Arheološka istraživanja poduzeta 2008. godine donijela su nove spoznaje o funkciji prostora donjeg dvorišta utvrde. Na dijelu istraživane površine praćena je bogata stratigrafija slojeva taloženih zbog klizanja niz padinu s višeg terena, vjerojatno s područja kule gornjih vrata i to tijekom dužega srednjovjekovnog razdoblja, a na drugom dijelu su ustanovljeni ostaci zidanih i drvenih objekata, najvjerojatnije gospodarske namjene. Pojedini zidovi ukazuju na njihovu namjenu u svrhu raščlanjivanja dvorišta, a možda i učvršćivanja trusne stijene.On the slopes of Strahinjščica, above medieval Krapina, there used to be two burgs, on one side Stari grad Krapina, and on the opposite side, on the hill called Josipovac, Novi grad, where perhaps there was a fortress even in older periods. Krapina with its two burgs was a firm base for the defence system toward Carniola. A particularly favourable strategic position was that of Krapina’s Stari grad, with its Romanesque nucleus on the highest hill at 270 m above sea level, but encompassing also up to 70 m lower hill terraces. The steepness of the hill facilitated exemplary control of the Krapinčica River valley. Archaeological excavations conducted in 2008 generated a new understanding of the functions of the space of the upper courtyard of the fortress that was formed in later stages of the functioning of the fortress. Moveable archaeological finds and single finds of wooden facilities and building structures already suggest the functioning of this space within the fortress in the Late Middle Ages. While on one side, in the zone of so-called sector A, layers were identified that are rich in pottery finds and animal bones, i.e. the waste and discards of the medieval urban population which accumulated in that area over a longer period in the High and Late Middle Ages, mostly because it slid downhill from a higher point, probably from the tower of the upper gate, on the other side, in sectors B and C, the identified shape of this space suggests residential and economic structures either made of stone and mortar (sector C) or wood (sector B)
