Castle Area Research Articles

FUNCTIONAL USE OF THE AREA OF PRAGUE CASTLE WITH EMPHASIS ON THE NORMALIZATION PERIOD

This paper deals with individual typological types and units in the Prague Castle area. It also focuses on the urban and historical development, as it is significantly influenced by the situation in the period under study. It focuses more closely on the period of the second half of the 20th century, and especially the period of normalization - the 1970s and 1980s. Prague Castle was and still is the seat of the monarch, or today the President of the Czech Republic. The historical context has had a considerable influence on the shape of the Castle (the succession of ruling personalities from different dynasties, the transformation from the position of the seat of the Habsburg monarchy and therefore the most important center in Central Europe to the position of the summer residence of the ruling family, etc.). Also unprecedented is the concentration of the main buildings of secular and ecclesiastical power in one area. The castle is a huge complex, combining morphological assumptions with the result of the work of a huge number of people. A number of foreign artists worked here, reaching world-class standards and both understanding and supporting the local genius loci. There are also many contrasts - political and constructional. For example, the imprints of monarchy and republic, church and secular power, ancient and modernist architecture, contrasts between the smallest buildings of houses and the largest palaces. On the basis of archival research and the study of expert literature, the reader is introduced to the progressive changes in the layout of the Castle complex and the associated changes in the functional use of the buildings and spaces in the aforementioned complex.

RADIOCARBON DATING OF MULTIPLE MATERIALS FOR CLARIFYING THE FORMATION OF THE MEDIEVAL SETTLEMENT ON THE OUTSKIRTS OF PRAGUE CASTLE (CZECH REPUBLIC)

ABSTRACT An archaeological excavation conducted on U Kasáren St. in the Prague Castle area (Czech Republic) in 2020 revealed the remains of a medieval settlement consisting of houses of different constructions (pit dwelling, masonry construction), pyrotechnical (possibly metallurgical) features and unspecified pits. The excavation also revealed evidence of fire events and traces of viniculture on the outskirts of the Prague Castle area. Archaeological data allowed only a rough dating of the investigated settlement in the 10th–13th centuries. This paper presents the results of the radiocarbon dating of various materials (animal bones, archaeobotanical samples) from the settlement features and the contribution of the results to the clarification of the chronology of the site.

INTERNAL AND EXTERNAL IMAGE OF HRADČANY AND PRAGUE CASTLE

This contribution deals with the urban development of the Hradčany area, within its position in the capital city, but especially within the area itself. Great emphasis is placed on historical development, as it significantly affects the current situation. Prague Castle, perceived as a historical and architectural complex, is unique in its complexity and size, we will not find a similar example in any of the surrounding countries.
 Prague Castle, as an important part of Hradčany, was and still is the seat of the monarch, or today the president of the Czech Republic. The development of Czech history influenced the appearance of the Castle (alternation of royal families, growth and decline in the importance of Prague, ie the Czech kingdom in Central Europe). The combination of secular and ecclesiastical power in one place is also remarkable. At the same time, it is possible to find evidence of development in the field of culture, technical conveniences, architectural and engineering arts, over the course of ten centuries.
 Based on archival research and the study of references, the reader is acquainted with the gradual change in the formation of the current plan of the city and the Castle. The connection between morphological assumptions and the location of first a Slavic fort, later a stone castle, is pointed out. The castle area was followed by a settlement in the sub-castle, which in the 14th century became a serf town of Hradčany. The alternation of artistic styles over the centuries and the related change in the structure and scale of buildings, but especially the panorama of Hradčany with the silhouette of the Castle, is discussed. In the end, the potential of the Hradčany area and the possibility of modernization interventions are also evaluated.

Late Medieval and Modern Ceramics from the Castle in Przezmark in the Light of the Results of Gas Chromatography Coupled with Mass Spectrometry – an Attempt at Interpretation

Archaeological excavations of the Institute of Archaeology UKSW lasted from July to August 2017. Principals have reviewed the area. In the first season, four excavations were opened – three (A–C) ones in the high castle and one (D) in the middle castle area. Trench A was founded on the outside of the south-eastern corner of the castle. The work was to verify the presence of the external wall – it was built from the side of the lake, present on the plans of the castle. During the excavation tests, the remains of the toilet tank were unveiled. Fragments of usable ceramics were extracted from these places. Samples were taken from vessels and transferred to the laboratory. During the chemical analysis, fatty acids were isolated. Based on the proportion of acids obtained, an attempt was made to interpret food prepared in dishes. The following tests were chosen for the tests: lid (P1), six den (P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, P7), two bellies (P9, P10) and two outlets (P8 and P11). After an overall analysis, it was found that FAME of plant and animal origin was detected in all samples.

Mersin Toroslar’da Çandır Kalesi

Mersin is located in a region where many fortress structures have been built, which can be defined as structures that are important in the defense and sovereignty of the region throughout history. Especially in the Middle Ages, the castle structures, which were used effectively in terms of settlement and defense, ensured the security of the trade routes reaching the ports from north to south. It is understood that the fortress structures were established at strategic points on the main transportation and trade routes. In the research, the Candir Castle, which has a unique character in terms of its geographical location, has been the subject of the study. It is understood that the castle was built not only as a defensive structure but as a small settlement consisting of structures covering a large area. In this article, historical studies on the Candir Castle, which was defined as belonging to the Armenian baron in the Cilician Region during the Middle Ages, were examined and the remains of the building surviving in the castle area were identified. The natural and man-made destruction that can be seen in Candir Castle today requires the redefinition of the structural features of the castle complex.

Rehabilitation of Historical Drainage and Ventilation System in the Prague Castle Area

The paper deals with a structural survey of the historic drainage and ventilation system discovered recently in the Prague Castle area. Based on in-situ inspection the remedial works in the context of historic importance of the area are presented. The experimental testing is used for the assessment of the efficiency of remedial technologies, but also for a deeper investigation of moisture transport phenomena in heterogeneous materials. The data collected for the investigated aspects should allow foresight of the behavior of existing structures providing damage prediction models and help in the design of remedial measures.

Galvanic Leaching of Seafloor Massive Sulphides Using MnO2 in H2SO4-NaCl Media

This paper reports the leaching of seafloor massive sulphides (SMS) from the Loki’s Castle area at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge in sulphuric acid with manganese dioxide and sodium chloride. The results presented are of various leaching experiments conducted under different conditions in order to optimise the dissolution of copper and silver. It was shown that the main copper bearing minerals in the SMS were chalcopyrite and isocubanite, while silver could occur as an admixture in the crystallographic lattice of sulphides or as disseminated micro inclusions. Based on the results, the leaching mechanism was discussed and elucidated. It was shown that the dissolution of the SMS was mainly due to galvanic interactions between the primary marine minerals of SMS and manganese dioxide. Addition of sodium chloride promoted the extraction mechanism.

Indicators of recent geodynamic activity in the Książ Castle area (Świebodzice Unit, Sudetes) in the light of structural analysis and geodetic measurements

Abstract. Indicators of recent geodynamic activity in the Książ Castle area are registered by the measuring instruments of the SRC PAS (Space Research Centre of Polish Academy of Sciences) Geodynamic Laboratory at Książ. Over 40 years of continuous observations from quartz horizontal pendulums (since 1974) and over 10 years of observations from water-tube tiltmeters (since 2002) have documented irregularly repeatable strong signals related to the relative displacement of blocks in the rock substrate, on which Książ Castle is located. These signals have dip (rotational) and vertical strike-slip components. Also, the presence of a horizontal strike-slip component is evidenced by geometric anomalies (deformations) of the shape of the Pelcznica river valley, which directly correspond to the orientation of the main faults in the area. Recent geodynamic activity is documented by destruction of (the construction elements in the castle complex. Instrumental indicators of movement, geodetic measurements and structural analysis of the rock massif have allowed for constructing a model showing the main unconformity surfaces in the analysed rock massif. Sinistral, NE–SW and ENE–WSW-oriented strike-slip faults prevail in the laboratory corridors, along with perpendicular WNW–ESE and NW–SSE-oriented clextral and normal faults. Most dislocations are accompanied by zones of intense cataclasys, secondary silification, and Fe and Mn mineralization. Generally, the faults were formed due to reactivation of joint fractures cutting the steeply N-and S-dipping (at 75-90°) deposits of the Książ Conglomerate Formation.

Konference Aktuální trendy v muzejní prezentaci a edukaci II. : vliv digitálních technologií na dětského návštěvníka a mezioborové přesahy muzejní pedagogiky

In the space of castle area of City Museum in Prague the conference Actual trends in museum presentation and education was held in the term 21–22 May 2018, as the second year of the conference of the Committee for museum public relations and museum pedagogy by Czech Association of Museums and Galleries. Conference subtitle for 2018 was Influence of digital technologies on child visitor and interdisciplinary relations of museum pedagogy. The conference was held under partonage of ambassador of Denmark Ole Frijs-Madsen. The conference was co-organised by Department of Archeology nad Museology, Centre of Museology at Masaryk University, Brno with West Bohemian Museum in Plzeň, Masaryk museum in Hodonin and Methodical centre of museum pedagogy. About 120 participants, museums workers, academics and students from the Czech republic and Slovakia took part at the conference.

Efficient extraction of copper and zinc from seafloor massive sulphide rock samples from the Loki’s Castle area at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge

Seafloor massive sulphide (SMS) deposits have been identified as important marine metal resources for the future. However, literature on the recovery/extraction of metals from SMS is currently limited, and to date, no research has been published on the processing of SMS from the active hydrothermal vent field at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge. In this paper extraction of copper and zinc, as economically important metals, from the seafloor massive sulphide rock samples from the Loki’s Castle area at the Arctic Mid-Ocean Ridge was investigated during nitric acid leaching. The results presented are of the various leaching experiments conducted under different conditions to optimise the extraction of copper and zinc. The mineralogical analysis indicated that the main copper and zinc bearing minerals were chalcopyrite and sphalerite, respectively. It was shown that the leaching efficiency and extraction of copper and zinc can be controlled mainly by temperature and acid concentration. The elemental composition and mineralogical data indicated that 95% of copper and zinc bearing minerals were leached out after 3 h, at the solid-to-liquid ratio of 1:10, temperature of 90 °C and acid concentration of 10%.

Archaeology and Nationalism. the Endless Struggle for Dăbâca (G.: Dobeschdorf; H.: Doboka). Thoughts on research development and archaeological realities

The excavation of Dăbâca castle started in the early 1960s. The contextualization of the results was heavily influenced by ideological preconceptions since the fortification was identified as the political-military centre of legendary “lord Gelou” by archaeologists, based on the material of only three seasons of archaeological research and a written source from a much later period. According to the archaeological and numismatic finds, the fortification was built in/after the first third of the 11th century, but the castle system reached the peak of its life in the 12th century. This is clearly demonstrated by the coins those were found in the graves in Castle Area IV, A. Tămaş’s garden and the graveyard of Boldâgă/Boldogasszony, just like by the diverse structures of the settlement. The transformation of the castle as a political and administrative center can be dated to the late 13th century. It seems that the changes in Dăbâca’s role were not the result of the Mongolian invasion, and can be traced back to other, both administrative and political reasons.

Archeological Researches of Ostroh in the Period of Ostrozki Princes

In the 20th century, archeological collections from Ostroh area were formed as a result of small archaeological prospecting and occasional findings. Archeological research of the city in 2004—2013 allowed expanding significantly the source base for the study of the early stages of the settlement’s development. New materials were discovered to characterize various aspects of city life in the period of Ostrohski princes. Excavations were held within the territory of 1100 m2 in different parts of Ostroh: in the castle area, in the town, and in the suburbs. The exploration included accommodation and utility buildings and the cemetery near the St. Nicholas Church; the author also specified the location of the northern part of suburbs fortifications; found out the remains of Lutsk Street which joined the market square and the Lutsk gate. In the northern part of the suburbs, the author discovered the section of the town’s defensive wall of Kyiv Rus period. This wall was used to construct the suburbs defensive line in the period of Ostrohski princes. Accommodation buildings of the 15th—17th centuries were on the surface, some of them had a square foundation pit (subterranean room) with an area from 9,0 to 30 m2. Cellars, utility buildings and pits were explored near accommodation buildings. The collections of archeological findings of the period from the 14th to the 17th centuries include objects made of clay, metals, stone, bone, and glass. The 14th century assemblages were found only near the St. Nicholas Church and at 3, Nezalezhnist Avenue. Cultural layers and objects of the 15th and the beginning of the 16th centuries were found at all sections of archаeological exploration (with the exception of New Town). The cultural layer and objects of the second half of the 16th and the first half of the 17th centuries contained the largest number of archeological findings.

A Survey of Historic Galleries in the Area of the Prague Castle

The paper deals with the historical and structural survey of house “At the Three Axis” and drainage and ventilation systems discovered in the Prague Castle area. Failures and deterioration processes of these historical structures are described. The important achievements of in-situ inspection and laboratory analysis are presented, interventions and maintenance of systems proposed.

Prague Castle Area Local Stability Determination Assessment by the Robust Transformation Method

A geodetic measurement of shifts and deformations is a well-known method. In the paper there is presented a methodology of the shifts assessment based on the robust estimation calculation and the following statistical testing. The methodology is exceptional in the fact, that every point can be potentially unstable and selection of the stable points is a part of the calculation process. No undoubtedly stable points are needed. Procedure was applied to a geodetic network of Prague Castle. ARTICLE INFO

The lichen flora of the Malbork Castle (N. Polami)

In the present study 32 species of lichens were found. The most numerous were crustose lichens. which are typical of rocks. The follwing species which are known to occur rarely in Poland were identified: <i>Acarospora</i> cf. <i>umbibilicata</i> and <i>Lecidella</i> cf. <i>carpathica</i>. Two species of the genus <i>Lepraria</i> were also noted; among them <i>Lepraria caesioalba</i> had not been reported previously from Poland. The non-uniform distribution of lichens in the castle area, mainly the presence of "lichen deserts" was. probably associated with human activities. The most frequent occurring lichens were synanthropic, easily spreading species, e.g. <i>Caloplaca citrina, Lecanora albescens</i> and <i>L. dispersa</i>.

Evolution of Reconstruction of Plecnik Footbridge at Prague Castle

The sample of not sustainable way of reconstruction of small but important and significant structure of Plecnik ́s foot bridge located at Prague Castle area is discussed at this contribution. The structure was strongly impaired 10 years after complex reconstruction. This damage and degradation was caused mainly due to malfunctioning of new waterproofing and frozen water in the drainage system of the bridge deck.

„Trzy puzdra z kaftiorami…”, czyli o fajansie i porcelanie na tykocińskim zamku

Archaeological explorations carried out so far in the castle area in Tykocin – Podlachia, have delivered not only numerous, but also varied movable artifacts. Despite predominating objects of local production, there are also items from distanced production centers; these are, among the others, fragments of glass vessels, clay pipes, elements of armory and coins from 16 th century up to 19 th century. The article concentrates on two selected categories of modern imports and their local imitations, i.e. porcelain and faience. For 91 thousand of various source categories obtained in the discussed site, pieces of faience and porcelain create relatively small collection of 614 fragments, including 540 pieces of faience and 74 pieces of porcelain. The minimum number of those vessels was defined for 304, respectively: 251 and 53 items. Nearly half of all the fragments was obtained from mixed layers, made chiefly as a result of architectonic works, performed in the castle and around in the 60s of the last century. Most of the production was unsigned, therefore it is rather difficult in defining the objects’ origin and precise dating. Only ten vessels are marked (five porcelain and five faience ones), seven of which created possibilities of identification. Production places of majority of items were stated on the base of manufacturing techniques and comparative analyses. It was possible first of all for ornamented examples with decorative elements characteristic for particular workshops, production centers on vessel types. This collection consists, among the others, of the most expensive and the most desirable products of those times – original China, Dutch faiences of Delft, English dishes from Josiah Wedgwood’s manufacture(?) and porcelain from Meissen of Saxony and royal Vienna manufacture, but moreover – products probably from workshops situated in Italy, England (Bristol), France (Nevers, Rouen, Sevres), other German centers (Volkstedt), Silesia (Proszkow Śląski), Volhynia (Korzec, Baranowka, Horodnica), Pomerania (Gdansk, Szczecin area) and Lesser Poland (Cmielow, Ilza). The listed finds are mainly elements of crockery sets – plates, saucers, bowls, cups, soup tureens and vases, pitchers. The collection is completed by a tea-pot and lids (probably for jugs). Tykocin assembly also possesses one sanitary vessel – a bed-pan. The assortment of faience products is more diversified, in comparison with more unified porcelain collection, although in both ceramic groups – plates are in predominance. The described artifacts is an interesting material evidence of needs and aesthetic preferences of the buyers, new trends in ceramic manufacturing of the period and consumption fancies, the proof of fulfilling the orders and active commodity exchange between Tykocin and the Baltic towns, as well as the capital in modern period. As far as kinds and ornamentations are concerned, the products refer to common trends in West European and home ceramic production from the end of 17 th century up to 19 th century. Majority of the described products, both porcelain and faience ones were used when the castle was owned by the last two Branicki Family representatives – Stefan Mikolaj (about 1640–1709) and Jan Klemens III (1689–1771). It can not be excluded, that some of these objects were brought to the castle in the beginning of 18 th century together with Polish of foreign monarchs’ courts. On the base of historic evidence existing we have only information on the movable property of Jan Klemens III, but there is lack of information concerning the objects belonging to his father. There are no direct remarks about the objects brought or being in possession of Tykocin castle residents; there are only notices saying about dishes ordered by the hetman or belonging to the equipment of his other seats, first and foremost, the palaces in Bialystok, Warsaw and Choroszcza. However, these documents deliver precious information on the assortment belonging to Jan Klemens III and consisting of faiences and porcelain, their quantity, origin and destination, the owner’s preferences as to types, ornaments and colors of the preferred vessels. It can be speculated that some of those objects reached Tykocin and were used here during more ceremonious occasions.

Survey of the Part of Medieval Fortification System of Prague Lesser Town

The paper deals with the historical and structural survey of the medieval stone bridge recently discovered in the Prague Castle area. The old masonry construction, probably dated back to 15th century, includes bridge arch and two pillars in a highly authentic state. Failures and deterioration processes of this historical structure are described. The important achievement of in situ inspection and laboratory analysis are presented, interventions and maintenance plan proposed.

Determination of St. George Basilica Tower Historical Inclination from Contemporary Photograph

A large amount of photographic material has been accumulated from the photography emerge in the nineteenth century. The most photographs record portraits, urbanistic complex, significant architecture and others important objects in the photography inception. Historical photographs recorded a huge amount of information, which can be use for various research activities. Photograph visual information is sufficient in many cases, but accurate geometrical information must be acquired from it in specific situations. It is the case of long-term stability monitoring of buildings in the Prague Castle area see [1]. For static analysis in the monitoring project, it is necessary to determine accurately specific geometrical parameter – mutual angle of St. George Basilica towers in the north-south direction before the reconstruction started in 1888. The angle standard deviation must be solved as well. The task demanded using of photogrammetric methods. Own implementation of general bundle adjustment had to be created to fulfill determination of reliable standard deviation of the angle, because standard photogrammetric software does not have all the necessary options.

Strata SE1, London – propelling sustainable regeneration

Strata SE1 is a new 43-storey, 148 m tall reinforced concrete residential tower leading the sustainable regeneration of the Elephant and Castle area in London, UK. With a curved triangular footprint and three 9 m diameter wind turbines, the tower has been designed economically and built quickly on a confined city centre site. This paper describes the design and construction of the project, which used a system of ‘walking columns’ to achieve its tapered shape, with slabs acting as struts and ties. Headed reinforcement bars were used within the ties – one of the first applications in a UK building.