Prehistoric Ljubljana – pile-dwellers
The area of the Ljubljana Basin has been inhabited since prehistoric times, due to its interesting strategic location (amber route). In the Paleolithic and Mesolithic settlements were less frequent and their development at the basic level (gatherers, domesticated dog). At the end of the Neolithic, in the Copper Age, the culture of the pile-dwellers in the Ljubljana Marshes developed. The successors appear only after the transition to the Iron Age that gives us the culture of the Cremation graveyard at Ljubljana Castle and on the opposite bank of the Ljubljanica.
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Pile-dwellers – settlement
Today, the Ljubljana Marshes comprise 180 km2 of wetland in the southern part of the Ljubljana Basin. There used to be a lake in this area, on the edge of which the inhabitants of that time built their dwellings on stilts. Settlements were set up at the confluence of rivers and streams into this lake. The average house was 3.5 x 7 meters in size and a good two meters away from the neighboring one, connected by a bridge or a platform. The walls were made of wood and wicker plastered with clay, with an open hearth in the middle and covered by a gabled roof made of straw and bark. The settlement was renovated annually and after 20 years a new house or even a settlement was built.
They probably opted for such construction for safety reasons. The size of an individual settlement is estimated to be 10 to 80 houses, where up to 500 people lived (research in Switzerland). Pile dwellings existed in this area between approx. 4500 and 1800 BC with intermittent interruptions that lasted for several centuries and we have no explanation for them. When the lake turned into a swamp, the inhabitants moved to solid ground.
Pile-dwellers – how they lived
The inhabitants were engaged in more basic hunting/fishing (deer, wild boar, elk, roe deer, beaver, beasts – marten, fox, badger, lynx, wolf, bear; birds – black-tailed, mallard, kingfisher, spoon duck; fish – carp (pike, perch) and harvesting (strawberries, seeds, fruits), as well as more advanced agriculture (wheat, peas, poppies, and flax) and livestock (cattle, sheep, goat, and pig; dog and horse) near dwellings on solid soils. Craftsmen made textiles, earthenware, and copper objects (tools and jewelry) – hence the name of the period. For transport, trunk boats were used on the lake (a boat carved out of an oak trunk) and on land carts (the oldest wheel found is 5200 years old).
Pile-dwellers – archeological sites
In Europe, exploration of the culture of settlements on stilts began in the mid-19th century. The beginning of exploration of the Ljubljana Marshes began in 1875 (Dežman, Peruzzi) when they explored the remains along the road to Ig. In 150 years, a huge number of remains have been found. 50 years ago, the largest site was Maharski prekop and Parte. Among the most significant finds is an artifact of the oldest wheel, dating back 5,200 years, discovered at Verd near Vrhnika. In Ljubljana itself, the discovery of a pile-dwelling settlement on Špica from 2009 is the most important discovery in the city, almost 4,500 years old. Unfortunately, the city authorities prefer to choose the money, build catering facilities there and refill the site.
Currently, over 40 sites with findings from the pile-dwelling period have been found. They have been preserved because there is no oxygen in the muddy, swampy soils, and there has been no organic decomposition. Today, most of the remains are kept in the City Museum of Ljubljana, the National Museum of Slovenia, and a few artefacts are in MorostIg. Ljubljansko barje (also protected since 2008 as a Landscape Park) is part of the “Prehistoric mounds around the Alps” together with Switzerland, Austria, Italy, France, and Germany on the UNESCO World Heritage List since 2011, which includes the remains of about 1000 settlements. Still houses were also found on the Balaton and Ohrid lakes.
Morostig – open-air museum
In 2019, they set up the Morostig open-air museum close to Ig, with the reconstruction of houses on stilts, and it opened in 2022 because of COVID. They tried to replicate houses with some interior. Replicas come close to originals, but still some aspects were borrowed from modern times. In Ig there is a museum with a few artefacts and interactive explenation. It is 12km from the center of Ljubljana, accessible by car in 20 minutes or by bus (19i) in 40 minutes. The schedule of opening times is on the page, the entrance to the museum and guided tour of houses cost 12€.
Pile-dwellers – summary
Pile-dwellers are part of the history of the city today, just like ancient Emona or the medieval three squares. They stir the imagination of the inhabitants, how they really lived then, what it was like to live in these raised houses, and how people spent their time. If you are also fascinated by the story and want to see the remains, head to one of the museums listed above.
