| Lepenski vir, a unique prehistoric discovery, was brought to light about twenty years ago. The most important finds in the well laid-out settlement are a number of monumental stone sculptures made some six to seven thousand years ago. |
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This superb image is by Giovanni Caselli. Note the fish trap, baskets of fish, the trapezoidal hou
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The archaeological locality of Lepenski Vir is situated at Djerdap on a low-lying Danube terrace. Sacral architecture and monumental sculptures dating from 7000 to 6000 B.C. have been discovered on this rocky bank. All the dwellings of this settlement have the form of a levelled circular sector at an angle between 30 and 60 degrees. The floor is of crushed, well-compacted red limestone and there is an ellipsoid fireplace. The disposition of hollows around the floor suggests a roof structure in the form of a cut funnel or polyhedron, which had probably been of hides. Sanctuaries having the same form have also been unearthed in the settlement. The interior housed a cult area and a living area. Around the hearth were placed sculptures of large pebbles of large-grain sandstone showing a human figure with initially only the head shaped on it and decorated with concentric circle motifs, spirals and eights. In the later stage, the sculptures assumed the form of human figures and became real idols. From the middle of the 6th millennium B.C. settlements cropped up in the area of Lepenski Vir with properties of a farming and animal breeding community. Archaeological exploration (1965-1970) unearthed 136 structures. In order to avoid its inundation when the Djerdap I Power Plant was being put into operation, the Lepenski Vir settlement was moved to a higher level.A certain number of characteristic and representative objects were transferred whole and intact, or else their central parts with the hearth and surrounding equipment were transferred along with a 75 cm to 100 cm thick ground foundation. Objects which were transferred whole weighed about 20 tons with their ground foundations. They were dragged to their new location by a ramp, (a slope or incline) which made the transport of the artifacts easier because they were slid to their new location up the slope, cut through between the original and new locations
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Sculpture from Lepenski Vir
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The altars and sculptures of Lepenski Vir I and 11 were manufactured of quartzitic sandstone with silica impregnation. This raw material came from a single geological formation, 'red Permian sandstones' not far away in the hinterland. These sandstones were eroded and are found as boulders in conglomerates at Somrdo Hill. They were further eroded by the Somrdo stream, then moved by watercurrent to the Strakovica, andthen furtherto the BoIjetinska River. They are also found in the Pesaca stream. The color of the boulders varies: yellowish-white, almost white, reddish. Some boulders wear traces of secondary (hydrothermal) pigment that can be distinguished from the traces of burning. The boulders were manufactured by hammering the surface around the preconceived ornamental and figural motifs. Additional coloring of boulders by red pigment also appears.
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Mesolithic House at Lepenski Vir
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This harmony between the environment and architectural forms has, on the other hand, been achieved with measurements and proportions which cannot be found anywhere in nature. The architecture of Lepenski Vir has something extremely mathematical in it; that is, in all its forms you can feel the presence of concrete lines and specific numbers. It can clearly be felt that the architectural forms are saturated with the mysticism of numbers, but the primary unit measure cannot be translated into today's mathematical language; it is not one specific number or an anthropological measurement and, although the module has been made through rational procedures, it still seems like a mystical dimension that has built the microcosms and macrocosms of Lepenski Vir.
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Felix Romuliana-Gamzigrad,near Zajecar, the remains of the imperial palace
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| Accommodations: |
Hotel Lepenski Vir
Rating: ***
Address: 19220 Donji Milanovac, Serbia and Montenegro
Telephone: + 381 (0)30 / 86 122
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| Other recommendations: |
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NATIONAL MUSEUM IN BELGRAD - PREHISTORY AND ANTIQUE PERIOD
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Published on Monday December 3th, 2007
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Thu, Nov 15 2007 - 12:53 AM
 by downundergal
| I agree a little more info and this would definately deserve a 5* rating. |
Mon, Nov 05 2007 - 10:01 AM
 by freya
| What a fascinating place, thanks for the great description. - Is that sculpture really from 6000 bc? And are there more like that still surviving? |
Sat, Nov 03 2007 - 01:30 PM
 by marianne
| Interesting, reads like a guidebook |
Sat, Nov 03 2007 - 01:26 PM
by davidx
| Maybe Rudi is right but you can't do a travel tip this long and the extra information is valuable. It would be too short if it were about a city but for archaeology lovers [like me] it must be worth 5* |
Sat, Nov 03 2007 - 06:45 AM
by rangutan
| More like an extended travel tip than a travel report but still interesting historic and cultural information. The style of writing is very professional. I hope more reports will follow! |
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