ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES FROM THE 10TH-11TH CENTURIES IN THE AREA OF THE PROSAKOS (PROSEK) FORTRESS // АРХЕОЛОШКИ ЛОКАЛИТЕТИ ОД 10 И 11 ВЕК ОД АРЕАЛОТ НА ТВРДИНАТА ПРОСЕК

Petrov, Ordanče (2022) ARCHAEOLOGICAL SITES FROM THE 10TH-11TH CENTURIES IN THE AREA OF THE PROSAKOS (PROSEK) FORTRESS // АРХЕОЛОШКИ ЛОКАЛИТЕТИ ОД 10 И 11 ВЕК ОД АРЕАЛОТ НА ТВРДИНАТА ПРОСЕК. Самуиловата држава: илјада години потоа (1018-2018) . Faculty of Philosophy, Skopje, Скопје. ISBN 9786082382227

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Abstract

In the last seven decades, trial, systematic and protective excavations, as
well as intensive surface reconnaissance, have been carried out in the Demir Kapija area (fig. 1). After the conducted research, with great certainty, it has been confirmed that the medieval fortress Prosakos is located in the area of the Demir Kapija Gorge, most likely on the site Kale-Strezov Grad (map 1.4). We first learn about this fortress from the short history of John Skylitzes, as well as from the sigils of Basil II (976-1025), which refer to the period of the years 1018 and 1019.
Unlike the written sources, archaeology offers much more data about the Prosakos fortress, the settlements, burial customs, material culture, and the economic condition of the Prosakos population during this period. In the area of Prosakos, hypothetically determined according to the ethnographic note on the areal of the village of Klisura noted by V. Radovanović at the beginning of the 20th century, five archaeological sites with strata from the 10th-11th centuries were discovered. The sites Krstevi - Koreshnica (map 1.1, fig. 2), Crkvishte (map 1.2) and Monastery – Demir Kapija (map 1.3) represent necropolises located along the Vardar River, in the plain or on the slopes. The other two localities, Markov Grad - Koreshnica (map 1.5) and Kale-Strezov Grad - Chelevec (map 1.4), represent early Byzantine fortified settlements that were in use again in a short period during the 10th and 11th centuries. At the Kale-Strezov Grad site, during this period, the construction of a new defensive wall in the drywall technique was observed, defending the northern zone.
Several groups of findings are found among the typical archaeological material. The most common finds are jewellery for the head and the hand only discovered as a grave gift in the necropolises. Grape-like pendant earrings (fig. 3), earrings with four beads (fig. 4, fig. 5.1-2), rings with a raised bezel and accentuated shoulders (fig. 5.5), as well as rings with bezels formed in the shape of a protruding cone or calotte with large granules on top (fig. 5.3-4), are a reliable indicator of the existence of 10th and 11th-century strata. After a hiatus of three centuries, the coins of the byzantine rulers are circulating again in the area of Demir Kapia. Even, the circulation of coins in the 10th and 11th centuries was highly reduced. Coins from this period have been found on three sites. The earliest examples are dated to the time of the Byzantine emperor Constantine VII (913-959) and minted by Roman I (921-944) (fig. 6), further, the anonymous folles of the A2 class, dated to the late 10th and early 11th centuries, and the last example of a signed folles from the time of Roman IV (1068-1071). Finally, pottery is found only at one of the above-presented sites, on the fortified settlement of Kale-Strezov Grad (fig. 7). Pottery types refer to the period from the 9th to the 12th century with an emphasis on the period from the 10th to the 11th century.
The sites presented here indicate that in the period of the 10th century life was renewed in the area of Demir Kapija, where in this period the existence of the significant fortress Prosakos was confirmed. The fortified settlements were used for a limited period before they were abandoned again during the 11th century. They remained out of use until their final reconstruction at the end of the 12th century by the independent ruler Dobromir Hrs. In contrast, necropolises were intensively in use in the period of the 10th and 11th centuries. The richness and variety of grave goods indicate an economically strong population at the turn of the 10th to the 11th century, whose economic power decreased in the middle of the 11th century, and these necropolises cease to be used. Although no settlements have been discovered in the area of the Prosakos fortress, the position of the necropolises indicates that they should be searched in the area of the plain, along the Vardar River.

Item Type:	Book
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Archaeology, Medieval, Demir Kapija, small finds, necropolises
Subjects:	Scientific Fields (Frascati) > Humanities > History and archaeology
Divisions:	PSI Ancient Slav Culture Institute
Depositing User:	Mrs Simona Dzartoska - Biljanoska
Date Deposited:	15 Feb 2024 16:38
Last Modified:	21 Feb 2024 18:35
URI:	https://eprints.uklo.edu.mk/id/eprint/9791

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