začetka osemdesetih let prisotna temeljna usmeritev v arheologijo pokrajine. Ta smer temelji na domeni, da je človek v preteklosti s svojim delovanjem pustil sledi v celotni pokrajini in da je zato potrebno v arheoloških raziskavah poselitve analizirati pokrajino in procese v njej kot enoti bivanja. Medtem ko je arheološka stroka že vrsto let razvijala različne tehnike terenskega arheološkega pregleda, vključujoč sistematičen terenski pregled pokrajine, geofizikalne in geokemične meritve, fotointerpretacijo letalskih in satelitskih posnetkov, hkrati pa na interpretativnem nivoju prevzemala teoretske pristope iz geogrefije, pa smo šele z razvojem GIS tehnologije dobili učinkovito orodje za ovrednotenje tovrstnih podatkov. Osnovna izhodišča za aplikacijo GIS tehnologije so bila podana že pred leti z raziskovalnim projektom Geneze kulturne pokrajine na Oddelku za arheologijo ljubljanske Univerze. Pri sprejemanju GIS tehnologije je bil zlasti pomemben Pr...
Arheološki vestnik 29, 1978
SLO, februar 2022/1, 2022
Članek predstavlja delovanje dunajskega prazgodovinarja in antropologa Josefa Szombathyja (1853−1... more Članek predstavlja delovanje dunajskega prazgodovinarja in antropologa Josefa Szombathyja (1853−1943), ki je med letoma 1879 in 1911 je organiziral in sodeloval pri obsežnih arheoloških izkopavanjih na ozemlju današnje Slovenije.
Straža - kraj topline, zelenja in modrine, 2014
SLO, 2020
Članek govori o Janezu Grilcu, kmečkemu fantu, ki je leta 1882 v gozdu nad vasjo Klenik pri Vačah... more Članek govori o Janezu Grilcu, kmečkemu fantu, ki je leta 1882 v gozdu nad vasjo Klenik pri Vačah izkopal znamenito vaško situlo. Vendar pa to ni bila njegova edina najdba. Našel je namreč še dva bogata grobova: v prvem je bil pokopan bojevnik s sestavljeno čelado iz 2. pol. 7. st. pr. Kr., v drugem pa poglavar z negovsko čelado (2. pol. 5. do 1. pol. 4. st. pr. Kr), na kateri je bil vtisnjen retijski napis IERISNA.
Starinoslovec Jernej Pečnik, 2014
V knjižici je predstavljeno življenje in delo Jerneja Pečnika, znanega starinokopa, ki je v zadnj... more V knjižici je predstavljeno življenje in delo Jerneja Pečnika, znanega starinokopa, ki je v zadnji četrtini 19. in v začetku 20. stoletja odkril večino železnodobnih naselij in grobišč na tedanjem Kranjskem. Mnoga med njimi je tudi prekopal in z najdbami iz gomil dodobra napolnil Kranjski Deželni muzej v Ljubljani in Naravoslovni Dvorni muzej na Dunaju.
Bela krajina in Krajinski park Lahinja, 2008
Gorjanci. Dolenjski zbornik, 1997