Vitkūnas Manvydas, Zabiela Gintautas. Baltic hillforts: unknown heritage

Vilnius: Society of the Lithuanian Archaeology, 2017. — 88 p.Hillforts are the best known and the most beautiful archaeological monuments in Lithuania. Hillforts represent an important part of archaeological legacy in the present and former Baltic lands covering not only Lithuania and Latvia, but also Belarus and parts of Russia, Ukraine, and Poland. Several thousand hillforts witnessing different prehistoric and historic periods were once built in the broad Baltic habitat. They make important elements of the cultural landscape and venues of historic memory. Scientific research of the hillforts allows us broadening our knowledge about the daily life of and wars of our ancestors and opening up both peaceful and bloody pages of the past. Hillforts are more than just archaeological monuments. In Lithuania and Latvia, they represent an element of historical identity reflected in folklore, poetry, prose, and arts. To emphasise the importance of archaeological cultural monuments for the statehood and the importance of their pres ervation in the context of historic memory, the Seimas of the Republic of Lithuania proclaimed the year 2017 as the Year of Hillforts. The level of research of hillforts belonging to different archaeological cultures and located in the habitats of different tribes varies. Hillforts located in the western part of the historic Baltic territories are relatively better researched, though some of the most eastern hillforts of the Dnieper Balts have also enjoyed thorough excavations and scientific publications. The data on the Baltic hillforts are scattered in countless sources: excavation reports, books, articles, etc. Although they represent legacy of a unified cultural habitat, that is the Baltic world, there have been almost no attempts to present an overall review of the Baltic hillforts. This study seeks to reveal the development and role of hillforts in the Baltic lands from their appearance till nowadays and to highlight the Baltic hillforts in the general context of European hillforts of prehistoric and historic times using abundant archaeological and historical research data.The Balts, Archaeological Cultures, and Hillforts. What is that?
The Beginning of the Baltic Fortification History: the Most Ancient Hillforts.
The Most Eastern Bulwarks: the Hillforts of the Dnieper Balts.
Hillforts of the Baltic Tribes: Different Histories.
Hillforts in the Middle Ages: Castles in the Defence of the Lithuanian State.
The Fate of Hillforts: from Manors to Festival Sites.