Short communication, Note
https://doi.org/10.17018/portal.2014.5
A Contribution to the Further Research of Medvedgrad
Hrvoje Malinar
orcid.org/0000-0003-1413-5435
Abstract
Medvedgrad, a medieval burg near Zagreb, was abandoned in the 17th century. Literature has so far mentioned a severe earthquake that demolished the burg in 1590. The author, based on his observations and mineralogical-petrographic analyses conducted, argues that the deterioration of the structure was in large part due not only to the earthquake, but also to a fire accompanied by an explosion of stored gunpowder. Even nowadays that Medvedgrad has been renovated, charred portions can be spotted on the stone walls of Sts. Phillip and Jacob’s chapel and the staircase leading up to the chapel, while during the course of archaeological excavations, the traces of fire were clearly visible on the stone frontispiece between the old centre of the burg and a more recent courtyard with the southern tower. The original frontispiece was dilapidated and had to be fully renovated with new stone, so this portion no longer has visible traces of fire. All the portions that were exposed to the fire are discernible by a red tone over the originally yellowish variety of lithothamnium limestone from the Miocene period. When exposed to heightened temperature caused by fire, the original yellowish-ochre colour of stone, which comes from the limonite mineral, turns red, as the mineral changes into hematite. Apart from the fire, there was also an explosion of gunpowder that was stored in small wooden barrels. The hoops of the barrels went flying across the magazine, and locked padlocks with hasps were found further away from the door openings, indicating that they were blasted off from the slots by the force of the explosion.
The paper also argues for the existence of an eastern tower, whose space was thus far usually interpreted as the residential area of the eastern palas. The author bases his arguments on several existing photographs and drawings from earlier periods, as well as the present-day state, the shape and the function that the tower had in the first phase of construction of the northern portion of the fortress. As a conclusion, the possibilities for further conservation work on Medvedgrad are discussed.
Keywords
Medvedgrad; burg; conservation work; fire; eastern tower
Hrčak ID:
133042
URI
Publication date:
22.12.2014.
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