dr Marcin Kasjan Engel

Państwowe Muzeum Archeologiczne w Warszawie

VIII KONGRES MEDIEWISTÓW POLSKICH - GNIEZNO 2025

Coordinator

28. From Jatviag to Mindaugas. The Lands of the Balts in the Early Middle Ages

List of papers

28. From Jatviag to Mindaugas. The Lands of the Balts in the Early Middle Ages

From Jatviag to Skomand. Yatvings on the way to their own state organization.

Probably in the middle of the 10th c., in the territories of the present Suwałki Region, Eastern Masuria and south-western Lithuania, the first settlement structures were created, connected with the activity of a group of warriors under the leadership of Jatviag, known from the Nestor Chronicle. They were severely weakened or partially destroyed by the invasions of the rulers of Ruthenia at the end of the 10th c. and in the first half of the 11th c. After a short break, probably due to settlement from the Letto-Lithuanian territories, the old settlement centers were rebuilt and new ones were built. In the 12th and 13th c., historical sources record an increase in the military activity of the Yatvings towards their neighbors. At the same time, social and territorial structures and centers of power developed. At the end of the 13th c., Ruthenian, Polish and Teutonic warfare interrupted the process that could have led Yatvingia to the creation of its own state organization.

3. Weapons - tool and symbol of power

Potentior inter omnes. Elite burials with weapons from the Yatvingia

On the territory of historic Yatvingia, burial sites of elite warriors with leadership roles have been discovered through archival research and recent excavations. This paper presents sepulchral finds from Szurpiły, Krukówek (Suwałki District), and Stacze (Olecko District). In Szurpiły, a grave on Góra Zamkowa’s slopes stands out. The young warrior buried there was treated distinctively—his remains were placed in multiple pits, covered by a shared stone pavement encircled by large boulders and steles. Though modestly furnished, the grave held decorative helmet fittings, while nearby finds included elite weaponry. In Krukówek, a large pit contained multiple male and female burials with rich grave goods, including weapons and horsemen’s gear. In Stacze, on a sandy hill resembling a burial mound, spearheads and an imported sword with an engraved inscription were among the key discoveries.