Water management in the medieval village Ve spáleném near Vyžlovka in the Kostelec-nad-Černými-lesy region

Abstract

The deserted medieval village of Ve spáleném, near Vyžlovka (central Bohemia), is marked by distinct surface relics that have been attracting the interest of archaeologists for over a century. Its total and permanent desertion took place in the course of the 14th century to the beginning of the 15th century. The village was located at a source basin nearby a watershed, and four reservoirs in the area served to secure an adequate supply of water. One of the dams of these reservoirs is extraordinary in a morphological sense, leading to deliberations on the existence of a simple water mill. The said dam underwent geodetic-topographical surveying, geophysical surveying and archaeological excavation. Special attention was paid to the fragile nature of settlement areas dependent on insufficient water resources.