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This project is a continuation of grant no. 4563 "Keava - The Hand of the Sun"", which will be finished in 2004. The studies carried out within the latter have yielded much data about the nature and chronology of the sites forming the Keava complex, except for some special questions that need further excavation (the hidden gateway on the hill-fort of Keava, the function of the pavement of birch bark, the fortification on the southern end of the Võnnumägi hill-fort and the smithy in site III of Linnaaluste). We have also studied the nature and dimensions of some prehistoric fort districts (Lohu, Keava, Varbola and supposed Voose). In coming years we have to concentrate on the following theoretical questions: to explore the relationship between prehistoric provinces (maakond and kihelkond) and fort districts, to establish the role of some smaller hill-forts within those fort districts (did they belong to the chiefs of lower level?), to study the relations between peripheral villages and the core areas, to find out the mechanism and chronology of the establishment of different fort districts (the change from the fort-and-settlement sysem to that of central forts is of special interest here), etc. For doing that one has to analyse not only the data of one small area (like the southern part of the Harju district) but to consider the materials of the whole district as well as the other provinces. The final output of the project is a monographic study written by all researchers who have participated in the fieldwork. |