Late medieval castles and forts in the territory of today – Herzegovina in the light of archaeological topography research

Ovim radom predstavljeni su rezultati mog istraživanja kasnosrednjovjekovnih gradova i utvrda na prostoru današnje Hercegovine. Odabir teme leži u činjenici da je to bilo dosta zapostavljeno područje znanstvenog interesa tijekom posljednjih desetljeća, a čak i prije toga - jer je ovo područje većinom uključivano u djelomična istraživanja povjesničara, ili arhitekata, ali većinom ne arheologa. Tako da je moja ideja bila da prezentiram jedan drugačiji pogled na ovu problematiku, sa stajališta arheološke struke. Moderna arheologija je sve više orijentirana prema novoj vrsti nedestruktivnih metoda istraživanja, kao solidne osnove za stvaranje baza podataka, koji mogu ponuditi dosta novih informacija o različitim lokalitetima; što se može koristiti za donošenje posve novih zaključaka. U ovom radu pokušala sam prikupiti sve moguće dostupne podatke o kasnosrednjovjekovnim gradovima i utvrdama u Hercegovini, od njihovog spomena u povijesnim izvorima, preko izvješća koja su o njima donijeli prijašnji istraživači, i te sam informacije kombinirala s onima koje sam sama prikupila. Koristila sam sve nedestruktivne metode koje sam mogla koristiti s obzirom na svoje mogućnosti, te sam ih kombinirala s novim tehnologijama, tj. zračnim snimkama modernim pomagalima poput drona, koja su bila nedostupna u prošlosti. To mi je pomoglo da pregledam i one lokalitete koji se ne mogu pregledati na drugi način (npr. zbog minskih polja zaostalih nakon posljednjeg rata na ovom prostoru). Također sam u proučavanju samih građevina koristila metode arheologije arhitekture, u onom opsegu u kojem mi je to bilo moguće. To mi je uvelike pomoglo da shvatim procese koji su se dogodili u strukturama zidova kasnosrednjovjekovnih gradova i utvrda tijekom dugog perioda njihovog postojanja. Istraživanje sam provela primarno se koncentrirajući na arheološko – topografski pregled, tako da je moj glavni interes bio da shvatim te gradove i utvrde u njihovom stvarnom okruženju, istražujući sačuvane toponime, istražujući položaje samih lokaliteta, u odnosu prema različitim prirodnim resursima, poput polja/pašnjaka, rijeka. Njihov odnos prema važnim srednjovjekovnim putovima, postojanje podgrađa i trgova. Kroz sve to – pokušala sam razumjeti zašto su te strukture doista bile sagrađene, i – ono što arheologija uvijek čini – pokušala sam razumjeti njihov utjecaj na život ljudi koji su živjeli unutar i izvan gradskih zidina. Došla sam do zaključka da su ti srednjovjekovni gradovi na prvom mjestu predstavljali simbole snage i moći. Velikaši koji su ih posjedovali, predstavljali su svoje istaknuto mjesto u društvu koristeći utvrđenja da pokažu svoju moć i prava. Shvatila sam to analizirajući topografsko-arheološki sve meni dostupne lokalitete tog tipa u Hercegovini, i moje istraživanje je pokazalo da je većina gradova podignutih na iznimno nedostupnim lokacijama, bila namjerno podignuta baš tu (bez obzira što su mogli imati isti stupanj sigurnosti na istaknutim, ali nešto nižim položajima). Osim toga često su korištene i prirodne istaknuto dominantne stijene, na koje su se izravno nadograđivale gradske kule, koje su koristile stijene da učvrste svoju strukturu i da budu vidljive na velike udaljenosti. Odgovor na to može biti samo: simboličko značenje mjesta koje je izgledalo gotovo ''na nebu'' u očima onih koji su živjeli ispod i davali doprinose za potrebe velikaša. Tijekom ovog istraživanja, došla sam do spoznaje da je razvoj kasnosrednjovjekovnih gradova u Hercegovini izravno povezan s razvojem srednjovjekovne karavanske trgovine, koja je bila organizirana preko mreže srednjovjekovnih putova. Tako da sam spoznala da ključ razumijevanja samih gradova leži u proučavanju odnosa prema srednjovjekovnim putovima, ali također u proučavanju srednjovjekovnih trgova koji su bili smješteni na tim putovima i u podgrađima hercegovačkih srednjovjekovnih gradova. Kombinirajući povijesne podatke i rezultate istraživanja drugih autora sa svojim osobnim, shvatila sam da je najvažniji događaj kako za razvoj trgovine, tako i za razvoj srednjovjekovnih putova i gradova, zapravo razvoj srednjovjekovnih bosanskih rudarskih središta, koja su odigrala važnu ulogu u razvoju ekonomskog prosperiteta cjelokupnog prostora današnje Bosne i Hercegovine. Na kraju, mogu reći da sam uspjela prikupiti i napraviti reviziju svih hercegovačkih kasnosrednjovjekovnih gradova i utvrda (meni dostupnih) na jednom mjestu, te sagledati i prezentirati njihovo trenutno stanje očuvanosti, njihovu dostupnost posjetiteljima, i eventualnu potrebu za konzervacijom i restauracijom. Također napravila sam solidnu bazu podataka za buduća arheološka istraživanja.This work presents the results of my research of late – medieval fortifications in region of Herzegovina (within its present borders). The reason for doing this research was the fact that it was mostly a neglected subject of interest of researchers during the last decades, and even before that, this subject was generally included only in partial researches of historians, architects, but not of archaeologists. So, my idea was to present a different view on this subject from the standpoint of archaeologists. Modern archaeology is more oriented towards the non-destructive methods of investigation, as a solid base for creating a database which can offer a solid amount of new information about different sites, which can be used for creating completely new conclusions. In this work I tried to collect all possible data about late-Medieval castles and fortifications in Herzegovina, from their mention and description in historic documents, to the reports of early researchers, and I combined all those informations with those that I collected myself. I used all non-destructive methods that I was able to use, combined with new technologies, i.e. using aerial survey with modern gadgets like drones that were unavailable in the past. This helped me to do a survey of sites that could not be visited otherwise (for example because of land mines from the last war on this territory). I also used some methods of archaeology of buildings, in the amount that was possible for me. It was a great help in understanding the processes which happened in the structures of walls of Late Medieval castles and fortifications during the long period of their existence. I did my research primarily concentrating on archaeological topography, so my primary interest was to understand those castles and fortifications in their actual context, investigating the remained toponyms, investigating their position, in the relation with different necessary natural resources, like fields, rivers. I studied their relation with important medieval roads, the existence of their lower level settlements (''podgrađe''), and merchant places. Through all that – I tried to understand why those structures were really built for, and - as archaeologists always do – I tried to understand their influence on the lives of the people that lived within and outsides of town walls. We came to the conclusion that those medieval castles were in the first place symbols of strength and power. Nobles that owned them, presented their distinctive place in the Society using them to prove their power and rights. I realized that by topo-archaeologically analyzing all available sites of that type in Herzegovina, and my research showed that some castles were intentionally positioned on the most unavailable positions (while they could have the same amount of security on distinctive, but much lower position), and plus they used natural distinctive rocks, and were building their city towers and walls directly on them, using them to strengthen their constructions and make them visible sometimes from miles away. The answer for that could be only: symbolical meaning of the place which looked almost as it was 'in the sky' in the eyes of those who provided tributes for the needs of those nobles. During my research, I realized that the cause for the establishment and the development of late - medieval castles in Herzegovina is directly connected with the development of the medieval trade, which was established through the net of medieval pathways. I therefore realize, that the key for understanding of the development of castles themselves lies in the research and exploration of those very pathways (roads) but also in the exploration of merchant squares which were located in the key locations on those pathways (roads) and were usually located in the lower level of castles (''podgrađa''). So, the key event for the development of the trade, medieval roads and castles is actually the development of medieval mining centers of Bosnia, which had an important role in the development of economic prosperity of the entire territory of today's Bosnia and Herzegovina. In the end, I managed to collect and to make a revision of all our Late Medieval castles and fortifications in one place, and to understand and present their actual state, their availability to visitors, and the need for their conservation and restoration. Also, I created a solid base for future archaeological excavations