engleski

Knights Hospitaller and Consolidation of Christianity: Indications of Religious Changes and Socio-Political Processes in the Archaeological Record

Archaeological excavation at Stari grad (Castle) site in Ivanec, a small town in north-western Croatia, yielded evidence of cemetery continuously used from the end of 11th to the 17th century. The cemetery was initially formed around the Romanesque church which was later replaced with an adjacent Gothic church, built by the Knights Hospitaller. A total of 326 graves were excavated at the site and divided into five chronological phases, distinguished by clear changes in the burial practice. Analysis of both the recorded elements of each phase and documented differences apparent through the centuries implies not only changes in religious practices of local communities but also deeper socio-political transformations in the area. This is especially evident in the graves of the second phase which are marked by the appearance of certain, previously not recorded characteristics. Approximately dated to the 13th century, they sometimes contain animal teeth and knives, i.e. artefacts usually considered as elements of certain pre-Christian funerary practices. Sometime during the same period, the area fell under the administrative authority of the Knights Hospitaller who in the 14th century, built the new Gothic church of Saint John the Baptist. Around the church, a new cemetery formed attributed to the third phase and characterized by a complete lack of small finds and other earlier elements. Consideration of the documented phenomena shows that although it is not always possible to delineate meanings of certain reoccurring characteristics, combined analysis of archaeological and historical data can enlighten the relationship between material remains, religious practices and socio-political processes.

Middle Ages ; cemetery ; burial practice ; pre-Christian beliefs ; Christianity ; Knights Hospitaller

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