Kurzemes literatūras un mākslas biedrība un Lietuva: arheoloģiskie pētījumi un kolekcijas (1828.-1915. gads)

LTReikšminiai žodžiai: Karls Bojs; Jūliuss Dērings; Teodors Keizerlīngs; Edmunds Krīgers; Antikvariniai daiktai; Kolekcijos; Kuršas; Karls Bojs; Jūliuss Dērings; Teodors Keizerlīngs; Edmunds Krīgers; Antiquity; Collections; Courland museum.

ENThe Courland Society for Literature and Art (Kurlāndische Gesellschaft fūr Literatur und Kunst, hereinafter the KGLK, Society) was established in 1815/1817. In 1817-1915, it was the leader of the prehistoric research in the Northern Lithuania - from Skuodas in the west to Pasvalys in the east and Šiauliai and Panevėžys in the south. During the period from 1828 to the First World War, the Courland Province Museum (1818-1939, Kurlandisches Provinzial Museum, hereinafter the KPM) acquired an extensive collection of archaeological artefacts found in this region, compared to other museums of the Russian Empire. Its collection includes c. 350 artefacts from 64 identified find spots (and other unidentified ones) dating from 4400/4200 ВС to the 16th century AD; some of the artefacts are unique. The first artefacts came from the Viekšniai burial ground (they were brought in 1828 by Maj. Sege von Laurenberg (died in 1850)), the last ones came from the Lieporai burial ground (in 1912-1914 from Friedrich von Grotthuss (1851-1918)). After the artefacts were classified according to their types and dating, it has been revealed that stone axes dominated the collection of the KPM (bored stones, whetstones, and spindles were less numerous); they came from 34 sites (there were 156 stone axes in total but the exact find spots of most of them were not specified); there also was one flint arrowhead (found in the River Mūša near Škilinpamūšis), two bronze axes (both from Kalviškiai), artefacts from six barrow cemeteries, eight burial grounds of the Iron Age, six graveyards dating to the Middle Ages to the Modern Period, and six other archaeological sites dating to the Middle Ages and the Modern Period. Eleven hill-forts (castle sites), one fortification dating to the Middle Ages and the Modern Period, and the sanctuary of Moliūnai have been localised.Anthropological remains from three burial sites dating to the lst-14th centuries have been collected and transferred for the further investigation. There were two 16th-17th century coins from two identified find spots (and more from the unidentified ones), as well. The archaeological research in Lithuania was mostly led by the Baltic German researchers: painter Julius Dōring (1818-1898), teacher Carl Boy (born in 1853), teacher Edmund Kruger (1834-1909), the collector of archaeological artefacts, landlords Theodor (1856-1922) and Otto (1862-1921) Keyserlingk from the Malgūžė-Daunorava branch, F. von Grotthuss, Alfred von Behr (1848-1896) from Baltapamūšis and others. Some of the landlords also took part in the archaeological expeditions together with J. Doring (Eduard von der Ropp (1831-1892) from Raudonpamūšis and A. von Behr took part in the survey of the Ąžuolpamūšė Hillfort in 1882) and priest of the Reformed Churches in Biržai, Jelgava (Mitau) and later in Riga Oskar Johann Kurnatowski (1834-1911), landlord Franz Alexander Gotthard von Bistram from Grieze Kuri. (1854-1908), a judge of the Jelgava County, and count Carl Keyserling (1809-1893) from Lithuanian Griežė participated in the survey of the archaeological monuments in Griežė looking for the site of the Curonian castle of Apuolė in 1884). Meanwhile, the involvement of other members of the KGLK - pastors and landlords (who made the majority) - was limited to the payment of membership fees (5 roubles annually).During the period of 1817-1915, there were 39 members from Lithuania registered in total: two of them (5.13%) were Lutheran pastors and the remaining 37 were noblemen. Though the archaeological artefacts collected from Lithuania were too few to resolve controversial issues, some interpretations were done, nonetheless (mostly by J. Doring). Interpretations of both archaeological and anthropological finds were performed attempting to resolve the issue of their ethnical attribattribution: they were attributed to Lithuanians, Latvians, Curonian Finns {finische Kureri) which actually were never present in Courland (J. Dōring), and even Germans. [From the publication]

• Archeologija / Archaeology
• Istorija / History