A baptismal gift

The figurine was discovered during excavations of Stari grad (the Old Castle) in Podbočje. A characteristic element that has allowed researchers to date it is the depiction of a special headdress worn in Central Europe at the time by female members of the nobility and wealthy burghers. Kruzeler was some sort of a traditional headdress made of several silk, linen, or cotton veils laid one on top of the other. It had a border that was fluted by means of red-hot tongs to form an ornate pleated wreath. The figurine is probably imported from southern Germany. Similar ones have been discovered in workshops in Nuremberg. It was most likely a baptismal gift and later used as a toy. A coin was inserted into the circular indentation as a symbolic gift from a godparent to his/her godchild.
 

For heritage enthusiasts

Extensive excavations carried out in Stari grad in Podbočje between 1992 and 1995 revealed traces of settlement dating back to the period between the 13th century and the second half of the 15th century. Historians and archaeologists managed to identify a fortress by means of written sources and analyses of heraldic ornaments on paving stones unearthed during excavation work.  The fortress – nowadays called Stari grad (Old Castle) – was the primary castle of the Spanheim family, i.e. the Lords of Kostanjevica, and was called the Spanheim fortress of Kostanjevica (Veste Landestrost).
The excavations showed two architectural stages of the fortress’s development. Initially, there was a single building within the fortified complex, and later, there was a set of buildings leaning against a massive square tower, which housed the living quarters. The second construction stage was completed by the second half of the 13th century. Before the castle fell into complete ruin in the second half of the 15th century, it had been in possession of various owners, including the Spanheim family, the Counts of Tyrol, the Counts of Ortenburg and, lastly, the Counts of Celje. By the 17th century, the fortress had fallen into ruin to such an extent that Valvasor did not include it in his topographical descriptions. Today, no traces of the castle complex are visible in its location.
The castle was built for military reasons, and its position on a steep promontory cutting into the plain along the river Krka is distinctly strategic. It was both a fortified residence and a status symbol of the nobility. The finds discovered during archaeological excavations have revealed a lot of information about the everyday life of the castle inhabitants, who belonged to the lower nobility. The castle was inhabited by a caretaker and his family, armed men – knights, as well as hired men and maidservants. It is not known how many people lived at the castle, the number, however, was definitely not high. Their everyday life was rather modest, far from being carefree and full of the sort of luxury that is often portrayed in films and novels about the Middle Ages.
 

The excavations team drawing and measuring the ground profile. Photo by Ivanka Počkar, 1992.

Read more:

• Predovnik Katarina: Trdnjava Kostanjevica na Starem gradu nad Podbočjem, Ljubljana : Filozofska fakulteta, Oddelek za arheologijo : Znanstveni inštitut, 2003.
• Černelič Krošelj Alenka (ur.): Štirje elementi: 2 – OGENJ / The four elements: 2 – FIRE, Brežice: Posavski muzej Brežice, 2018.

Prepared by: Jana Puhar
 
 

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