Peter Milo

1 Introduction Long barrows represent one of the earliest forms of prehistoric monumental architecture in Europe. From the fifth to the third millennium BC, such monuments occur across a wide area encompassing Great Britain, northern France, southern Scandinavia, northern Germany, Poland and the Czech Republic (e.g., Darvill 2016; Chambon 2020; Madsen 2014; Müller et al. 2019; Król 2021; Turek and Krištuf 2025).

1 Introduction Over many millennia of human history, mankind has built fortifications around its settlements, and historical Moravia is no exception in this regard. How fortifications were constructed over the course of the early Middle Ages has been a topic of intensive research into the architecture, material requirements and various other aspects of their structure and function (Christie and Herold 2016; Dresler 2011; Procházka 2009).

1 Introduction Over many millennia of human history, mankind has built fortifications around its settlements, and historical Moravia is no exception in this regard. How fortifications were constructed over the course of the early Middle Ages has been a topic of intensive research into the architecture, material requirements and various other aspects of their structure and function (Christie and Herold 2016; Dresler 2011; Procházka 2009).