Papers by Krzysztof Socha
Staromiejski kościół farny pw. Najświętszej Maryi Panny w Kostrzynie nad Odrą. Studia archeologiczno-architektoniczne, pod redakcją Krzysztofa Sochy i Julianny Sójkowskiej-Sochy, 2017
The excavations (1996-2000), the occurrence of the crypt system inside and outside of the church ... more The excavations (1996-2000), the occurrence of the crypt system inside and outside of the church was revealed, and several phases of reconstruction and extension of the parish church were documented (see chapters II and VI in this volume). Excavations included mainly a presbytery and an area of the crypt vaults, including the so-called ducal. Their goal was also to recognize the entire interior of the church with the tower and to examine the nearest surrounding of the temple. A total number of 15 trenches were excavated.
The work inside the central crypt was aimed at locating the graves of the pair of the ruler and the founder of the city-fortress - margrave Jan of Kostrzyn and his wife Katarzyna Brunszwicka. However only a copy of the cover of Catherine of Braunschweig’s sarcophagus and Renaissance stone supports were discovered during the research, on which both tombs were originally buried (unfortunately, the sarcophagus of Margrave John was not found).
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Staromiejski kościół farny pw. Najświętszej Maryi Panny w Kostrzynie nad Odrą. Studia archeologiczno-architektoniczne, pod redakcją Krzysztofa Sochy i Julianny Sójkowskiej-Sochy, 2017
In addition, metal elements of coffins were found in all gravess. Most often they were coffin han... more In addition, metal elements of coffins were found in all gravess. Most often they were coffin handles of antaba, often decorated, as well as fittings with floral motifs. There is a skull-mask ferrule and fittings with anthropomorphic elements. Their characteristics were made by Krzysztof Socha (in this volume).
The analysis of metal items (including very numerous antab and coffin fittings) as well as detailed study of a rich and unique collection of children's grave clothing made it possible to present the 17th / 18th century funeral rite in this part of the Middle Odra River area and significantly enriched our knowledge about baroque funerary traditions.
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Lubuskie Materiały Konserwatorskie, 2020
During excavation works carried out in 2012 by the Kostrzyn Fortress Museum (Fig. 2,3) two intere... more During excavation works carried out in 2012 by the Kostrzyn Fortress Museum (Fig. 2,3) two interesting coins were discovered in Old Town of Kostrzyn nad Odrą. Tłiey were found be means of metal detectors. The coins in ąuestion were unearthed within a secondary deposit, in a backfill layer of the castle's water intake (?). They constitute smali, silver Vinkenaugen type coins without writing on them (Fig. 4). Written records from the time these were in circulation (i4th and i5th centuries) refer to them as Slavic denarii, light pfennigs/denarii or Szczecin coins/denarii (Szczurek 2010, p. 258). The coins were issued by the town of Gardziec (see catalogue: No. 1) and the town of Dymin (see catalogue: No. 2).
The obverse of the coin minted in Gardziec shows a leaf (version with crosspieces under side leaves) and there is a griffin facing left on its reverse (Fig. 4:1). The other coin, due to its non-centric mint, presents cer- tain difficulties in terms of determining its issuer (Fig. 4:2). Ihe obverse shows a lily, and the reverse most probably depicts a griffin (only a part of the image is visible - the head and front leg). Such symbols are found on coins minted in Dymin (Ger.: Demmen) (Dannenberg 1893, pp. 83-86). However, Jerzy Piniński (1993, p. 91) raised objections to categorising the denarii with a lily as minted in Dymin.
The ease with which West Pomeranian money was absorbed by Neumark residents stems not only from the extensive trade contacts with Pomerania, but also from the need to have "eternal" money not subject to replacements. According to Tadeusz Szczurek, Pomeranian Vinkenaugen type denarii which have been appearing in Neumark sińce the 1330S were not subject to renovations and next to the Prague groschen they were used as an eternal pfennig (Szczurek 2010, p. 258). If one follows the dispersion of treasures containing Pomeranian town coins from the Dutchy of Stettin (Gardziec) and the Dutchy of Wolgast (Dymin), the significant role of Pomeranian coins at the turn of the i4th century in the circulation of money in Neumark becomes elear. This area boasts the greatest number of findings (i.e. 7 with at least 2355 pieces) together with the 2 single pieces from the discussed site in Kostrzyn nad Odrą.
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Acta Militaria Mediaevalia, 2019
Kostrzyn nad Odrą (Küstrin)-a town situated in the northwestern part of today s Lubuskie Voivodes... more Kostrzyn nad Odrą (Küstrin)-a town situated in the northwestern part of today s Lubuskie Voivodeship, in the confluence of ' the Warta River into the Odra River-was in the Middle Ages an important part of the defensive system of the eastern frontiers of Brandenburg. A catastrophic drought from 2015, and thus the record low level of the Odra River and the moats surrounding the Kostrzyn Fortress, enabled the employees of the Kostrzyn Fortress Museum to discover three extremely intriguing medieval military artefacts: an axe, a spear and a falchion. Their form and characteristic decoration allow to date them to the 15 century. th These finds have numerous analogies in artefacts known from Silesia, Bohemia and Moravia, which suggest the southern origin of the analysed finds of weaponry.
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Woda - żywioł ujarzmiony i nieujarzmiony, 2015
Doskonałe, naturalnie obronne i strategiczne położenie Kostrzyna u zbiegu dwóch rzek Odry i Warty... more Doskonałe, naturalnie obronne i strategiczne położenie Kostrzyna u zbiegu dwóch rzek Odry i Warty, czyniło z niego w pradziejach i w średniowieczu ważny militarny, handlowy i polityczny ośrodek. Z tego względu lokalizacja wczesnośredniowiecznego grodu w Kostrzynie nad Odrą jest przedmiotem rozważań archeologów od prawie stu lat. Dotychczas uważano, że znajdował się on na Starym Mieście, w miejscu późniejszego zamku. Jednak prowadzone tam badania archeologiczne nie potwierdziły dotychczas jego obecności. Nie znaczy to, że w Kostrzynie grodu nie było...W trakcie prowadzonej przez Muzeum Twierdzy Kostrzyn kwerendy archiwaliów kartograficznych odnaleziono dokumenty, które wskazują, że być może udało się odnaleźć jego prawdopodobną lokalizację. Co więcej badania wykopaliskowe w tym miejscu prowadzili już archeolodzy niemieccy...
Excellent, natural defensive and strategic advantages of location of Kostrzyn at the confluence of two rives: Odra and Warta, determined it to be a significant military, trade and political center in the prehistory and in the Middle Ages. Therefore, the subject of localization of Early Medieval stronghold in Kostrzyn has been taken into consideration by archaeologists for almost hundred years now. It has long been considered that the stronghold was placed in the Old Town, in the place of the later castle. However, the archeological research that have been conducted here have not confirmed its presence so far. It does not signify that there was no stronghold in Kostrzyn...In the course of search query of cartographic archives conducted by research workers from Kostrzyn Fortress Museum, it has been probably managed to find its localization. What is more, the excavation research in that place have been already conducted by German archeologists...
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Slavia Antiqua, 2017
In 2016, an Early Medieval sword scabbard chape was handed over to the Museum of Kostrzyn Fortres... more In 2016, an Early Medieval sword scabbard chape was handed over to the Museum of Kostrzyn Fortress. According to the person submitting it, it was found about 5-6 years earlier in the northern part of Kostrzyn nad Odrą. The main decorative motif of the openwork field is a heraldically arranged bird. The closest analogies to the chape in question are dated to the second half of the 10th and 11th century. Artefacts of this type could have been produced in Scandinavia, but also in the Rus and Baltic areas. Unfortunately, we are not able to say what raw material was used to cast the artefact in question. An analysis of the metal composition of the find carried out on the surface of the artefact demonstrated that a very heterogeneous lead alloy was used, which could have also been a result of lead-bleaching. The same technology was also observed on the chapes from Ruthenia. Scholars have explained the presence of an ornithomorphic motif on the surface of the artefact in various ways.
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Gemma Gemmarum. Studia dedykowane Profesor Hannie Kóčce-Krenz, red. A. Różański, Poznań, s. 897-923, 2017
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Acta Universitatis Lodziensis Folia Archaeologica, 31, 2016
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Extra Limites, red. M. Bohr, M. Teska, Poznań-Wrocław, s. 201-242, 2017
The burial ground in Górzyca (site no. 20) is associated with the
population of the so-called Lub... more The burial ground in Górzyca (site no. 20) is associated with the
population of the so-called Lubusz group of the Elbe cultural circle and the population of the Wielbark Culture. So far, a small part of the burial ground, at its western outskirts, has been studied (fig. 1–3). In the studied part of the burial ground, funerary objects of various forms were found. 85 graves have been recorded (5 graves of the so-called Lubusz group (fig. 4–9); 48 graves of the Wielbark Culture, including pit graves, both clean and with remains of funeral piles (fig. 10–13); 4 urn graves (fig. 14–16); 5 skeleton graves (fig. 17, 18); stone pavement (fig. 19); 2 stone caps (fig. 20–22); a symbolic grave (?); 11 graves most likely of the Wielbark culture; and 21 graves generally dated to the Roman period). The article discusses only selected funerary objects and some of the mobile artifacts found in the burial ground in Górzyca.
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Archeologia Środkowego Nadodrza, 2014
The excavations conducted on site 20 in Górzyca (Fig. 1-2) revealed a very visible image of local... more The excavations conducted on site 20 in Górzyca (Fig. 1-2) revealed a very visible image of local archaeological structures, emphasizing an extraordinary settlement attractiveness of these territories, since the oldest periods of human presence in this part of the Odra river area, until present times. During three seasons they examined the acreage of circa 48 ares, discovering 953 features from several culturalchronological horizons (Fig. 3). They registered here traces of Mesolithic and Neolithic colonization, bi-ritual cemetery of Tumulus culture people
from the 2nd and the beginnings of the 3rd period of the Bronze Age (1600-1300 B.C.) (Fig. 4-18), cremation cemetery of the Lusatian culture people from the 3rd and 4th/5th period of the Bronze Age (Fig. 19-20), a settlement of Göritzer group of the Lusatian culture from Hallstatt period (Fig. 21-22), traces of La Tène period colonization (Jastorf culture?), cremation cemetery from the Roman period associated with the colonization of Lubuska group people of the Elbe culture circle of B1-B2 and possibly B2-C1 phases of Roman period (Fig. 23-27), bi-ritual cemetery of Wielbark culture people of B2-C1 phase of Roman period (Fig. 28-34), early Medieval settlement, initially dated on the 10th-11th century, early Medieval inhumation cemetery initially dated on the end of the 10th and the 11th century (Fig. 35-38), Medieval settlement associated with functioning nearby Lubuskie bishopric from the 13th-14th century (Fig. 39-40), colonization trace from late Medieval period, and colonization trace from Modern period. Also, an impressive amount of mobile antiques was gained: 26558 pottery fragments, 51 flints, 10 stone objects (among others: axe fragments, whetstones and a grinder), 7 slags, 57 iron objects, 1207 pug fragments, as well as 784 animal bones rudiments, and mollusk conches. More to it, during the examinations they distinguished 450 unique artifacts. Among them: bronze (Fig. 10; 20:5), iron, and bone bodkins, bronze necklaces (Fig. 11; 12), bronze daggers and axes (Fig. 13), sword made of bronze (Fig. 15), spearheads (Fig. 23), shield boss, iron knives, bone combs, spindle whorls, golden necklace, bi-metallic fibulas (gilded and silvered), as well as bronze and iron fibulas (Fig. 27; 30; 33; 34), terra sigillata vessel (Fig. 32), glass, clay and amber beads (Fig. 33; 34; 36:1), coins (Fig. 37), silver bracelet and bronze bracelets, temple rings (Fig. 36:2). Due to the lack of financial support, the archaeological examinations were stopped in December, 2010. Nowadays there are some attempts to gain financial means to continue the excavations and to elaborate the whole of the materials gathered. They plan to issue a monograph of the site once the
examinations are over. Site 20 in Górzyca is a part of compact settlement complex, including site 1, 2, 3, and 20. This area, located in the zone of intensive colonization both already in prehistory, as well as in early historic times, was included into the Register of Monuments of the Lubuskie Voivodship under registry No. L–88/C, by the decision of Lubuskie Voivodship Monument Conservator in Zielona Góra of September, 9. 2012.
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Archeologia Środkowego Nadodrza, 2013
The assemblage of 10 coins which is discussed in this paper
was discovered on the right bank of t... more The assemblage of 10 coins which is discussed in this paper
was discovered on the right bank of the River Odra (Figs.
1-3). This area is located immediately near the river (not
farther than c. 1 km from its present bank) and encompassed
the territory of north-western borders of the town
of Kostrzyn upon Odra, along the quarter of Drzewice to
Szumiłowo. The earliest coin in the assemblage is a denar of
Trajan (98-117), minted in 100. Furthermore, as many as 3
subaerati minted by Emperor Hadrian, a denar of Antoninus
Pius and two denars minted during the reign of Septimius
Severus were found. Apart from that, two Antoninians of
Emperor Claudius II Gothicus were recorded. The assemblage
of ten coins ends with an Antoninian of Emperor
Quintillus, issued in 270.
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Archeologia Środkowego Nadodrza, 2013
During archaeological supervision, taken within the 2nd
phase of regeneration of the Kostrzyn For... more During archaeological supervision, taken within the 2nd
phase of regeneration of the Kostrzyn Fortress, a cemetery
of the population of the Göritzer Group of the Lusatian
Culture was identified in a rather atypical place. Among
the examined graves, Grave 4 deserves special attention.
Within the examined area of the cemetery it was the only
burial with several urns. Graves of this kind are often
considered as burials of family or relatives. Three ceremic
urns and a compact cluster of burnt human bones was discovered
there. These may have been originally deposited in
some kind of container made of organic material.
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The article is a summary of the state of the art concerning the so-called cult houses discovered ... more The article is a summary of the state of the art concerning the so-called cult houses discovered in megaliths of the Funnel Beaker culture (hereinafter referred to as TRB from German Trichterbecherkultur) in its Eastern and SouthEastern groups. The author suggests to divide the discussed objects into types " A " and " B " , which may better reflect their characteristics. He also emphasises that the reinterpretation of some of the known features as the structures of this type would significantly increase their number. If the chosen course of interpretation appears accurate, it may indicate that the presence of wooden structures in the TRB graves in the Polish lands was not at all special. However, it should be borne in mind that these objects might have served not only for religious purposes.
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Temporal remains of the royal couple, Margrave John and Princess Catherine were laid to rest here... more Temporal remains of the royal couple, Margrave John and Princess Catherine were laid to rest here in a specialty prepared royal crypt under the altar of Holy Virgin Mary Church in Kostrzyń Old Town. The turbulent history of Kostrzyn Old Town has prevented the sarcophagi from lasting to the present day - only Princess Katarzyna’s sarcophagus lid has survived - a copy from 1882. In 2012 a fragment of a round item was handed over to the Kostrzyn Fortress Museum, decorated by a cast representation of two armed men. In light of the available sources it is difficult to determine if the section of the plaque in question constituted an element of the sarcophagus of John of Brandenburg-Küstrin, despite there being quite persuasive evidence. Primarily, dating of the historical artefact,
i.e. at somewhere between the last quarter of the 16th century and the start of the 17th century, perhaps approx. 1600. Thus, it falls at the time of Margrave John’s death (and probably during the time the sarcophagus was made). The fact that the plaque section was found in rubble taken up from the princely crypt (the founder’s own recollections) is not without significance. According to available sources, the crypt was intended only and exclusively for the margraves. Subsequent burials in the church crypts are from later dates.
At the end it would worthwhile to note that Margrave John was deeply religious. It showed across every sphere of his life. One of his life mottos was: Sous spes maea Christus (All hope in Christ). Thus, it is not impossible that he would have wished a sarcophagus which was to subsequently hold his remains to be decorated with the Resurrection scene. And it is beyond reasonable doubt that the plaque in question was part of an elaborate sarcophagus, where a member of a wealthy family was laid to rest. But was it John of Küstrin? It is possible but thus far this hypothesis remains unresolved.
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Colloquia Lubuskie, red. Marek Golemski, 2012
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Folia Praehistorica Posnaniensia, 2012
The purpose of the paper is a multiaspectual analysis of flint arrowheads from three graves of th... more The purpose of the paper is a multiaspectual analysis of flint arrowheads from three graves of the Tumulus Culture from the cemetery in Górzyca (site 20). The analysed assemblage consists of 12 items, mainly made of Cretaceous erratic flint, including two semi-products and ten notched arrowheads. Based on the typological analyses, the assemblage was divided into types.
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Archeologia Środkowego Nadodrza, 2012
In the years 2008-2010 rescue excavations were conducted
on site 20 in Górzyca, Słubice county. ... more In the years 2008-2010 rescue excavations were conducted
on site 20 in Górzyca, Słubice county. During these works
they discovered, among others, a biritual cemetery of Roman
period. Among 85 graves one of the most interesting
was a young woman’s grave, marked as No. 9. In this text
its incredibly rich equipment was presented. Among the
artefacts the most interesting one is terra sigillata pot. The
other elements of grave complex equipment confirm the
opulence of this tomb. The following element are worth
mentioning: two ceramic pots, a necklace made of glass
and bone beads, a pendant begirded with a tape, a golden
spherical pendant, decorated stone and clay spindle
whorls, two keys, casket elements, bodkins made of bone
and metal, the fossil of Jurassic mollusk Pholadomya, or
the presence of animal bones. The riches of this grave complex
makes us call the woman buried here “a princess” of
Górzyca. Additionally to that, for the description of grave
No. 9’s sake, there were conducted the following technical
analyses: 1) jeweler’s (Stefański, Appendix No. 3); 2)
texture remains (Sikorski, Appendix No. 2); 3) numismatic
(Sikora, Appendix No. 3); 4) fossils (Jakubowski, Kurzawska,
Appendix No. 4); 5) petrographical (Szydłowski, Appenidx
No. 5); 6) anthropological (Wrzesińska, Appendix No. 6);
7) zooarchaeological (Osypińska, Appendix No. 7). On the
other hand, in the form of a separate article, the analysis
of terra sigllata bowl was presented (see L. Tyszler, in the
same volume).
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Z najdawniejszych dziejów Grzegorzowi Domańskiemu na pięćdziesięciolecie pracy naukowej, red. A. Jaszewska, Zielona Góra, 2012
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Gmina Górzyca. Prahistoria-Historia-Współczesność, red. M. Golemski, 2013
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Papers by Krzysztof Socha
The work inside the central crypt was aimed at locating the graves of the pair of the ruler and the founder of the city-fortress - margrave Jan of Kostrzyn and his wife Katarzyna Brunszwicka. However only a copy of the cover of Catherine of Braunschweig’s sarcophagus and Renaissance stone supports were discovered during the research, on which both tombs were originally buried (unfortunately, the sarcophagus of Margrave John was not found).
The analysis of metal items (including very numerous antab and coffin fittings) as well as detailed study of a rich and unique collection of children's grave clothing made it possible to present the 17th / 18th century funeral rite in this part of the Middle Odra River area and significantly enriched our knowledge about baroque funerary traditions.
The obverse of the coin minted in Gardziec shows a leaf (version with crosspieces under side leaves) and there is a griffin facing left on its reverse (Fig. 4:1). The other coin, due to its non-centric mint, presents cer- tain difficulties in terms of determining its issuer (Fig. 4:2). Ihe obverse shows a lily, and the reverse most probably depicts a griffin (only a part of the image is visible - the head and front leg). Such symbols are found on coins minted in Dymin (Ger.: Demmen) (Dannenberg 1893, pp. 83-86). However, Jerzy Piniński (1993, p. 91) raised objections to categorising the denarii with a lily as minted in Dymin.
The ease with which West Pomeranian money was absorbed by Neumark residents stems not only from the extensive trade contacts with Pomerania, but also from the need to have "eternal" money not subject to replacements. According to Tadeusz Szczurek, Pomeranian Vinkenaugen type denarii which have been appearing in Neumark sińce the 1330S were not subject to renovations and next to the Prague groschen they were used as an eternal pfennig (Szczurek 2010, p. 258). If one follows the dispersion of treasures containing Pomeranian town coins from the Dutchy of Stettin (Gardziec) and the Dutchy of Wolgast (Dymin), the significant role of Pomeranian coins at the turn of the i4th century in the circulation of money in Neumark becomes elear. This area boasts the greatest number of findings (i.e. 7 with at least 2355 pieces) together with the 2 single pieces from the discussed site in Kostrzyn nad Odrą.
Excellent, natural defensive and strategic advantages of location of Kostrzyn at the confluence of two rives: Odra and Warta, determined it to be a significant military, trade and political center in the prehistory and in the Middle Ages. Therefore, the subject of localization of Early Medieval stronghold in Kostrzyn has been taken into consideration by archaeologists for almost hundred years now. It has long been considered that the stronghold was placed in the Old Town, in the place of the later castle. However, the archeological research that have been conducted here have not confirmed its presence so far. It does not signify that there was no stronghold in Kostrzyn...In the course of search query of cartographic archives conducted by research workers from Kostrzyn Fortress Museum, it has been probably managed to find its localization. What is more, the excavation research in that place have been already conducted by German archeologists...
population of the so-called Lubusz group of the Elbe cultural circle and the population of the Wielbark Culture. So far, a small part of the burial ground, at its western outskirts, has been studied (fig. 1–3). In the studied part of the burial ground, funerary objects of various forms were found. 85 graves have been recorded (5 graves of the so-called Lubusz group (fig. 4–9); 48 graves of the Wielbark Culture, including pit graves, both clean and with remains of funeral piles (fig. 10–13); 4 urn graves (fig. 14–16); 5 skeleton graves (fig. 17, 18); stone pavement (fig. 19); 2 stone caps (fig. 20–22); a symbolic grave (?); 11 graves most likely of the Wielbark culture; and 21 graves generally dated to the Roman period). The article discusses only selected funerary objects and some of the mobile artifacts found in the burial ground in Górzyca.
from the 2nd and the beginnings of the 3rd period of the Bronze Age (1600-1300 B.C.) (Fig. 4-18), cremation cemetery of the Lusatian culture people from the 3rd and 4th/5th period of the Bronze Age (Fig. 19-20), a settlement of Göritzer group of the Lusatian culture from Hallstatt period (Fig. 21-22), traces of La Tène period colonization (Jastorf culture?), cremation cemetery from the Roman period associated with the colonization of Lubuska group people of the Elbe culture circle of B1-B2 and possibly B2-C1 phases of Roman period (Fig. 23-27), bi-ritual cemetery of Wielbark culture people of B2-C1 phase of Roman period (Fig. 28-34), early Medieval settlement, initially dated on the 10th-11th century, early Medieval inhumation cemetery initially dated on the end of the 10th and the 11th century (Fig. 35-38), Medieval settlement associated with functioning nearby Lubuskie bishopric from the 13th-14th century (Fig. 39-40), colonization trace from late Medieval period, and colonization trace from Modern period. Also, an impressive amount of mobile antiques was gained: 26558 pottery fragments, 51 flints, 10 stone objects (among others: axe fragments, whetstones and a grinder), 7 slags, 57 iron objects, 1207 pug fragments, as well as 784 animal bones rudiments, and mollusk conches. More to it, during the examinations they distinguished 450 unique artifacts. Among them: bronze (Fig. 10; 20:5), iron, and bone bodkins, bronze necklaces (Fig. 11; 12), bronze daggers and axes (Fig. 13), sword made of bronze (Fig. 15), spearheads (Fig. 23), shield boss, iron knives, bone combs, spindle whorls, golden necklace, bi-metallic fibulas (gilded and silvered), as well as bronze and iron fibulas (Fig. 27; 30; 33; 34), terra sigillata vessel (Fig. 32), glass, clay and amber beads (Fig. 33; 34; 36:1), coins (Fig. 37), silver bracelet and bronze bracelets, temple rings (Fig. 36:2). Due to the lack of financial support, the archaeological examinations were stopped in December, 2010. Nowadays there are some attempts to gain financial means to continue the excavations and to elaborate the whole of the materials gathered. They plan to issue a monograph of the site once the
examinations are over. Site 20 in Górzyca is a part of compact settlement complex, including site 1, 2, 3, and 20. This area, located in the zone of intensive colonization both already in prehistory, as well as in early historic times, was included into the Register of Monuments of the Lubuskie Voivodship under registry No. L–88/C, by the decision of Lubuskie Voivodship Monument Conservator in Zielona Góra of September, 9. 2012.
was discovered on the right bank of the River Odra (Figs.
1-3). This area is located immediately near the river (not
farther than c. 1 km from its present bank) and encompassed
the territory of north-western borders of the town
of Kostrzyn upon Odra, along the quarter of Drzewice to
Szumiłowo. The earliest coin in the assemblage is a denar of
Trajan (98-117), minted in 100. Furthermore, as many as 3
subaerati minted by Emperor Hadrian, a denar of Antoninus
Pius and two denars minted during the reign of Septimius
Severus were found. Apart from that, two Antoninians of
Emperor Claudius II Gothicus were recorded. The assemblage
of ten coins ends with an Antoninian of Emperor
Quintillus, issued in 270.
phase of regeneration of the Kostrzyn Fortress, a cemetery
of the population of the Göritzer Group of the Lusatian
Culture was identified in a rather atypical place. Among
the examined graves, Grave 4 deserves special attention.
Within the examined area of the cemetery it was the only
burial with several urns. Graves of this kind are often
considered as burials of family or relatives. Three ceremic
urns and a compact cluster of burnt human bones was discovered
there. These may have been originally deposited in
some kind of container made of organic material.
i.e. at somewhere between the last quarter of the 16th century and the start of the 17th century, perhaps approx. 1600. Thus, it falls at the time of Margrave John’s death (and probably during the time the sarcophagus was made). The fact that the plaque section was found in rubble taken up from the princely crypt (the founder’s own recollections) is not without significance. According to available sources, the crypt was intended only and exclusively for the margraves. Subsequent burials in the church crypts are from later dates.
At the end it would worthwhile to note that Margrave John was deeply religious. It showed across every sphere of his life. One of his life mottos was: Sous spes maea Christus (All hope in Christ). Thus, it is not impossible that he would have wished a sarcophagus which was to subsequently hold his remains to be decorated with the Resurrection scene. And it is beyond reasonable doubt that the plaque in question was part of an elaborate sarcophagus, where a member of a wealthy family was laid to rest. But was it John of Küstrin? It is possible but thus far this hypothesis remains unresolved.
on site 20 in Górzyca, Słubice county. During these works
they discovered, among others, a biritual cemetery of Roman
period. Among 85 graves one of the most interesting
was a young woman’s grave, marked as No. 9. In this text
its incredibly rich equipment was presented. Among the
artefacts the most interesting one is terra sigillata pot. The
other elements of grave complex equipment confirm the
opulence of this tomb. The following element are worth
mentioning: two ceramic pots, a necklace made of glass
and bone beads, a pendant begirded with a tape, a golden
spherical pendant, decorated stone and clay spindle
whorls, two keys, casket elements, bodkins made of bone
and metal, the fossil of Jurassic mollusk Pholadomya, or
the presence of animal bones. The riches of this grave complex
makes us call the woman buried here “a princess” of
Górzyca. Additionally to that, for the description of grave
No. 9’s sake, there were conducted the following technical
analyses: 1) jeweler’s (Stefański, Appendix No. 3); 2)
texture remains (Sikorski, Appendix No. 2); 3) numismatic
(Sikora, Appendix No. 3); 4) fossils (Jakubowski, Kurzawska,
Appendix No. 4); 5) petrographical (Szydłowski, Appenidx
No. 5); 6) anthropological (Wrzesińska, Appendix No. 6);
7) zooarchaeological (Osypińska, Appendix No. 7). On the
other hand, in the form of a separate article, the analysis
of terra sigllata bowl was presented (see L. Tyszler, in the
same volume).
The work inside the central crypt was aimed at locating the graves of the pair of the ruler and the founder of the city-fortress - margrave Jan of Kostrzyn and his wife Katarzyna Brunszwicka. However only a copy of the cover of Catherine of Braunschweig’s sarcophagus and Renaissance stone supports were discovered during the research, on which both tombs were originally buried (unfortunately, the sarcophagus of Margrave John was not found).
The analysis of metal items (including very numerous antab and coffin fittings) as well as detailed study of a rich and unique collection of children's grave clothing made it possible to present the 17th / 18th century funeral rite in this part of the Middle Odra River area and significantly enriched our knowledge about baroque funerary traditions.
The obverse of the coin minted in Gardziec shows a leaf (version with crosspieces under side leaves) and there is a griffin facing left on its reverse (Fig. 4:1). The other coin, due to its non-centric mint, presents cer- tain difficulties in terms of determining its issuer (Fig. 4:2). Ihe obverse shows a lily, and the reverse most probably depicts a griffin (only a part of the image is visible - the head and front leg). Such symbols are found on coins minted in Dymin (Ger.: Demmen) (Dannenberg 1893, pp. 83-86). However, Jerzy Piniński (1993, p. 91) raised objections to categorising the denarii with a lily as minted in Dymin.
The ease with which West Pomeranian money was absorbed by Neumark residents stems not only from the extensive trade contacts with Pomerania, but also from the need to have "eternal" money not subject to replacements. According to Tadeusz Szczurek, Pomeranian Vinkenaugen type denarii which have been appearing in Neumark sińce the 1330S were not subject to renovations and next to the Prague groschen they were used as an eternal pfennig (Szczurek 2010, p. 258). If one follows the dispersion of treasures containing Pomeranian town coins from the Dutchy of Stettin (Gardziec) and the Dutchy of Wolgast (Dymin), the significant role of Pomeranian coins at the turn of the i4th century in the circulation of money in Neumark becomes elear. This area boasts the greatest number of findings (i.e. 7 with at least 2355 pieces) together with the 2 single pieces from the discussed site in Kostrzyn nad Odrą.
Excellent, natural defensive and strategic advantages of location of Kostrzyn at the confluence of two rives: Odra and Warta, determined it to be a significant military, trade and political center in the prehistory and in the Middle Ages. Therefore, the subject of localization of Early Medieval stronghold in Kostrzyn has been taken into consideration by archaeologists for almost hundred years now. It has long been considered that the stronghold was placed in the Old Town, in the place of the later castle. However, the archeological research that have been conducted here have not confirmed its presence so far. It does not signify that there was no stronghold in Kostrzyn...In the course of search query of cartographic archives conducted by research workers from Kostrzyn Fortress Museum, it has been probably managed to find its localization. What is more, the excavation research in that place have been already conducted by German archeologists...
population of the so-called Lubusz group of the Elbe cultural circle and the population of the Wielbark Culture. So far, a small part of the burial ground, at its western outskirts, has been studied (fig. 1–3). In the studied part of the burial ground, funerary objects of various forms were found. 85 graves have been recorded (5 graves of the so-called Lubusz group (fig. 4–9); 48 graves of the Wielbark Culture, including pit graves, both clean and with remains of funeral piles (fig. 10–13); 4 urn graves (fig. 14–16); 5 skeleton graves (fig. 17, 18); stone pavement (fig. 19); 2 stone caps (fig. 20–22); a symbolic grave (?); 11 graves most likely of the Wielbark culture; and 21 graves generally dated to the Roman period). The article discusses only selected funerary objects and some of the mobile artifacts found in the burial ground in Górzyca.
from the 2nd and the beginnings of the 3rd period of the Bronze Age (1600-1300 B.C.) (Fig. 4-18), cremation cemetery of the Lusatian culture people from the 3rd and 4th/5th period of the Bronze Age (Fig. 19-20), a settlement of Göritzer group of the Lusatian culture from Hallstatt period (Fig. 21-22), traces of La Tène period colonization (Jastorf culture?), cremation cemetery from the Roman period associated with the colonization of Lubuska group people of the Elbe culture circle of B1-B2 and possibly B2-C1 phases of Roman period (Fig. 23-27), bi-ritual cemetery of Wielbark culture people of B2-C1 phase of Roman period (Fig. 28-34), early Medieval settlement, initially dated on the 10th-11th century, early Medieval inhumation cemetery initially dated on the end of the 10th and the 11th century (Fig. 35-38), Medieval settlement associated with functioning nearby Lubuskie bishopric from the 13th-14th century (Fig. 39-40), colonization trace from late Medieval period, and colonization trace from Modern period. Also, an impressive amount of mobile antiques was gained: 26558 pottery fragments, 51 flints, 10 stone objects (among others: axe fragments, whetstones and a grinder), 7 slags, 57 iron objects, 1207 pug fragments, as well as 784 animal bones rudiments, and mollusk conches. More to it, during the examinations they distinguished 450 unique artifacts. Among them: bronze (Fig. 10; 20:5), iron, and bone bodkins, bronze necklaces (Fig. 11; 12), bronze daggers and axes (Fig. 13), sword made of bronze (Fig. 15), spearheads (Fig. 23), shield boss, iron knives, bone combs, spindle whorls, golden necklace, bi-metallic fibulas (gilded and silvered), as well as bronze and iron fibulas (Fig. 27; 30; 33; 34), terra sigillata vessel (Fig. 32), glass, clay and amber beads (Fig. 33; 34; 36:1), coins (Fig. 37), silver bracelet and bronze bracelets, temple rings (Fig. 36:2). Due to the lack of financial support, the archaeological examinations were stopped in December, 2010. Nowadays there are some attempts to gain financial means to continue the excavations and to elaborate the whole of the materials gathered. They plan to issue a monograph of the site once the
examinations are over. Site 20 in Górzyca is a part of compact settlement complex, including site 1, 2, 3, and 20. This area, located in the zone of intensive colonization both already in prehistory, as well as in early historic times, was included into the Register of Monuments of the Lubuskie Voivodship under registry No. L–88/C, by the decision of Lubuskie Voivodship Monument Conservator in Zielona Góra of September, 9. 2012.
was discovered on the right bank of the River Odra (Figs.
1-3). This area is located immediately near the river (not
farther than c. 1 km from its present bank) and encompassed
the territory of north-western borders of the town
of Kostrzyn upon Odra, along the quarter of Drzewice to
Szumiłowo. The earliest coin in the assemblage is a denar of
Trajan (98-117), minted in 100. Furthermore, as many as 3
subaerati minted by Emperor Hadrian, a denar of Antoninus
Pius and two denars minted during the reign of Septimius
Severus were found. Apart from that, two Antoninians of
Emperor Claudius II Gothicus were recorded. The assemblage
of ten coins ends with an Antoninian of Emperor
Quintillus, issued in 270.
phase of regeneration of the Kostrzyn Fortress, a cemetery
of the population of the Göritzer Group of the Lusatian
Culture was identified in a rather atypical place. Among
the examined graves, Grave 4 deserves special attention.
Within the examined area of the cemetery it was the only
burial with several urns. Graves of this kind are often
considered as burials of family or relatives. Three ceremic
urns and a compact cluster of burnt human bones was discovered
there. These may have been originally deposited in
some kind of container made of organic material.
i.e. at somewhere between the last quarter of the 16th century and the start of the 17th century, perhaps approx. 1600. Thus, it falls at the time of Margrave John’s death (and probably during the time the sarcophagus was made). The fact that the plaque section was found in rubble taken up from the princely crypt (the founder’s own recollections) is not without significance. According to available sources, the crypt was intended only and exclusively for the margraves. Subsequent burials in the church crypts are from later dates.
At the end it would worthwhile to note that Margrave John was deeply religious. It showed across every sphere of his life. One of his life mottos was: Sous spes maea Christus (All hope in Christ). Thus, it is not impossible that he would have wished a sarcophagus which was to subsequently hold his remains to be decorated with the Resurrection scene. And it is beyond reasonable doubt that the plaque in question was part of an elaborate sarcophagus, where a member of a wealthy family was laid to rest. But was it John of Küstrin? It is possible but thus far this hypothesis remains unresolved.
on site 20 in Górzyca, Słubice county. During these works
they discovered, among others, a biritual cemetery of Roman
period. Among 85 graves one of the most interesting
was a young woman’s grave, marked as No. 9. In this text
its incredibly rich equipment was presented. Among the
artefacts the most interesting one is terra sigillata pot. The
other elements of grave complex equipment confirm the
opulence of this tomb. The following element are worth
mentioning: two ceramic pots, a necklace made of glass
and bone beads, a pendant begirded with a tape, a golden
spherical pendant, decorated stone and clay spindle
whorls, two keys, casket elements, bodkins made of bone
and metal, the fossil of Jurassic mollusk Pholadomya, or
the presence of animal bones. The riches of this grave complex
makes us call the woman buried here “a princess” of
Górzyca. Additionally to that, for the description of grave
No. 9’s sake, there were conducted the following technical
analyses: 1) jeweler’s (Stefański, Appendix No. 3); 2)
texture remains (Sikorski, Appendix No. 2); 3) numismatic
(Sikora, Appendix No. 3); 4) fossils (Jakubowski, Kurzawska,
Appendix No. 4); 5) petrographical (Szydłowski, Appenidx
No. 5); 6) anthropological (Wrzesińska, Appendix No. 6);
7) zooarchaeological (Osypińska, Appendix No. 7). On the
other hand, in the form of a separate article, the analysis
of terra sigllata bowl was presented (see L. Tyszler, in the
same volume).