A princely resting place from the area around the famous Heuneburg: An archaeological team has discovered the remains of an early Celtic grave complex in Upper Swabia from the middle of the 1st millennium BC. Discovered BC. It is a monumental burial mound with a wooden burial chamber in the center. It was robbed in ancient times, but the astonishing state of preservation of the wooden structure makes the find a treasure, say the experts.
The focus is on a region that is already known for its traces from the Celtic era in southern Germany: The newly discovered burial mound is located in the Danube plain near Riedlingen, only about seven kilometers northeast of the so-called Heuneburg, which is the oldest town-like settlement north of the Alps applies. At its peak in the middle of the 1st millennium BC, it housed. Several thousand inhabitants and was the seat of a stately society. This is evidenced by, among other things, finds of monumental barrows in the area surrounding Heuneburg. An outstanding example is the so-called grave of the Celtic Princess of Bettelbühl. The new discovery came about as part of further archaeological investigations in the exciting discovery region.
As the State Office for Monument Preservation in the Stuttgart Regional Council (LAD) reports, the excavation team identified the remains of a burial mound that was once 65 meters wide and up to six meters high. It is also one of the complexes that the Celts built between 620 and 450 BC. Built for particularly high-ranking personalities. The special surprise, however, was the discovery of the completely preserved oak burial chamber in the center of the complex. Although wood was the most important building material in early Celtic times, constructions made from this perishable substance were rarely preserved in the ground.
Amazingly well-preserved wooden construction
But in the current case, special conditions in the underground of the grave complex have preserved the construction, the experts explain. The find thus documents the Celtic construction method. “The Riedlingen grave is a stroke of luck for archeology: the scientific significance of this completely preserved Celtic chamber tomb extends far beyond the borders of Baden-Württemberg and southern Germany,” says Dirk Krausse from LAD. As the team reports, the chamber discovered is 4.05 meters long, 3.40 meters wide and about one meter high. The floor consists of planks laid in a north-south direction and the walls consist of upright planks.
The ceiling was constructed much more massively: it consists of two layers of thick oak planks. What is particularly exciting is that wood can be precisely dated based on its annual ring structures. The dendrochronological examinations of the chamber timbers recovered so far are still ongoing, but there is already evidence of a found tool that the builders left behind outside the chamber. It was therefore made of wood in the year 585 BC. It was made from oak felled in the 1st century BC.
A high personality
This means that the Riedlinger grave apparently dates from the same time as that of the Celtic princess of Bettelbühl (583 BC). In the current case, however, it is probably the resting place of a man: So far, several well-preserved bones of a human skeleton have been recovered, which, according to an initial investigation, probably come from a young male individual, approximately 168 centimeters tall.
Unfortunately, finds of grave goods cannot provide any further clues because, as the team reports, the chamber, which was probably originally richly furnished, was completely robbed in ancient times. This is evidenced by the traces of two robber tunnels that lead to an entry hole. In one of these tunnels, the archaeologists found decorative nails that had apparently been lost during the removal of a piece of loot. As they explain, they may once have belonged to a four-wheeled chariot that was used to equip the princely tomb.
As the LDA reports, further investigations will now be carried out in the coming weeks. The team hopes that completely exposing the chamber floor may reveal traces of the former grave furnishings. “The investigations and analyzes that will be carried out after the excavations have been completed also lead to further important findings, particularly on the question of who this monumental barrow was built for,” says Roberto Tarpini from the LAD.
Source: State Office for Monument Preservation in the Stuttgart Regional Council