Schedule
1030, depart from reception
1045, arrive at church
Hike
1300, depart church
1330, back at Fontana
Purkin Kuk, a glimpse into prehistory
Purkin Kuk is one of the largest and most important prehistoric sites on the island of Hvar. The site is located on a hill above the town, at a point from which the entire bay, as well as the plain between Budinjac Hill and the rolling hills on the north side of the island, can be observed.
The fortress probably served as a strategic observation point, guarding the city's security from prehistory to the early Middle Ages.
The oldest artifacts found here are small blades, recently dated to the Early Neolithic period (7,000 BCE). Remains of massive walls forming a square, measuring 25 x 25 m, have been discovered. The western portion was constructed using the megalithic masonry technique. This is a common Greek construction method and is thought to date back to the 4th century BC. Other walls are of different construction types, and their layout is rather vague, especially in the northwestern part. Since excavations have never been completed, it is impossible to say exactly when they were built and for what purpose.
The construction differs in general from the properly built Greek towers on Maslinovik and Tor, as well as the walls of Pharos, although all the cornerstones have worked edges - so-called anathyrosis (finely burled surface), characteristic of Greek military architecture. Writing in the first century BCE, the Greek historian Diodorus mentions that Purkin Kuk was a "very fortified place" or "fortress that was very inaccessible" in connection with the battle that took place between the Greek settlers and the Illyrians in the first year after the establishment of Paros (384 BC). It may be the place where the Paranians "allowed the barbarians to remain undisturbed on the island," in Diodorus’ words, although it is hard to imagine the successful colonists allowing such a heavily armed outpost to remain in such a close and strategic position.
Adding to the puzzle, no movable archaeological material has been found during excavations so far, aside from the neolithic blades. Such material would shed light on the period of construction and the function of the structure, as is the case with other ruins. It's possible that the walls are part of a Greek/Illyrian observation post (similar to the gate at Jelsa), or the remains of a sanctuary or shrine created with the cairn.
How to get there
From the Church of St. Mary in Dol, Purkin Kuk is only a kilometer’s walk. On the way, one passes by the abandoned Likoreva Kuća, or “Liquor House,” a 19th century hunting lodge belonging to Dr. Peter Ostojić (1780-1851), a physician from Stari Grad. Even today, one can hear stories related to the "Likoro" among the older population, especially among the Doljans. In the early 1840s, Dr. Peter Ostojić built a stone water basin in the shape of a ship on a large estate south of the Church of St. Nicholas as well as several other structures.
More Resources:
Historical text credit: TopoHvar
Image credit: Visit Hvar