Sibișel Medieval Fortress

Sibișel Medieval Fortress stands on the hill known as Bordul Cetății, above the village of Sibișel in Beriu commune, Hunedoara County, in the valley of the Sibișel stream, a tributary of the Orăștie river. Dacian coins of the La Tène period have also been found in the village. No written records of the fortress are known. The Burgenwelt castle survey, drawing on Friedrich Teutsch's work on the castles of the Unterwald area, suggests that it dates from the thirteenth century, contemporary with the fortifications at Săsciori and the old castle at Gârbova. The ruin covers an area of about 71 x 57 m. The highest surviving section of wall is about 5 m high and nearly 2 m thick, and the gateway was 4.5 m wide. The ditch is almost completely filled with rubble, and traces of the old access road can still be seen in places. The fortress is not on the national List of Historic Monuments. The site is reached from the village of Sibișel on a steep forest path, a climb of 45 to 60 minutes. The path is largely overgrown with brambles and hard going in wet weather, and the ruin is difficult to find without a local who knows the way.