Cohabitation of Medvednica and humankind can be traced from Prehistoric Period down to the present times. The slopes of the mountain exposed to the sun with their many springs and streams, forests, mountain meadows, wildlife and fertile fields in the lower regions have been inviting humans to settle here from the earliest days. The first human settlement on Medvednica dates earlier than some 45000 years ago, when the Neanderthal hunters of Musterian culture dwelled in the Veternica Cave. Numerous relics of material heritage offer proof of continuous habitation on the mountain and at its foot ever since. There are 20 archaeological sites registered so far in the National Park, ranging from Prehistoric Period down to the late Middle Ages, and more than sixty registered cultural properties in the area of the Park testify to the abundance of its material cultural heritage.
Medvednica and people
Mount Medvednica is a very rare example of a nature park merging with a capital city. It is the area in which natural, cultural and historic values interlace and depend on each other. To the dwellers at its foot, this great beneficial mountain has been presenting wood and coal, salt and stone, silver and water and their mill – in general, the source of life and protection.
