Broskovvejen

The Broskovvejen ( German  "Brückenwaldweg" ) is a road ( Danish Oldtidsvejen ) from the Germanic Iron Age (1–375 AD) in Denmark . The well-preserved stretch of road lies between Tappernøje and Præstø on the island of Zealand . It comes from a time of lively contacts to the south that possibly went as far as the Roman Empire . Between 300 and 400 AD , a sea trade was organized from Stevns, 30 km northeast, and from other places in the Baltic Sea region (see Gudme ), which also included Roman imports of goods.

Denmark's oldest cobbled street to date was built around 300 AD from large flat stones. The stones are carefully laid to keep the gaps as small as possible. The roadway rests on a heavy stone foundation. Curbs on the sides have the function of preventing slipping. The remainder of the road is about 75 m long. At the north end there is a 15 m wide and about one meter deep depression. The Broskovvejen served as a ford through the Hulebækken brook . Meter-high stones form the floor and the foundation in the ford . The Broskovvejen, like other Iron Age roads like the Tibirkevejen , runs parallel to a modern road and is probably its predecessor. The path is also reminiscent of the nearby Risby-vejene (Risby paths).

Roads of this kind made it easier to cross over swampy terrain or streams. The course of paths can be traced back to the Stone Age , when bundles of brushwood and branches were laid out on swampy stretches or plank paths led through the moor.

Spearheads, an iron knife and an amber bead attest that the road was in use around the year 300. In the hinterland, the road splits in a fan shape as an access road to three well-preserved double-lane ravines in the slopes to the north in the Storkeskoven forest.

In the Middle Ages , a new road was built that runs along the prehistoric road to the north. A 14th century horseshoe was found here. The medieval street is made of smaller stones than the prehistoric one. It is interrupted by fords in two places, which suggests that the Hulebækken brook once had two arms or meandered .

literature

• Lone Hvass: Oldtiden i Danmark - Jernalderen . 2001, ISBN 87-7801-814-5 (Danish).
• Karsten Kjer Michaelsen: Politics bog om Danmarks oldtid . Copenhagen 2002 ISBN 87-567-6458-8 , p. 186.

Web links

• Description of the site in "Det Kulturhistoriske Centralregister". Retrieved September 28, 2009 (Danish). 
• Oldtidsvejen ved Broskov. March 5, 2008, accessed September 28, 2009 . 
• Picture and map

Coordinates: 55 ° 8 ′ 52 ″  N , 11 ° 59 ′ 39 ″  E