Przesieka Śląska).

Location and description

The hillfort sits in a large forest complex extending between the villages of Gnojna and Jeszkotle, about 600 m south of the hamlet and farm Zielonkowice, on the west side of a forest tract, about 60 meters south-west of hillfort no. 1.

The fort was set up on a quadrilateral plan with rounded corners; the dimensions are approx. 70x75 m. The flat inner yard is surrounded by a moat of about 2-3 m in width and a rampart of about 4-5 m in width at the base. The surface of the yard is safeguarded from the east, west and south by a low, hardly visible embankment which is thought to have been the inner rampart. An entrance of about 2-3 m in width is discernible from the north. Perhaps, it is a modern development. On the east side, there is a mound with an oval base with a diameter of about 15 m and a height of about 1.5 m. Today, the described system can be clearly distinguished against the surrounding area - it is overgrown with trees and shrubs.

History

The site is provisionally dated to the 14th-15th century based on some fragments of vessels unearthed during a surface examination. Yet, there is a need for a more thorough survey study of the site.

Condition and results of archaeological research

The hillfort was known to the local historians already in the late 19th century. The first study was made by O. Vug. He referred to the site as “Hof.” According to O. Vug, it had been damaged in the early 19th century during the grubbing of the forest and, therefore, probably it was hard for any later researcher to find it. The verification study was conducted by Z. Bereszyński in 2003. He found the fort well preserved. On the mound, he found three pieces of vessels of mediaeval origin.

Hillfort no. 2 has a different structure than the neighboring hillfort no. 1. Still, without a thorough survey, it will be challenging to determine its function and history. It is certainly located on the west edge of the so-called Silesian Cutting.

The fort sits on an area owned by the State Forests. It is situated close to the local road from Grodków to Strzelin via Gnojna. Access is possible from the Zielonkowice farm by walking south, first through a field road and then through a forest path, from where the site is very well visible.

Compiled by Krzysztof Spychała, Regional Branch of the National Heritage Board of Poland in Opole, 13-12-2014.

Bibliography

• Vug O., Schlesische Heidenschanzen ihre Erbauer und die Handelstrassen der Alten, 1890, s.101;
• Archiwum Wojewódzkiego Urzędu Ochrony Zabytków w Opolu teczka nr A-61/2008 oraz Karta Ewidencji Stanowiska Archeologicznego Gnojna nr 2, AZP 88-31/2;
• Wojewódzkie Archiwum Państwowe we Wrocławiu, akta zespołu Wydział Samorządowy Prowincji Śląskiej we Wrocławiu, sygn. 668, teczka Olbendorf (jako „Hof”).