From time immemorial,
the landscape in the area of the Škocjan Caves
Park has attracted people; it is exceptionally
rich in archaeological sites. The nature of this
area is also reflected in the preserved medieval
ground plan of the village of Škocjan and its position
on a large natural bridge beneath which the Reka
River carved out the Mahorcic and Marinic Caves.
This position is
not coincidental. The village of Škocjan was
presumably settled in the prehistoric period
and undoubtedly in the Roman period. Like the
caves, it was named after St. Cantianius (sv.
Kancijan) to whom other twenty-two churches in
the Slovenian area are dedicated, usually standing
beside streams, springs and sinkholes.
The original
Gothic church was expanded in the 17th century
with the addition of two side naves
and a new presbytery. The freestanding Aquileian
bell tower replaced the earlier bell tower in
1858. It was around this church that the village
developed,
leaning on the partly preserved hill fort walls
inside which it is situated. The village consists
of a nucleus of buildings that opens in two sets
on both sides of the church. Only the houses
on the end of both sets could thus develop into
the
walled-in homesteads typical of the area. The
majority of buildings in the village are from
the 19th and
20th centuries. Visitors can admire a wonderful
example of a chiselled stone village well that
collects rainwater from the roofs of nearby houses
and a cattle pond (kal) that was used as a rainwater
collector for watering cattle.
Until the mid-1950s,
the village of Škocjan was famous for its many
craftsmen (three blacksmiths,
a maker and repairer of wagons, a carpenter,
two tailors, two dressmakers, a midwife, a
stonecutter and an innkeeper) and was a church
centre with
a curacy and a school (1865–1962).
In present times, the village is almost deserted
except for during the tourist season, when visitors
to the two permanent museum exhibitions bring
it back to life. The ethnological collection
in the J'kopin barn presents the methods of producing
grain and its use in the times of ploughing by
hand. This ground structure's roof is thatched
with rye straw and is a unique feature that has
disappeared from these parts. In the renovated
Jurjev barn, the fascinating history of exploring
the Škocjan Caves system from the early 19th
century is presented. Many local explorers of
the Škocjan Caves found their resting place in
the village cemetery. Anton Hanke, an important
explorer of the Škocjan Caves, is also buried
here.
J'kopin barn
in the village of Škocjan
A core settlement
developed from individual building units in the
hollow beneath the village of Škocjan. According
to the oral tradition from the second half of
the 19th century, the first homestead in the
village of Betanja was the Betančeva Homestead,
which received the largest plot of land in the
subsequent division of land in the village. The
oral tradition also holds that the village inhabitants
enclosed their properties with a stone wall after
the division. The majority of these characteristic
19th and 20th century homesteads in the village
of Betanja are built around a courtyard (dial.
borjač) with a well (dial. štirna) in the middle
and enclosed with a stone wall. The courtyard
opens outwards with a stone portal (dial. kalona).
A stone roof with slate tiles has been preserved
on the living quarters of the Betančeva Homestead
that replaced the usual thatch in the Karst and
provided a more solid and, above all, fireproof
roof.
In addition to
the Church of Sv. Kancijan and its bell tower,
the castle on Školj gives the landscape in
the protected area a special character. The castle
is one of the preserved nine medieval castles
in the Reka River valley that separated northern
regions from the coastal ones as a natural,
political
and cultural boundary. The Školj Castle is
situated on cliff above the river.
The ruins
of Školj Castle.
Cultural
heritage properties in the area are
protected by law. Since 1996, the
following structures have been declared
cultural monuments due
to their special value:
the areas
of settlement
monuments: the villages of
Škocjan and Betanja;
archaeological
monuments: the Tominčeva
Cave, Ozka špilja, Czoering
Cave,
Jama nad Jezerom,
Luknja v Lazu beneath
Matavun, Škocjan hillfort,
Ponikve Necropolis,
Necropolis beneath Matavun,
the cliff in Sapendol,
the cave in
Sokolak, Jama na Prevali
II, Mala jama na Prevali,
the Stojance
fallow near Betanja,
Necropolis Za griči,
Necropolis beneath
Brežec, the hill fort
near the village of Naklo,
Tabor
nad Škofijami;
historical
art monuments: the Church
of Sv. Kancijan, the
ruins of Školj
Castle;
ethnological
monuments: Matavun
8 and 10, Škocjan
4, 5, and
7, the former
curacy
and communal stone
well, Betanja 2;
technical monuments: Matavun 4 – ice pit,
buildings in Malne;
historical monuments: the cemetery and
old tombstones
in the cemetery,
the tombstone
dedicated to
J. Mahorčič
by the church
in the village of
Škocjan;
the sign on the
part of the bridge
along
the Tominčeva
Trail, dedicated
to Emperor Augustus,
the sign in the
Schmidl Hall
dedicated to the explorers,
the monument
erected
to
the memory of
dead fighters and victims
of fascism in
Matavun; Hanke's grave in
Škocjan and the
stone
signpost at the
junction of the
old
Dolnje Ležeče-Lokev
road.
Škocjan
Caves Regional
Park
Act (Official
Gazette of
the Republic
of Slovenia,
No
57/96).
Prepared by:
Darja Kranjc
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