Žemių įtvirtinimai Lietuvoje

• Baubonis, Zenonas
• Zabiela, Gintautas

LTLeidinys reprezentuoja negausią naujųjų laikų gynybinių įtvirtinimų Lietuvoje grupę, paveldosaugininkų vadinamą senovės gynybiniais įtvirtinimais. Paprastai šie įtvirtinimai yra suformuoti iš žemių supilant pylimus bei iškasant griovius ar atitinkamai planiruojant šlaitus, tad jie vadintini žemių įtvirtinimais. Atlaso autoriai Zenonas Baubonis ir Gintautas Zabiela 2019 metais iš naujo aplankė ir užfiksavo visus žemių įvirtinimus Lietuvoje, įvertino jų būklę bei pateikė rekomendacijas paveldosaugos specialistams. Knygoje autoriai pateikia informaciją apie visus šiuo metu Lietuvos teritorijoje žinomus XVI–XVIII a. žemių įtvirtinimus (33 objektai), kurie išdėstyti abėcėliniu principu. Atlase yra trumpas kiekvieno žemių įtvirtinimo aprašymas (dabartinė būklė, istorinė raida, įtvirtinimų elementai ir struktūra, datavimas, tyrinėjimai, pagrindiniai radiniai); vietos žemėlapis; detalūs įtvirtinimų bei jų tyrimų brėžiniai; didelės raiškos aerofotografijos, tyrimų akimirkų, radinių ir archyvinės fotonuotraukos.Knygoje taip pat pateikiama informacija, kodėl kai kurių nekilnojamojo kultūros paveldo vertybių atlaso autoriai nelaiko gynybiniais įtvirtinimais. Anot autorių, spėjamose vietose pirmiausia reikia atlikti bent jau žvalgymus detektoriais ir tik pagal jų rezultatus toliau spręsti dėl objekto apsaugos. Labai atsargiai vertinamos ir įvairios pylimus ar griovius primenančios dalinai išlikusios struktūros, nes kaip rodo visa žemių įtvirtinimų pažinimo istorija, neretai tai būna gamtiniai dariniai. Apie trisdešimt tikrų objektų ir dar keliolika žemių įtvirtinimais laikytų natūralių gamtinių darinių yra labai negausi didžiulio Lietuvos archeologinio paveldo dalelė. Norint juos geriau pažinti siekiama surinkti ir pateikti bent pagrindinius duomenis. Atlaso autoriai viliasi, kad šis leidinys prisidės prie nežinomų naujųjų laikų žemių įtvirtinimų paieškų, esamų apsaugos bei tolesnių tyrimų. [humanitas.lt]

ENDuring the existence of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania (13th-18th century), hillforts and masonry castles were reinforced with fortifications built of earth. They were prevalent during the Early Modern period (between the 16th and 18th centuries) and included defensive field (temporary) structures such as ramparts, ditches and purposefully shaped slopes. Remaining earthworks of this type are scarce. Some of them display elements of a bastion type of structures. Fortifications built of earth that are found in Lithuania are distinct in that natural terrain was often used as natural obstacles (for instance, steep slopes). Records that mention fortifications of this type up until now have been dispersed across numerous studies. Although occasional investigations of earthwork structures were being conducted since the end of the 19th century (A, Bezzenberger), they were often considered to be natural formations. Thorough studies of defensive earthworks were begun at the beginning of the 21st century by A. Kuncevičius and V. Muralis. Before the summer of 2019, a total of 13 earthen structures have been investigated. Ditches and ramparts have been excavated in cross-section in 4 out of the 13 objects. Ten wards enhanced with defensive earthworks were also investigated. Here, remains of buildings dating to the Early Modern period and their related archaeological material were discovered. However, no traces of battles that might have taken place in these spots were identified. It has been suggested that earthen fortifications are best investigated with the aid of tools such as core and screw augers and metal detectors. Furthermore, only the sites with surviving fortifications should be protected (13 of the cases had no structures surviving as only the sites remain).This publication includes descriptions of 33 earthen fortifications that were further divided into two distinct groups. The first group considers ramparts which were built on even (or relatively even) terrain, were either regular in shape (usually square) (for instance, in Pane-munis) or linear (as in the case of Rėkučiai). The second group consists of structures that were built on hills or on their extending slopes, which are reminiscent of hillforts (if considered in topographical terms) but which were actually not, as evidenced by archaeological data (for instance, the site of Rokantiškės). In this publication, descriptions of defensive earthworks were based on information presented in the fourth vol ume of the Atlas of Lithuanian hillforts {Lietuvos piliakalniai. Atlasas. IV tomas. Vilnius, 2017). Slight alterations in these descriptions were determined by the nature of earthen defensive structures. Historic development of fortifications were based on data gathered during archaeological investigations. Furthermore, only structures or artefacts related to the defensive function of these structures were presented. Archaeological data was collected on sites during the years 2006-2007 and 2018-2019. The end of this publication includes a brief description of 13 archaeological sites that were regarded in past studies as earthen fortifications but which were actually not. [From the publication]