A unique 10th century structural beam carved with the image of a face has been recovered from Lake Lednica in west-central Poland. Dendrochronological analysis has found the tree used to make the beam was cut down between 960 and 975 A.D., a period when human faces used as decorative elements were very rare. This is the first artifact of its kind from the early Middle Ages found in Poland.
The object is an oak beam 1.34 meters (4.4 feet) long with a human face carved into one end. It is a bas relief approximately 13.5 by 10 cm (5.3 by 4 inches) with a deep curved groove above the forehead that, coupled with the rounded base of the beam under the chin, gives the face an oval shape.
Discovered last year, the timber was part of the massive defensive ramparts of the Piast dynasty stronghold in Ostrów Lednicki. Four years ago, worked wood elements surfaced on the shore of Lake Lednica after a dry summer led to unusually low water levels. For the next four years, archaeologists uncovered the remains of the 10th century fortifications that had collapsed and been preserved in the lake.
The beam with the carved face was one of four hooks found. Hooks were used to hold ramparts together against pressure from the earthen fill. This was the only one with a carved face, although there was so much damage to the wooden elements of the rampart that it’s possible other carvings originally existed but were lost.
Konrad Lewek from the Center for Underwater Archaeology, emphasizing the uniqueness of the find, noted that researchers assumed the face most likely represented a figure from the spiritual world. He added that this type of art may have been more popular among the Slavic people of the time than the limited archaeological discoveries to date indicate.
According to the researchers, the discovered facial image is stylistically reminiscent of small wooden figurines with anthropomorphic representations. The lake element may resemble artifacts discovered in Wolin, including the four-faced image. The researchers do not rule out that the Lednica find may allude to beliefs that lakes were inhabited by various creatures. The discovered face was turned outside the stronghold, towards the water.
The beam is still undergoing conservation and stabilization to ensure it does not dry out now that it has been removed from the lake water. Once conservation is complete, the carving will go on display at the Museum of the First Piast Dynasty in Lednica, probably in the second half of 2026.
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