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Die Landschaftsarchäologische Untersuchung der Herrschaft Merkenstein

Nora Siegmeth

Art der Arbeit

Masterarbeit

Universität

Universität Wien

Fakultät

Historisch-Kulturwissenschaftliche Fakultät

Studiumsbezeichnung bzw. Universitätlehrgang (ULG)

Masterstudium Urgeschichte und Historische Archäologie

Betreuer*in

Michael Doneus

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DOI

10.25365/thesis.77612

URN

urn:nbn:at:at-ubw:1-16623.24292.133435-2

Link zu u:search

(Print-Exemplar eventuell in Bibliothek verfügbar)

Abstracts

Abstract

(Deutsch)

Thema dieser Masterarbeit ist die Analyse anthropogener Spuren in der Landschaft der einstigen Herrschaft Merkenstein (Bez. Baden, NÖ) sowie die modellhafte Rekonstruktion deren landschaftlicher Beschaffenheit während verschiedener Phasen. Im Fokus steht dabei die wechselseitige Beeinflussung der physischen Gegebenheiten und der Nutzung bzw. Eingriffe durch Menschen in die Landschaft. Die Burg Merkenstein liegt auf einem Felssporn an der topographischen Nahtstelle zwischen den Ebenen des Wiener Beckens und der bewaldeten, hügeligen Region des Wienerwaldes in Niederösterreich. Da große Teile seit über 300 Jahren bewaldet sind und so zahlreiche anthropogene Spuren erhalten blieben, eignete sich das Gebiet hervorragend als Fallstudie. Die erhaltenen Strukturen umfassen historische Wege, Altfluren und eine mittelalterliche Ortswüstung. Die Analyse und Interpretation von ALS-Daten im GIS stellte die Ausgangsbasis zur Beantwortung dieser Fragestellung dar, wodurch eine relativchronologische Abfolge der Spuren erarbeitet werden konnte, die durch historische Schriftquellen, Karten und Fundstücke kontextualisiert wurden. Ausgehend vom Herrschaftszentrum Burg Merkenstein wurden Sichtbarkeitsanalysen erstellt, mit ähnlichen Fallbeispielen der Umgebung verglichen und Hypothesen über die Bedeutung der rekonstruierten Sichtverbindungen aufgestellt. Das Ergebnis dieser Masterarbeit war somit ein umfassendes Bild des prozesshaften Wandels innerhalb des Untersuchungsgebietes.

Abstract

(Englisch)

Merkenstein castle is situated on a rock spur at the topographic junction of the Wiener Becken planes and the forested, hilly Wienerwald region, in eastern Austria. The region had hitherto not been object to landscape-archaeological investigation. Dense forests kept the land’s surface largely undisturbed for over 300 years, thus preserving archaeological features relating to the castle, like for example historic trails, relics of old field systems, and remains of an abandoned medieval village. These favorable circumstances characterized the area as a suitable case study to investigate the question how social elites shaped and influenced their lands during the Middle Ages and early modern times. A special focus was placed on modeling the ways and extent of deliberate, controlled visual communication as orchestrated by members of higher social class. By analysing ALS (Airborne Laser Scanning) data in a GIS, these features could be mapped, attributed with numbers and their stratigraphic relation to one another could be determined. Thereby, a relative chronological sequence was derived and further refined by adding dating information gained from historical sources and through comparative examples. This allowed for a distinction between several phases of change. To reconstruct various modes of visual communication, viewshed analyses were further undertaken. Overall, a complex network of old trails was detected, spanning across the whole area. It appears most intricate near the deserted village and the manor farm (Meierhof), accounting for frequent and long-term use of the trails, and thereby demonstrating the significance of these places. Surrounding the deserted village lie parallel, linear ridges under this dense mesh of trails, indicating plough marks. These suggest agrarian use before the formation of the path system. Additionally, more pronounced ridges on two south-facing, steep slopes prove the former presence of vinyards in the immediate surroundings of the castle. For the deserted, medieval village, three distinct phases could be reconstructed, beginning with it’s likely foundation sometime during the 13th to 14th century. At that point, it consisted of two sides, separated by the village street and a small stream: one side was made up of five regularly laid out farmhouses, lined up along the northern side of the village street, while the other side was home to lower nobility and consisted of a small, moated tower house and a manor farm. Throughout two more phases, the strict layout was gradually relinquished, and houses were added on both sides, indicating the absence of elite in the village later on. Sometime in the 16th/17th century, the settlement was finally abandoned. The spatial separation between tower house, likely housing a vassal to Merkenstein, and farmhouses imitates the same means of separation as executed by castle Merkenstein, just on a different scale, namely: elevation, distance, and controlled access. Viewshed analyses showed here no intervisible connection between either castle and village or castle and tower house. Merkenstein remained hidden on and behind elevated terrain, only from the main path leading up to the castle was the public's gaze deliberately allowed in. Not an ever-present watch over the settlers seemed to be most important, instead the main goal appears to have been controlled visibility and concealment from the public. On a larger scale, four distinct phases of change could be reconstructed for the Merkenstein dominion. They show the transition from a late medieval agrarian field system to a manorial system (focused on the 16th century Meierhof), to, in turn, the economic use of the newly grown forests where once the village had stood, and finally the loss of the castle’s former importance as a central administrative unit, turning it instead into a romantic backdrop for new developments in the area.

Autor*innen

Nora Siegmeth

Haupttitel (Deutsch)

Die Landschaftsarchäologische Untersuchung der Herrschaft Merkenstein

Paralleltitel (Englisch)

A landscape archaeology based approach to the investigation of the region surrounding Merkenstein castle

Publikationsjahr

2024

Umfangsangabe

210 Seiten : Illustrationen

Sprache

Deutsch

Beurteiler*in

Michael Doneus

Klassifikationen

15 Geschichte > 15.15 Archäologie ,

15 Geschichte > 15.18 Mittelalterliche Archäologie. neuzeitliche Archäologie

AC Nummer

AC17418443

Utheses ID

74314

Studienkennzahl

UA | 066 | 801 | |

Detailansicht

Abstracts

Schlagwörter