BUILD MATERIALS AND TECHNOLOGICAL FEATURES OF THE BUILDINGS OF THE KING DANYLO ROMANOVYCH’S CASTLE IN THE CITY OF CHOLM
Authors:   Odessa State Academy of Civil Engineering and Architecture, Gazda L. , Bevz M. ,   Odessa State Academy of Civil Engineering and Architecture
Published: April 2021

The castle of King Daniel (Danylo -in Ukrainian) in the Cholm (today the city of Chełm in Poland) has survived to this day only in the form of archaeological remains of foundations and walls. A significant archaeological layer is formed here as a result of the decline and gradual degradation of the complex. He retained a large amount of construction substance, architectural details, artifacts of the real-life of medieval times. Of particular importance to us are archaeological materials that reveal the construction and architectural features of King Daniel's residences. These materials are unique because, unfortunately, we do not have any other monuments that would show the King's construction activity. The complexes of the High and Low castles in the cityof Lviv were wholly dismantled in the 19th century. In other towns laid down by King Daniel -in Kremenets, Danyliv, Dorohychyn, Kamianets, Bakota, Kalmius, studies from objective reasons are difficult or impossible. Archeological studies have been carried out in the Cholm by specialists of the Institute of Archeology and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences since 2010. The castle site is centrally located on the so-called High Hill -Wysoka Górka. The results of archaeological research give a unique opportunity to navigate the nature of the architecture and material culture of the court of Danylo Romanovych in the mid and second half of the 13th century. The obtained archaeological results are significant for modeling the architecture of the residence. Also, results allow identifying the buildings from the materials and construction technologies used. Materials obtained during archaeological excavations on Wysoka Górka in Cholm in the area of Daniel Romanovych’s 13th century residential-sacral complex have been subject to examination. They come in the forms of bricks and glazed tiles, as well as sizeable shapeless and purposeless accumulations indicating post-manufacturing remains. The materials are white, green and multi-coloured. They refer to Halytsian alabasters and green glauconite from Cholm which were originally used there (before the fire of 1256) –the fact mentioned in the Halych–Volhynia Chronicle. The white materials examination was performed. They were diagnosed by means of a SEM microscope and x-ray diffraction. Furthermore, a micro area chemical analysis was conducted by means of SEM microscope with EDS module. The conducted examination indicated that the materials in question were manufactured using other than ceramic technologies, but similar to the ones used to produce silicate materials nowadays. As raw materials chalk and biogenic silica obtained from horsetail were used. The petrification procedure was conducted in hydrothermal conditions. As a result of this alchemical experiment, a material structurally similar to marble or massive limestone was obtained. The successful production of the materials translated into the possibility of the implementation of the ideological assumptions of the structures constructed under the explicit influence of the style of the 12-14century Tuscan School.This publication prepared in the framework of theproject "Northern part of the princely residential complex in the Сhelm" ("Północna część książęcego zespołu rezydencjonalnego w Chełmie") under the number 2014/13 / B / HS3 / 04930, funded by the National Science and Research Center and realized by the Institute of Archelogy and Ethnology of the Polish Academy of Sciences in Warsaw under the promotion of prof. A.Buko.