Kretingos senamiesčio tyrimai 2020-2021 m

LT2020-2021 m. Kretingoje rekonstruojant Vilniaus gatvės ir Rotušės aikštės V dalį, vietovėje, patenkančioje į saugomas Kretingos miesto istorinės dalies (UK 17091), Kretingos senojo miesto vietos (UK 12310), Kretingos bernardinų vienuolyno ir Viešpaties Apsireiškimo Švč. Mergelei Marijai bažnyčios statinių komplekso (UK 1429), Kretingos dvaro sodybos (UK 318) teritorijas, vykdyti archeologiniai tyrimai. Žvalgomųjų tyrimų metu ištirti 157 šurfai, bendras 325,2 m2 plotas, detaliųjų - 53 perkasos ir 17 šurfų, bendras 4460 m2 plotas. Žvalgymų metu žvalgytas 24 311,1 m2 plotas. Pirminiai duomenys apie šiuos tyrimus paskelbti 2021 m. (Sprindys S., Sadauskas J. Senasis Kretingos miestas (archeologiniai tyrimai 2020-2021 m.), Kretingos rajono archeologiniai tyrimai ir perspektyvos. Kretinga, 2021, p. 95-109) [p. 324].

ENThe 2020-2021 investigation, the largest in the history of Kretinga, saw the evaluation of 325.2 m2, the excavation of 4460 m2, and the survey of 24311.1 m2. It located and excavated a 0.40-2 m thick, 17th-18th-century cultural layer that yielded 5256 finds, mainly sherds of household pottery and structural ceramics, coins, glass shards, etc., including a Władysław IV Vasa thaler, a leatherstrap with a horse harness, a 16th-17th-century ring with the inscription ‘IHS’, and a 17th-century wooden bailer. The investigation revealed the remains of 15 foundations from 17th-20th-century masonry and wooden buildings. An interdisciplinary macrobotanical, zooarchaeological, and architectural investigation was also conducted. The macrobotanical investigation identified 344 plant macroremains, including domestic barley, winter rye, wheat, buckwheat, flax, and oats. The zooarchaeological investigation determined that the 5658 bone and tooth fragments belonged to: cattle (74.9 %), sheep / goats (11.3 %), pigs (11.8 %), horses (1.3 %), and wild animals (0.5 %).The architectural investigation of the discovered structures revealed that the W red line of urban development unearthed in the N part of Rotušės Square consisted of at least six 18th-19th-century buildings and discovered the masonry foundations of two of Kretinga’s earliest masonry buildings: the alms-house and the inn, the site of the monastery’s 18th-19th-century fence, and paving from 3 periods: the 18th century, 19th century, and first half of the 20th century. The finds discovered in the archaeological layer share similarities with the Modern Era collections of Lithuania’s major cities, which demonstrates the importance of Kretinga in the 17th-18th centuries.