Activities,Functions And Inner Structures Of Homesteads At The Early Mediaeval Stronghold Pohansko (Czech Republic)
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| Year of publication | 2024 |
| Type | Appeared in Conference without Proceedings |
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| Description | The Early Mediaeval stronghold Pohansko (9th – 10th century), one of the Great Moravian centres, has a very specific inner structure consisting of at least 20 homesteads out of which 8 have been archaeologically excavated. Most of them are more or less of rectangular shape, however they vary in size, function and layout. When examining Early Mediaeval strongholds in the Central Europe, the built-up area within them seems to be without firmly set urban planning rules. The urban plan of the stronghold at Pohansko indicates that this may not have always been the case. The homestead consists of sunken-floored houses of various functions, features built on the original surface, possibly of timber construction, hearths and in some cases graves and preserved parts of palisade trenches. Some of them were associated with crafts such as specialized blacksmithing or non-ferrous metal production, non-specialized home textile production, as well as carpentry, cooperage and pottery manufacture. In addition, the number of finds of agricultural tools and large osteological assemblages also implies an agricultural and breeding function. Here, we will compare the excavated evidence with the results of geophysical and geochemical prospections to describe similarities and differences between homesteads, considering their function and spatial distribution on the site. We will describe their internal structure, together with open spaces, waste management inside the homestead and spatial distribution of the finds and we will address the issue of homestead recognition. |
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