Zyndram’s Hill is an archaeological site located in southern Poland, in Maszkowice village, Łącko commune. It was a prehistoric defensive settlement occupied in the Early Bronze Age, in the Late Bronze and Early Iron Age and in the La Tène Period. The hill itself is a part of the Beskid Wyspowy range, which belongs to the Northern Carpathians area. The site is located 410 meters above the sea level and its plateau is rising significantly above the Łącko Basin and the Dunajec rivervalley. In the 60's and 70's it was excavated by Maria Cabalska from the Jagiellonian University in Kraków. Marcin S. Przybyła has undertaken new research project since 2010. The new excavations and studies brought a spectacular bunch of informations. Analysis of the artifacts proves that at first the settlement was inhabited most probably by a population of the Ottomány culture. In this period a monumental stone wall construction was built around the hillfort's plateau. This example of stone architecture is one of the oldest in Europe and it is the oldest in Poland. The stone wall of the Zyndram's Hill in terms of technical solutions has connections with Alpine and Mediterranean constructions. That suggests that some of the founders of the settlement were from the southern parts of Europe. Archaeologists discovered also the remains of dwellings from this period. The plateau was inhabited afresh in the Late Bronze Age after a 500-year-long hiatus. The settlement of the second phase was most probably much bigger. According to the stratigraphic observations the remains of the earliest stone construction was reused. The wooden and earthen fortifications were also built. The population of this phase was most probably related to more local societies of the Carpathian area and the tradition of the so-called Urnfield culture. The last settlement episode may be connected with the La Tène Period. Zyndram's Hill was inhabited by the population of the Puchov culture. It is assumed that the occupied area shrunk significantly in this period. Local tradition and legends wanted to relate Zyndram's Hill with the castle of Zyndram of Maszkowice. This assumption was denied by the archaeologists who proved the prehistorical origin of the hillfort and its fortifications.
