The Piast castrum Steclyn – on the way towards Prussia

The article concerns the early medieval settlement at Niedźwiedź/Steklin located on Lake Steklin in the Dobrzyń Land commonly identified with the castrum Steclyn mentioned in the so-called Mogilno Falsification of 1065. Although research has up to now produced relatively little information on the stronghold itself, numerous luxury items discovered on the lake bottom within the remains of the wharves, as well as a silver hoard recently found in a suburbium settlement testify to the special importance of this place on the northeastern border of the Piast state. The article discusses the origins and functions of the stronghold, as well as its role in the local supra-local settlement structure. It is also shown that its location directly on the long-distance route leading from Gniezno through Mogilno and Kujawy to Prussia enabled communication with Benedictine monks.