XVI-wieczny dwór obronny w Zgłobniu i jego nowa funkcja – Regionalna Składnica Zabytków Archeologicznych jako nowy oddział Muzeum Okręgowego w Rzeszowie

The text aims to present the history of the 16th-century manor, which was rebuilt into a granary at the beginning of the 19th century, as well as to show the results of research work carried out there and the revitalization process of the building. The ongoing renovation and construction works, which started over 10 years ago, led to establishing a new regional branch of the District Museum in Rzeszów – the Regional Storehouse of Archaeological Artefacts in Zgłobień.

The Regional Storehouse of Archaeological Artefacts in Zgłobień is located in a Renaissance defensive manor house. The building changed its function – after the reconstruction at the beginning of the 19th century it became a granary, and in the 21st century, after a major renovation and revitalization, it became a storehouse of archaeological finds, a branch of the District Museum in Rzeszów. The presented text describes the history of the aforementioned manor house, the results of the conducted research and the process of its revitalization. It is also a showcase of the new branch of the Regional Museum in Rzeszów, which was officially opened in May 2021. Zgłobień is a village founded in the 14th century, located about 15 km from Rzeszów, in the commune of Boguchwała. In the eastern part of the site, at the top of the elevation, there is a complex of manor buildings, consisting of the so-called new mansion from the 19th century, a former outbuilding and a farm building as well as a fortified manor coming from the 2nd half of the 16th century, which together with a vast yard are the oldest and most valuable point of the manor complex. The manor house in Zgłobień – as a historical construction – was identified in 1957, in the course of the inventory of monuments of the Rzeszów poviat carried out by B. & A. Fischinger. In 1975, it was taken under the conservator’s protection due to entering it in the register of monuments of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship (A-905 of May 31, 1975). The establishment of the defensive manor in Zgłobień is dated to the second half of the 16th century. It was a former residence of Anna Jordanowa and her daughter Anna, a wife of Mikołaj Spytek Ligęza from Rzeszów. In this way, the manor became the property of the heirs of this mighty family from Rzeszów. Then, for a short time it was owned by the Ciecierski family, who sold the manor to Teodor Lubomirski – the Voivode of Kraków in 1724. The possession in Zgłobień were included in the Boguchwała land estate. The owners of the property changed over the course of the 18th and 19th centuries. In the post-war times, the manor house became the property of the Communal Cooperative “Samopomoc Chłopska” in Boguchwała. The elements dating back to the erection of the manor are details preserved in situ – two architectural portals integrated into the vault. The original manor house was built of brick, on a rectangular plan, and it had a two-axis layout, one-bay arrangement with three rooms (a hall and two chambers). In the basement there were stone, vaulted cellars. Primarily, the building probably had the third storey (not preserved) where there should have been a manor chapel, known from the report of the visit of Bishop Radziwiłł (1595). At the beginning of the 19th century, the manor house lost its residential function – the new function of the residence was taken by the manor house built in the vicinity of the new complex by new owners of Zgłobień – the Straszewski. The old manor took over the economic function and since then it was known in the sources as the manor’s granary. A new function for the building caused some changes in its shape, facade and interior of the house. Adaptation activities were also carried out in the 20th century. In 1981, a conservation survey of the building (the contemporary warehouse of the Communal Cooperative “Samopomoc Chłopska” in Boguchwała) was carried out. As a result, it was found that the general condition of the building was not good (including flooded basements, significant defects in the walls, poor condition of the roof truss and roofing, the endangered structure of the building). In 1983, the object was taken over for perpetual use by the District Museum in Rzeszów, although until the end of the 1980s, geodetic and legal formalities continued. Finally, by the decision of the Podkarpackie Voivode made on December 8, 2000, it was stated that the owner of the land on which the property was located is the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, and the perpetual usufruct user of the building is the District Museum in Rzeszów. At the same time, thanks to the efforts of the former director of the museum – Sylwester Czopek – the museum was looking for financial resources to carry out research, documentation and adaptation of the building to the storage of archaeological finds. Intensive and numerous activities aimed at revitalizing the manor house were also continued by the next director of the museum – Bogdan Kaczmar. In 2005, due to the planned restoration of the object, archaeological research was carried out by the Institute of Archaeology of the University of Rzeszów (Bober 2005), as well as architectural research detecting the presence of polychromes; moreover construction and mycological expertise was also made. Finally, in 2009, the District Museum in Rzeszów obtained the construction permit. The reconstruction of the Zgłobień facility was started in 2010 and it was completed a decade later. The task was divided into nine stages, during which the necessary construction and renovation works were performed. Regarding the building, the historic window stonework was reconstructed or subjected to conservation, along with the reworking of the window openings and the installation of window joinery and grids. What is more, the historic entrance door of the manorgranary was also restored and reconstructed. The effort to revitalize the manor-granary, which lasted for many years, was finally completed in 2020, and the revitalized building looks impressive. The ceremonial opening of the new facility took place on May 19, 2021. The ceremony was graced by the presence of representatives of local authorities: the Podkarpackie Voivode, Ewa Leniart, the Marshal of the Podkarpackie Voivodeship, Władysław Ortyl and his associates, as well as people involved in the project (Rector of the University of Rzeszów – Prof. Sylwester Czopek; representatives of the Foundation of Rzeszów Archaeological Centre; the Podkarpacie Voivodeship Conservator of Monuments – Beata Kot). The new storage space of the Rzeszów museum is approximately 260 m2, occupying 3 floors: in the basement (2 rooms), on the ground floor (1 room) and in the attic (the entire space). Modern storage systems have been used in all rooms, including sliding racks in the attic, using the new space to the maximum, but also ensuring free access to the collected materials. On the ground floor, next to the storage room, there is also a studio, which provides a convenient place to research the collections. They can be and are available – for research purposes – to students, doctoral students, employees of other scientific or museum institutions. The Regional Storehouse of Archaeological Artefacts, after the University Storehouse of Archaeological Artefacts, is yet another example of taking care of the archaeological cultural heritage by archaeologists and museologists from Rzeszów.