Pierwsze zidentyfikowane odkrycie pieca typu hypocaustum na Wawelu

Abstrakt

In 2006 for the first time on Wawel Hill in Cracow remains of heating construction of hypocaustum type based on heating and distributing the heated air in used interiors (habitable, bathing) were discovered. The object was revealed in the course of archaeological works carried out in the cellar and on the ground floor of the Gothic building raised around the half of the 15^th century (before 1460) within so-called Upper Castle at the Gothic curtain defensive wall (fig. 1). In the cellar of the building, in the north-west corner, stone foundation of a stove preserved (added to the walls of the cellar) (fig. 2, 4). Beneath the present floor of the ground floor, the upper brick part of its chamber, covered with arched vault, thermal channels and original usable level (mortar) together with remains of two stone slabs with heating holes (fig. 3, 5) were revealed. In places, in surroundings of the stove on the surface of the vault fill also leveling with imprints of ceramic floor tiles revaled. In the partition wall of the cellar (originally a side wall of the stove) there is a quadrangular hole surmounted with an arch – most probably the inlet of the stove (fig. 6). After battering down the lower part of the stove, it was completely built over from the side of the main stove chamber. From side of longish "corridor" room (so-called treasury-room) it was only partially filled with Gothic bricks joined with clay.

Remains of hypocaustum construction show that it was a one-chamber object. No traces of grate were found. The grate chamber at the same time served as heating chamber. A problem of carrying away combustion gas from the stove inside (the run of the flue) remains unsolved as well as high - not functional location of the inlet hole (may be one of two situated on different levels) as well as function of the stove - whether it played only heating role or was equipment of a bath?