In 1959, archaeologist Jānis Apals (1930–2011) found the remains of lake castles in
three lakes of Vidzeme, thus discovering a new, until then unknown category of archaeological monuments — lake dwellings of the Iron Age.
Ten lake castles are known in Latvia today — they are located in moraine lakes around the central highland of Vidzeme — in lakes Āraiši, Auļukalns, Dūķi, Lisa, Bricas, Ušurs, Bakāni, Liezēre, Ižezers, and Salu. Lake castles are located on the islands or shoals of these lakes, 50–100 m from the shore.
The lake castle in Lake Āraiši was recognised as the most suitable for research. In 1966,
the management of Gauja drainage system, supporting the important research, lowered the level of Lake Āraiši by 1 m. After that, dams were built around the excavation sites from the searched occupation layer and work was carried out in polder conditions, pumping out the lake water entering the sites with motor pumps.
During ten seasons of archaeological excavations (1965–1969; 1975–1979), ¾ of the
lake castle were explored, as well as the occupation layer area of about 2500 m2 and the
80 m long embankment connecting it to the shore. The occupation layer with a thickness of 1.5–3.0 m was explored down to the subsoil.
Thanks to the wet occupation layer, materials of organic origin were well preserved under water — remains of wooden buildings, artefacts of organic origin. According to the typology of artefacts, radioactive carbon and dendrochronological methods, the time of existence of the lake castle was attributed to the 9th–10th centuries. According to the periodisation adopted in Latvian archaeology, this is the end of the Middle Iron Age (400–800) and the beginning of the Late Iron Age (800–1200). The archaeological material obtained in the lake castle and the burial grounds studied near it shows that ancient Latgalians lived here during the existence of the castle.
In his publications, Jānis Apals focused mainly on the construction of Āraiši lake castle
and the implementation of scientifically based reconstruction of the lake castle. It was a very complex and extensive project that included archaeological research, scientific research, and organisational work. The designation of the dwelling in Lake Āraiši has changed several times. Until Jānis Apals started researching this dwelling, Stone and Bronze Age lake dwellings were known in several European lakes, especially in Switzerland. In the 19th century, Count Karl Georg Sievers (Jakob Carl Georg Graf von Sievers, 1814–1879) also considered Āraiši as such. J. Apals has concluded that lake castles, like hillforts, were also defensive buildings, and judging by the found artefacts and the location of buildings, representatives of the upper class of society lived there. These were also the social centres of their region. Therefore, the concept “lake fortress”, but not “lake settlement” applies to them. Since 1969, J. Apals call ancient dwellings in Latvia’s lakes “lake castles”.
The artefacts material of Āraiši Lake Castle has been analysed less, although it has entered the scientific circulation. Jānis Apals has discussed several questions related to symbolism, signs carved into wooden objects, etc. in his reports, but publications are lacking. As part of this research, it is planned to identify the legacy left by J. Apals — the preliminary documentation of the excavations, slides, etc. materials stored in the National History Museum of Latvia, Āraiši Archaeological Park, the Repository of Archaeological Materials of the Institute of Latvian History, University of Latvia (ILH UL), as well as Jānis Apals’ personal archive, which is managed by his spouse Zigrīda Apala. The archive was handed over to Cēsis Museum of History and Art.
The material of the excavations from Āraiši is unique in that a large number of objects
made of organic materials were found here, which are usually not preserved in other conditions — wooden bowls, their blanks, beekeeping tools, harness parts, bast shoes, wooden parts of weapons and other iron objects — knives and scramasaxes, a spear shaft, etc.
Drawings of wooden artefacts from Āraiši lake castle are stored in the Repository of Archaeological Materials of ILH UL. This is an excellent source — the drawings are of good quality, drawn after the objects had been removed from the water, when they were not affected by the drying process.
The study mainly examines wooden, bone, clay, ceramic objects and their decoration,
seeking for a scientific basis for insight in the spirit of the population and its reflection in everyday objects.
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