Hillfort - Kaštelir - Castelliere
 Archeology

 

A hillfort (also hill fort and hill-fort) is a general term used to describe a fortification on a hilltop, the best known of which are the later prehistoric examples mainly of later Bronze Age and Iron Age date, the 1st millennium B.C., in Europe. Usually situated in a prominent and defensible position, hillforts were fortified with one or more lines of stone walls or earthen ramparts and ditches and elaborate defences. Their construction often relates to the kind of warfare common in the region in which they lie at the time of their occupation. Many were permanently occupied, although some were temporary refuges in times of trouble. [Source The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archeology.]

The American Journal of Archaeology and of the History of the Fine Arts, by Archaeological Institute of America and published by Archaeological Institute of America (1885) reveals:

Before Mr. Burton's work, Notes on the Castellieri or prehistoric ruins of the Istrian Peninsula, published in 1875, no attempt had been made to account for the ancient ruins called Castellieri which cover the hills and rooks of Istria; and it was not until 1883 that the first scientific researches were begun in this field, at Vermo near Pisino, by Prof. Moser at the expense of the Viennese Academy. These researches resulted in the discovery of a necropolis which contained over a hundred tombs a combustione, consisting of square cells opened in the friable rock from 1 to 2 metres below the surface and covered with slabs. Each contained one, seldom more, cinerary urn of pottery or metal without special decoration. The contents of these tombs were extremely meagre. Further discoveries were made in the same year by Dr. Marchessetti. The objects found enrich the Museums of Vienna and Trieste.

In consequence, an historical society and a provincial museum were founded, and excavations begun on a grand scale by Dr. Amoroso in the vicinity of Vermo and at the Castetellieri dei Pizzughi near Parenzo, the latter of which was productive of very important results. The 200 tombs at the Pizzughi, at a depth of between 0.50 and 1,50 met., are square and measure about a metre each way; they are built of polygonal masses and covered with large calcareous slabs. A single tomb often contained as many as five ossuaries which also were covered with a thin stone slab. Another species of tombs is formed in the shape of a small cylindrical well,also closed in by a slab: these, however,never contained more than a single cinerary urn. The great majority follow the usual type of the Italian necropoli of the first iron-age, with some local variations. The pottery is almost entirely made by hand and baked at the open fire, and in the form of a double truncated cone with reversed neck. The meagre decoration is strictly geometrical, either scratched or in relief. Among the ornaments found the most numerous are bracelets with linear ornamentation, clasps of the "Certosa" type, and hair-pins:numerous objects found demonstrate the attention paid to the refinements of the toilet even by such a savage people as the Histri.

Since the early findings, some 400 fortified settlements have been identified on the Istrian peninsula dating from the Bronze and Iron Ages, which bear witness to the population density on the peninsula at the time. They were mostly circular, ellipsoidal and surrounded by defensive walls. Larger hillforts were even encompassed by several rings of walls. A special building technique was used where large stone blocks were laid without a bonding agent (dry wall). Today most of the hillfort settlements are recognized as circular towns which later developed on their foundations. Today's toponyms – gradina, gradinje, gradište, gračišće, kaštelir (after the Italian term castelliere), are pinpoints for some of these remnants.

Alternate names:  kaštelir / kasteljer (Istrijanski), castelieri (Istroveneto), castellieri (Italiano), gradine (Hrvatski)

General articles:

Other readings:

  • Marchesetti, "I castellieri preistorici di Trieste e della Regione Giulia", Trieste 1903

Specific hillforts (castellieri) and related sites:

  • Anđeo (?) - near Poreč (Parenzo),
  • Barban (Barbana) - Bronze Age hillfort
  • Barbarija (Barbariga) - 8 tumulus / zugurat / mound - near village of Toranj, on the estate of the Dragonera Roman Villa close to the coast
  • Beram (Vermo) - one of the oldest continuously populated settlements in Istria. Explorations of the prehistoric necropolis on the south slopes of Beram have shown with certainty that during the iron age a settlement already existed here. A conical hill above a fertile valley was an ideal place for a hillfort type settlement which lasted until 8th century B.C., surrounded by a simple rough wall following the terrain configuration. Over the ruins of these walls Roman forts and medieval castles were later built. A radial street pattern founded in some ancient times has been preserved in Beram to this day. The Beram necropolis was explored in 1883. by three archaeologists, independently one of another: Carlo Marchesetti, Karl Moser, and Andrea Amoroso, who altogether explored over 170 graves, and deposited the findings in museums of Vienna and Trieste.
  • Brijuni / Brioni - fortified Bronze Age settlement on the homonzmous hill norht of Verige Bay, with preserved walls, entrance and necropolis. The hill-fort population buried their dead under the stone tumulus in a grave of stone slabs. Such graves with skeleton burials in a bent position were found on the surrounding hilltops Ciprovac, Antunovac and Rankun. In the mid Bronze-Age (14th century B.C.) which is when the necropolis at Gradina is dated, cemeteries were located along the settlement fortifications, and beside individual burials in stone graves there are also family graves.
  • Brtonigla (Verteneglio) - a picturesque hilltop medieval town on the foundation of the prehistoric hillfort
  • Buje (Buie) - hillfort of St. Peregrin
  • Červar Porat (Cervera) - remains of a hillfort are above the town.
  • Ćunski (Ciunschi), Lošinj Island)
  • Dvigrad (Duecastelli)
  • Elleri - near Muggia
  • Ilovik (Asinello) Island - on the hill of Straža
  • Krkavče / Castel S. Pietro / Carcase) - just outside the villate lie the remains of a prehistoric hillfort and the famous Carcase stele, on which has been carved the figure of a man, said to date from the La Thene period (2nd-lst century BC). Non lontano dall'abitato paese si possono vedere i resti di un castelliere preistorico e una famosa stele, detta di Carcase, su cui è scolpita la figura di un uomo e che si vuole risalga all'età di La Thene (II-I sec. a.C).
  • Kunci (Cunzi) - Bronze Age Kunci (Cunzi) Hillfort (English)
  • Labin (Albona) - a Liburnian hillfort of which nothing remains visible. 308 Meters altitude.
  • Lim (Leme)
  • Marcana (Marzana) - ruins of a hill fort and ancient graves on Ovcjak hill, west of the village.
  • Medulin (Medolino) - prehistoric hillforts can be found on the hill Vrčevan and Cape Kašteja (Punta Kateja).
  • Monkodonja (Moncodogno), near Rovinj (Rovigno) - inhabited from 12-18th centuries, B.C. -
  • Montursino - near Vodnjan / Dignano d'Istria
  • Mutvoran Hillfort
  • Nesactium (Nezario, today's Vizace) - at the bottom of the hillock Glavica, in the vicinity of Valtura (Altura)
  • Pićan (Pedena)
  • Pizuge (Picugi / Pizzughi) - near Poreč (Parenzo)- see above
  • Pula (Pola) - developed out of a hillfort dating 18th-10th century, B.C.)
  • Roč (Rozzo)
  • Uvala Maric - 3 tumulus / zigurat / mound - on the estate of the Dragonera Roman Villa close to the coast
  • Vrčin (Monte Ursino)
  • Žamask (Zamasco / Zumasco) - near Motovun (Montona)
  • Zrenj (Sdregna / Stridone) - in nearby Salez (Sale) is the large hillfort of St. George (Opatija)

Hillforts or ancient fortifications in Istria's surrounds:

  • Trieste (Trst) to Rijeka (Fiume) and their environs -
    • Claustra Alpium Iuliarum
    • Trstat (Tersato) -  The Trsat hillfort is just a few steps from the Church of St. George and bears witness to the rich past of the city of Rijeka (Fiume) which spread over both banks of the Rječina (Fiumara) River. It dates back to the Illyrian tribe of Yapod in prehistoric times, was passed on to the Romans who built their fort on this site, and passed on to numerous owners, each of whom left their individual mark on the fortification. The appearance and usage of the hillfort was shaped through the centuries by the Frankopans, the Habsburgs, the Captains of Bakar and lastly by Count Laval Nugent. The hillfort has a unique view of the town and Kvarner Bay. During the summer, it is the today the cultural and artistic center of Rijeka, hosting art exhibitions, concerts, theatrical performances and other types of entertainment. An audio-cassette about the history of the hillfort is available on the site. Source

Related Prehistoric Sites

Dolmen (a prehistoric monument consisting of two or more upright stones supporting a horizontal stone slab found especially in Britain and France and thought to be a tomb / burial chamber):

  • Tramuntana (2) - near Beli, Island of Cres / Cherso

Portal tomb:

  • Tramuntana - near Beli, Island of Cres / Cherso

Tholos / cairn (1. a round building of classical Greek date and style, or 2. a circular tomb of beehive shape approached by a horizontal passage in the side of a hill.):

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Created: Thursday, September 24, 1999; Last Updated: Monday, 25 August 2008
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