Zgodnjesrednjeveški pozlačeni predmeti z Gradišča nad Bašljem (Slovenija)

North of Kranj, on the slope of the mount Storžič, there rises the steep elevation of Gradišče nad Bašljem. On its conical summit is the location of the ruins of a late antiquity settlement which are in some places covered with a thick layer of ashes, which contains remains dating from the Early Middle Ages. Most of these remains are elements of military equipment and horse gear. Among many items of this kind which were made of iron, and often tinned, there are also several bronze and gilded artefacts: a strap separator, a strap end, a belt buckle ring, a hanger with a suspension loop and fragment of a spur. Judging by their stylistic characteristics and their functional features, three items from Gradišče nad Bašljem belong to a luxury set – either to a horse’s headgear made of straps, or to a belt used as a sword hanger. Based on the analogies, the gilded finds from Gradišče nad Bašljem indicate Carolingian influence, and there is no doubt that they belonged to the ruling class in early mediaeval Carniola, i.e. Kranjska, in the late 8th and in the 9th centuries. Early Mediaeval gilded items have also been found at other sites in Slovenia. The strongholds that were located in the key positions secured the power of the military aristocracy in the territory of present-day Slovenia, similarly to the way in which they functioned in other parts of the 9th century Slavic world.Severno od Kranja se dviga v pobočju gore Storžič prepadna vzpetina Gradišče nad Bašljem. Na njenem koničastem vrhu so razvaline poznoantične naselbine. Te so ponekod prekrite z debelo žganinsko plastjo, ki vsebuje ostaline iz zgodnjega srednjega veka. Največ jih pripada vojaški opravi in konjski opremi; med množico železnih, pogosto pokositernih predmetov te vrste, je tudi nekaj bronastih in pozlačenih izdelkov: jermenski razdelilec, jermenski zaključek, obroč pasne spone, obešalnik z zanko in del ostroge. Trije predmeti z Gradišča nad Bašljem so glede na slogovne značilnosti in uporabne lastnosti pripadali luksuzni garnituri, bodisi jermenskem oglavju konja ali pasu za obešanje meča. Pozlačene najdbe z Gradišča nad Bašljem po navedenih arheoloških primerjavah kažejo karolinški vpliv in so nedvomno pripadale vladajočemu sloju v zgodnjesrednjeveški Karnioli oz. Kranjski ob koncu 8. in v 9. st. Zgodnjesrednjeveški pozlačeni predmeti so bili najdeni tudi na drugih najdiščih v Sloveniji. Na ključnih položajih so tamkajšnje postojanke, podobno kot drugod v slovanskem svetu 9. st., tudi na ozemlju sedanje Slovenije vojaškemu plemstvu zagotavljale oblast