Podzemelj (; german: Podsemel''Leksikon občin kraljestev in dežel zastopanih v dravnem zboru,'' vol. 6: ''Kranjsko''. 1906. Vienna: C. Kr. Dvorna in Državna Tiskarna, p. 12.) is a

village A village is a clustered human settlement or community, larger than a hamlet but smaller than a town (although the word is often used to describe both hamlets and smaller towns), with a population typically ranging from a few hundred ...

on the left bank of the Kolpa River in the

Municipality of Metlika The Municipality of Metlika (; sl, Občina Metlika) is a municipality in the traditional region of Lower Carniola in southeastern Slovenia. The seat of the municipality is the town of Metlika. Metlika became a municipality in 1994. Settlements ...

in the

White Carniola White Carniola ( sl, Bela krajina; german: Weißkrain or ''Weiße Mark'') is a traditional region in southeastern Slovenia on the border with Croatia. Due to its smallness, it is often considered a subunit of the broader Lower Carniola region, alt ...

area of southeastern

Slovenia Slovenia ( ; sl, Slovenija ), officially the Republic of Slovenia (Slovene: , abbr.: ''RS''), is a country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Italy to the west, Austria to the north, Hungary to the northeast, Croatia to the southeast, an ...

, next to the border with

Croatia , image_flag = Flag of Croatia.svg , image_coat = Coat of arms of Croatia.svg , anthem = "Lijepa naša domovino"("Our Beautiful Homeland") , image_map = , map_caption = , capit ...

. The area is part of the traditional region of

Lower Carniola Lower Carniola ( sl, Dolenjska; german: Unterkrain) is a traditional region in Slovenia, the southeastern part of the historical Carniola region. Geography Lower Carniola is delineated by the Ljubljana Basin with the city of Ljubljana to the n ...

and is now included in the

Southeast Slovenia Statistical Region The Southeast Slovenia Statistical Region ( sl, Jugovzhodna Slovenija statistična regija) is a statistical region in southeast Slovenia. It is the largest statistical region. The development of this region is largely the result of industry (the au ...

Name

Podzemelj was mentioned in medieval written sources only with reference to the village church, as ''(ecclesia) sancti Martini'' 'Saint Martin's Church' in 1279 and as ''ecclesia sancti Martini prope Culpam'' 'Saint Martin's Church near the Kolpa River' in 1337. The name is derived from a combination of the preposition ''*podъ'' 'under, below' + ''*zemľa'' 'earth', referring to a ditch built for defense purposes (this is also the origin of neighboring

Zemelj Zemelj () is a small settlement on the left bank of the Kolpa River in the Municipality of Metlika in the White Carniola area of southeastern Slovenia. The area is part of the traditional region of Lower Carniola and is now included in the Southe ...

). The name therefore means '(settlement) below the trench'.

History

A fortified prehistoric settlement, one of the largest in White Carniola, was located on Kučar Hill (222 m) above Podzemelj. It existed from the first millennium BC at least to the Roman era, and Roman inscriptions have been found at the site dedicated to the deity Silvanus. Excavations indicate that settlement may have lasted at the site until the Middle Ages. The inhabitants of the hill settlement buried their dead in mound graves at Podzemelj and elsewhere; the mound burial site at Podzemelj consists of approximately 30 burial mounds. Almost all of them were excavated before the First World War and the finds were transferred to the archaeological museum in Vienna.Savnik, Roman, ed. 1971. ''Krajevni leksikon Slovenije'', vol. 2. Ljubljana: Državna založba Slovenije, p. 457. In 1523 the village consisted of eight farms. A school was first established in Podzemelj in 1857. During the Second World War, an officer training school operated in the village in August 1944. From October 1944 to May 1945, the British military mission operated a radio transmitter in Podzemelj for aircraft using the field at Otok.

Archaeology

In 2018, archaeologists unearthed fifteen graves at the Pezdirčeva Njiva site. The graves contained pottery and iron grave goods and dates back to the 4th and 3rd century B.C. In one of the graves they also found a bronze belt with a gold coin. The coin is a Celtic imitation of the

Alexander the Great Alexander III of Macedon ( grc, Ἀλέξανδρος, Alexandros; 20/21 July 356 BC – 10/11 June 323 BC), commonly known as Alexander the Great, was a king of the ancient Greek kingdom of Macedon. He succeeded his father Philip II to ...

stater The stater (; grc, , , statḗr, weight) was an ancient coin used in various regions of Greece. The term is also used for similar coins, imitating Greek staters, minted elsewhere in ancient Europe. History The stater, as a Greek silver curre ...

, depicting

Nike Nike often refers to: * Nike (mythology), a Greek goddess who personifies victory * Nike, Inc., a major American producer of athletic shoes, apparel, and sports equipment Nike may also refer to: People * Nike (name), a surname and feminine give ...

and

Athena Athena or Athene, often given the epithet Pallas, is an ancient Greek religion, ancient Greek goddess associated with wisdom, warfare, and handicraft who was later syncretism, syncretized with the Roman goddess Minerva. Athena was regarded ...

, and dates back to the first half of the 3rd century BC. According to the archaeologists this was a very significant discovery. Such coins are very rare.

Church

The local

parish church A parish church (or parochial church) in Christianity is the church which acts as the religious centre of a parish. In many parts of the world, especially in rural areas, the parish church may play a significant role in community activities, ...

is dedicated to Saint Martin and belongs to the Roman Catholic Diocese of Novo Mesto. It was first mentioned in written documents dating to 1279 and was extensively rebuilt in the

Baroque style The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...

in the 18th century.Slovenian Ministry of Culture register of national heritage
reference number ešd 2121 The altar furnishings are Baroque and the main altar painting was created in 1892 by Franc Blaznik. The sculptures on the side altars are of Tyrolean origin, the Stations of the Cross are the work of Joseph von Fürich, and the chancel arch was painted by Simon Ogrin Jr. The church was made the seat of a parish before 1338.

References

External links

*

{{Authority control Populated places in the Municipality of Metlika