Beinwil am See – Ägelmoos

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Dump situation in the area of ​​the cultivated layer lying open on the lake bed in 2012

Beinwil am See – Ägelmoos is an archaeological site in Beinwil am See in the Swiss canton of Aargau . It is a lakeside settlement (also called Pfahlbauerdorf or Palafitte), which was probably settled in the Neolithic , Early Bronze and Late Bronze Ages, i.e. H. in the period between 4500 BC BC and 850 BC Today (2019) the remains of the settlement in Lake Hallwil are completely under water. As a protective measure, they were covered with a geotextile and a gravel layer in 2017 . Since 2011, the site has been part of the UNESCO World Heritage « Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps ».

location

The site is located in the Ägelmoos area near Beinwil am See on a beach slab near the shore, about one kilometer north of the pier in Beinwil am See on the west bank of Lake Hallwil at a water depth of approx. 80 cm to 4 m. The culture layers, which are up to one meter thick, extend over an area of ​​around 650 m².

The location of the Ägelmoos site on a steeply sloping dump in the lake led to the subsidence of the lake bed, with the archaeological layers also slipping away from the sea. As a result, they now come to the surface of the heap almost horizontally.

Discovery, prospecting, and protective measures

Fully preserved shell and perch ( perch ) embedded in the exposed culture layer
Surface documentation by the underwater archeology of the Stadtarchäologie Zürich (UWAD) in 2017

The site was discovered in 1996 during a systematic investigation of Lake Hallwil .

In the years 2000 to 2016, several smaller investigations were carried out at the site, including a. the extent and course of the culture layers were recorded. In 2005, an erosion control was carried out, which established the progressive destruction of the archaeological find layers. In addition, expert opinions on the stability of the subsoil and the water ecology were prepared. In spring 2015, a digitally controlled plumb line measurement took place, the data of which provided an important basis for further work.

Before appropriate protective measures could be implemented, the superficially visible archaeological structures had to be recorded. A diving team from the Zurich City Archeology department therefore documented the surface in the highly endangered dump area in 2016 and 2017 on behalf of the Aargau Canton Archeology . Finds were recovered, wood samples were taken for dendrochronological dating and the terrain was prepared for the planned protective measures. Most of the finds are superficial litter finds without an archaeological layer context . Nevertheless, different time periods could be identified on the basis of the finds.

The Terramare archaeological bureau largely carried out the actual protective measures: In 2017, the site was covered with a geotextile and a 20 cm thick layer of gravel was poured onto this geotextile layer. In this way, the status that has now been documented is to be retained for future generations and to enable further investigations in the future - possibly with new methods.

Various finds are exhibited today (2019) in the Burghalde Museum in Lenzburg .

Finds and dating

Neolithic

Shard of wall from a large pot from the Neolithic Age with typical features of the Bruebach-Oberbergen culture

In 2000 a large ornate sherd of the Neolithic Bruebach-Oberbergen culture was discovered on the surface, which is typical for the southern Upper Rhine area around 4200 BC. Is. It thus shows a possible connection to the north at this time, comparable to isolated finds in various other lakeside settlements in Wauwilermoos ( Egolzwil ) and in Zurich . Another shard from the 5th millennium BC. Was found in collections in 2016. Beinwil am See-Ägelmoos could therefore be one of the earliest lakeside settlements on the Swiss plateau.

Cup from the Early Bronze Age

Early Bronze Age

Most of the finds that were recovered from the surface come from the Early Bronze Age . This find material is typologically very uniform and can be traced back to around 1640 BC. To be dated. The early Bronze Age settlement presumably only existed for a few decades, as the typology and stratigraphy suggest. The pottery from this era is relatively well preserved: it shows hardly any traces of sintering , the shards are relatively large and some of them have new cracks, and burnt porridge often sticks to cooking pot fragments.

Late Bronze Age

The Late Bronze Age pottery is significantly less uniform than the Early Bronze Age. Typologically, the focus is around 1000 BC. Other bronze finds such as a bronze knife, a bronze needle and fishhook also date from around this time. The two previously available dendro dates (1046 and 1056 BC), on the other hand, may only date the beginning of the Late Bronze Age settlement. In contrast to the Early Bronze Age material, the Late Bronze Age material often shows sinter deposits, is superficially eroded and has rounded edges.

  • Ornate, Late Bronze Age ceramics

  • Finds from the Late Bronze Age: antler handle, robe needle, bronze knife

  • So-called. Post shoe that was attached under the posts and prevented sinking

Dry cracks in the piles

Remarkably, the Bronze Age piles show dry cracks at a depth of 80 cm. Presumably they had dried up again and again over the centuries and are sure to have rotted down correspondingly. Since the Hallwilersee does not show any significant annual fluctuations, they cannot have occurred during winter low water. In contrast, a mill that has stood near the outflow at Hallwyl Castle since the Middle Ages caused Lake Hallwil to rise by approx. 80 cm. It can therefore be assumed that the piles did not come under water again until the mill weir was built.

The settlement type lakeside settlement

Reconstruction of a Bronze Age pile building in the Museum zu Allerheiligen ( Schaffhausen )

Lakeside settlements are archaeologically particularly valuable sites, since in the moist soil environment, residues made of organic material are preserved, for example timber and organic waste, e.g. B. arise during the preparation and consumption of food (see conservation conditions for organic material ). The wooden structures can be dated particularly well using dendrochronology . However, the cultural layers are very sensitive and threatened by various human and natural influences.

The settlement type of the lakeside settlement appeared in the early Neolithic around 4500 BC. BC and disappeared at the end of the Bronze Age around 850 - 800 BC. It was widespread on the banks of the lake and in moor areas on both sides of the Alps. The largest number was found in the Swiss plateau . The Neolithic and Bronze Age settlement remains are villages that were built by the first farmers and ranchers in this region (see Neolithic Revolution ).

One of the main reasons why the Neolithic and Bronze Age farmers built their villages on the dry beach slabs of lakes or moorlands was probably the search for a permanent watering hole in times of relative drought. In addition, the soft, hardly overgrown building site was likely to have been an incentive, as it allowed wooden stakes to be driven into the ground to support the roof and walls of the houses.

If the lake level rose as a result of a deterioration in the climate, the flooded settlement was abandoned or relocated to a higher area. The culture layer and the organic remains were then preserved by the water and the silt.

UNESCO World Heritage «Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps»

On June 27, 2011, UNESCO added 111 sites from 6 countries, Germany, Italy, France, Slovenia, Austria and Switzerland, to the World Heritage List as “Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps” . In Switzerland there are 56 sites from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. For the canton of Aargau, these are the two settlement areas Seengen-Riesi and Beinwil-Ägelmoos.

In particular, two key research areas are highlighted:

  • Lakeside settlements provide information about the relationships between the environment and the population over a period of around 4,000 years, especially the reactions of the population to climate fluctuations.
  • The testimonies provide insight into the social relationships between different identified cultures. This applies to both the river bank settlements and the material and immaterial exchange with other cultures on the European continent.

See also

literature

Reports from the Cantonal Archeology of Aargau and the Underwater Archeology of Zurich:

  • Sandro Geiser, Christian Maise: Erosion protection for Aargau pile dwellings. In: research & protect. City of Zurich, Office for Urban Development, Technical Report No. 2, November 2018, pp. 32–39. ( Online )
  • Cantonal archeology Aargau: Report of the Cantonal Archeology 2011. In: Argovia. Annual journal of the Historical Society of the Canton of Aargau. No. 124, 2012, p. 271. ( Online )
  • Cantonal archeology Aargau: Report of Cantonal Archeology 2015. In: Argovia. Annual journal of the Historical Society of the Canton of Aargau. No. 128, 2016, pp. 178-180. ( Online )

Media reports:

  • Sibylle Haltiner: Lake Hallwil is home to a hidden world heritage. In: Aargauer Zeitung. Online article from June 12, 2016. ( Online )
  • Noemi Lea Landolt: Stilt house remains: The treasure in Hallwilersee disappears under gravel. In: Aargauer Zeitung. Online article from November 2, 2017. ( Online )
  • SRF: pile dwelling settlement disappears under gravel and fabric. Online article from November 2, 2017. ( Online )
  • Fritz Thut: Lots of gravel to protect the remains of the Hallwilersee pile dwellings. In: Lenzburger Bezirks-Anzeiger. Online article from November 8, 2017. ( Online )

Lakeside settlements / pile dwellings in general:

  • Elisabeth Bleuer, Stefan Hochuli, Ebbe Nielsen: The Neolithic and Bronze Age lakeside settlements of the central plateau. In: Archeology Switzerland 27, 2004, pp. 30–41. ( Online )
  • Pierre Corboud, Philipp von Cranach: Bank settlements. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland. (Digital Lexicon on Swiss History) Version of April 3, 2019. ( Online )
  • Pierre Corboud, Margaret Gowen: Protection of the World Heritage against archaeological research. The case of the Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps registered at UNESCO. In: Yearbook Archeology Switzerland 99, 2016, pp. 157–164. ( Online )
  • Pierre Corboud, Gishan F. Schaeren: The pile dwellings in Switzerland. (= Swiss Art Guide, 99 / 988–989) 2017.
  • Marc-Antoine Kaeser: Les palafittes au Patrimoine mondial de l'Unesco. Elements pour un bilan d'étape. In: Archeology Switzerland No. 4, 2017, pp. 16–23.
  • Peter J. Suter, Helmutschichtherle u. a .: pile dwellings. UNESCO World Heritage candidacy for “Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps”. Association for the support of the UNESCO World Heritage candidacy “Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps”, Biel, 2009.

Web links

Commons : Beinwil am See – Ägelmoos  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland.
  2. ↑ a b c d e f Geiser, Maise: Erosion protection for Aargau pile dwellings. In: research & protect. 2018, p. 33.
  3. ^ A b Cantonal archeology Aargau: Report of the Cantonal Archeology 2011. In: Argovia. Annual journal of the Historical Society of the Canton of Aargau. No. 124, 2012, p. 271.
  4. ↑ Sibylle Haltiner: Lake Hallwil is home to a hidden world heritage. In: Aargauer Zeitung . Online contribution from June 12, 2016.
  5. ↑ Canton Archeology Aargau: Report of Canton Archeology 2015. In: Argovia. Annual journal of the Historical Society of the Canton of Aargau. No. 128, 2016, pp. 178-180.
  6. ↑ a b c d Geiser, Maise: Erosion protection for Aargau pile dwellings. In: research & protect. 2018, p. 35.
  7. ↑ Geiser, Maise: erosion protection for Aargauer stilt houses. In: research & protect. 2018, p. 39.
  8. ^ Fritz Thut: Lots of gravel to protect the remains of the Hallwilersee pile dwellings. In: Lenzburger Bezirks-Anzeiger. Online contribution from November 8, 2017.
  9. ^ Canton of Aargau: Department of Education, Culture and Sport: Beinwil-Aegelmoos
  10. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland. P. 73.
  11. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland. Pp. 2-3.
  12. ↑ a b c d Pierre Corboud, Philipp von Cranach: Ufersiedlungen. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
  13. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland. Pp. 8-10.

Coordinates: 47 ° 16 '36.1 "  N , 8 ° 12' 23.7"  E ; CH1903:  six hundred and fifty-eight thousand one hundred and six  /  236483