Baroque castle of Dvorac Drašković

In summer of 2025, we carried out a geophysical survey around the Baroque Dvorac Drašković and the Church of St. Francis of Assisi in Veliki Bukovec. The project aimed to locate the remains of an early medieval necropolis discovered in the 19th century, associated with the Bijelo Brdo cultural complex of the 10th to 12th centuries.

Magnetic surveys covering 1.3 hectares were followed by 3,000 m² of ground-penetrating radar (GPR) measurements. Despite strong modern disturbance, clusters of small anomalies likely related to burials were identified near the church and in the south-western area of the castle. GPR data also revealed graves, possibly crypts, foundations of adjacent buildings, and traces of an older church nave. In the castle park, sediment layers from the Bednja River were documented.