Šarvų detalių komplektas iš Vilniaus Žemutinės pilies teritorijos
LTŠio straipsnio tyrimo objektas - šarvų detalių komplektas, aptiktas Vilniaus Žemutinės pilies Lietuvos didžiųjų kunigaikščių rūmų teritorijoje atliekant mažojo aptvaro šiaurinės gynybinės sienos išorės archeologinius tyrimus. Darbo tikslas - visapusiškai ištirti ir kiek įmanoma tiksliau tipologizuoti šias šarvų detales, rastą archeologinę medžiagą palyginti su kitų Europos šalių šarvuote. Vilniaus Žemutinės pilies Lietuvos didžiųjų kunigaikščių rezidencijos teritorijoje aptikta daugiausia šarvų detalių visoje Lietuvoje. Analizuojant archeologinę medžiagą, rastą atliekant minėtos vietovės tyrimus, galima susidaryti preliminarią nuomonę apie tai, kokie šarvai buvo naudojami Lietuvos Didžiojoje Kunigaikštystėje per visą pilies ir Valdovų rūmų egzistavimo laikotarpį.Reikšminiai žodžiai: Archeologiniai tyrinėjimai; Lameliaro plokštelės; Lietuvos Didžioji Kunigaikštystė (LDK; Grand Duchy of Lithuania; GDL); Pilis; Viduramžiai; Vilniaus Žemutinė pilis; Vilnius; 14 amžius; 15 amžius; Šarvai; Šarvų detalių komplektas; A set of armor pieces; Archaeological investigations; Armor; Castle; End of the 14th - beginning of the 15th century; Lamellar plates; Middle Ages; Vilnius; Vilnius Lower Castle.
ENThis article describes and analyzes a set of lamellar plate and chain mail armor fragments found in the territory of Vilnius Lower Castle's Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania during archaeological investigations of a small enclosure on the outside of the northern defensive wall. In this archaeological find, one can distinguish three different types of plate armor. Lamellar armor consists of small metal plates laced together with leather straps. Upon examination of the lacing technique, it was found to be consistent throughout. All of the armor pieces analyzed here were found in one place, only slightly scattered; many of them were stuck together due to corrosion. Some of the stuck-together plates seemed to be in their original positions, others were stuck together just by chance. Some of the lamellar plates found were quite different - several different sub-types and variants were identified. Closer analysis revealed three sub-types: side, central, and 'ordinary' plates. Four variants of side plates were distinguished by form: rounded, L-shaped, rectangular and narrow rectangular. Three additional variants differed in ornamentation: heart-shaped, triangular, or with six raised semicircles. 'Ordinary' plates can be divided into five variants by form, and two variants by ornamentation.The forms of the lamellar plates varied considerably by region and time period, creating a mosaic of sub-types and variants. The chain mail fragments of armor found in this set were held together by one rivet fixed at one end of a ring. From archaeological finds and iconography we know that lamellar armor was worn in the lands of the Eastern Slavs, probably brought there by nomadic peoples. Single examples of this type of armor and fragments have been found in neighboring Latvia and Sweden. Keeping in mind the 14th century expansion of the Lithuanian Grand Duchy into the lands of the Eastern Slavs, the discovery of such armor in the territory of Vilnius Lower Castle's Palace of the Grand Dukes of Lithuania seems quite normal. Nevertheless, a considerable number of these plates are unique, without analogues, and thus add new sub-types and variants to this type of armor. The uniqueness of some of these lamellar plates suggests that they may have been made locally. Analyzing the site where this set was found and the other objects found in the same layer, one can surmise that the armor was abandoned or left there during one of the sieges of the castle between the end of the 14th and the beginning of the 15th century. And knowing that the Lower Castle of Vilnius was not taken in those sieges, one can conclude that the armor belonged to the castle's garrison. [text from author]
