Dugout canoes from Kempfenhausen

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The dugout canoes at Kempfenhausen on Lake Starnberg are among the oldest in Bavaria . More than ten dugout canoes have been documented at Lake Starnberg.

Discovery

The oldest dugout canoe was discovered in 1986 in the area of ​​the Rose Island and could be dated to the Urnfield period (900 BC) using dendrochronological studies . A dugout canoe from the Seeheim area , on the other hand, was only made between 980 and 1150 AD.

An inventory from 1842 lists 4 large transport ships and 74 board boats as well as 50 dugout canoes used on the lake. Compared to board boats, they were more robust and durable and were considered traditional fishing boats. They were well suited for fishing with the large net , the fishing method that was used until the 20th century. The complex nature of their manufacture and the lack of suitable oak trunks may have led to the disappearance of the primeval boat shape.

In 2000, underwater archaeological prospecting led to the discovery of another dugout canoe off Kempfenhausen on the eastern shore of the lake. It was documented in 2001. The boat is 5.38 m long and 0.62 (stern) to 0.52 m (bow) wide. The stern is massive with a wall thickness of more than 10 cm, while the bow tapers and tapers slightly upwards. Two transverse ribs separate the bow and stern from the rest of the boat interior. Since the height difference between the transverse ribs and the ship's side or the floor is only 6 to 8 cm, these are unlikely to have acted as bulkheads . A semicircular notch about 10 cm long on the starboard side , at the level of the rear transverse rib, could have been used to accommodate an oar.

The starboard side is complete (25 to 30 cm high). The port side is much worse preserved. This becomes clear in the middle of the boat, the z. T. no longer has a wall. The two large defects and the massive cracks that run through the dugout towards the bow are evidence of the desolate condition. The fact that the heavily damaged port side was under sea chalk sediment and the well-preserved starboard side protruded unprotected from the sediment suggests that the dugout canoe was exposed to the damaging influences in another location and was later brought to the site. An at least intermittent storage time outside the water is particularly suitable. This is supported by the long cracks on the port side, which are reminiscent of dry cracks.

It was not possible to find any evidence of a connection between the dugout canoe and the nearby Neolithic pile dwelling of Kempfenhausen. In view of the problem of temporal classification, it was decided to analyze the boat using 14 C dating . This resulted in a first rough dating between 485 and 45 BC. Further analyzes will show whether oak was used in production, as is the case with 86% of all dugout canoes.

A dugout canoe from the Latène period was discovered in 1994 on the south bank of the Chiemsee and between 395 and 210 BC Dated.

See also

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