Debela griža, Volčji Grad

The prehistoric lowland hillfort was once a gathering place for indigenous people.

Many prehistoric settlements and hillforts can be found on the Karst hills that used to offer protection to prehistoric people. The first hillforts, reinforced with a stone wall, can be traced back to the Middle Bronze Age and were created up until the Iron Age or before the arrival of the Romans. The most typical feature of such hillforts is a stone wall that was built using the dry-stone wall-building technique and, even today, they surprise us with their imposing structure. The remains of walls of different shapes, dimensions and widths, as adjusted by builders to suit the characteristics of the terrain and the purpose of the settlements, are still found in many locations, giving the landscape a special touch. Inside the walls, people lived in rectangular huts built from stone or tree branches, featuring a living area with a hearth, and a storage space. It is not entirely known who the first inhabitants of the hillforts were. The Roman sources state that people of Illyrian origin called Histri lived in them.

Debela Griža on the north-western edge of the Volčji Grad village is a remnant of the majestic lowland hillfort from the Bronze Age and the Iron Age, dating back to about the 8th century BC. The settlement was originally built from at least 13,000 tonnes of stone and was the centre of all the hillforts in the surroundings. The stones were used to build a single and, in three locations, a double wall, with an outer diameter of about 850 m and an inner diameter of about 680 m. The remains of the former defence wall now measure 8–15 m in width and 2–4 m in height. The hillfort can be accessed from the village of Volčji Grad, along two macadam paths, one leading from house number 6 and the other from house number 55. The theme-based educational Trail of Stone leads past Debela Griža.

For many people, Volčji Grad is one of the most beautiful villages in the Karst, enchanting visitors with its typical architecture and beautiful architectural details, carved from stone. You can admire the wonderful portals called ‘kalone’ in the village, as well as the many wells, window frames, stone gutters and various stone ornaments.

Visitors can also book a guided tour of the Debela Griža hillfort and the Volčji Grad village.