Erdstall von Rot am See

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BW
Red at the lake

The Rot am See stables in the municipality of Rot am See , Schwäbisch Hall district , was discovered in 1990. It is one of the few earth stables in Baden-Württemberg . There are earth stalls in Central Europe in large numbers, especially in parts of the Czech Republic, Austria and Bavaria. The distribution area in southern Bavaria just barely reaches the eastern edge of Baden-Württemberg with a few foothills (e.g. in Ringingen ). Closest to the Rot am See stables are a group of scattered deposits in Franconia .

interpretation

Research has been concerned with the interpretation of these tunnels since the 19th century. At that time these were already addressed as archaeological findings and primarily assigned to the cultic area. However, since the earth stables are often documented in places in today's high and late medieval, even early modern settlements or in the vicinity of old farmsteads, their former use as a place of escape and recovery of supplies seems to be considered. Prehistoric earth stalls have not yet been proven. In the earth stables, some researchers also suspect empty graves ( cenotaphs ) for the ancestors. Facilities with such significance would have been taboo since the conversion of the Gentiles on the part of the church and have found their expression in legend or in written tradition. Only finds from the Middle Ages could be documented in Rot am See .

description

During the planning of the construction site for the construction of the evangelical parish hall in Rot am See (southeast of the church), an underground passage with an entrance was found. There was a house on the construction site that was being demolished. There was evidently an exit from the house which, by means of a few irregular steps, led into the underground tunnel, which had been driven about 15 m into the natural rock. The dimensions are small, but considerable for earth stables, since larger self-supporting spaces can be created in the rock than in the ground. The height is around 1.4 m, the width is relatively large at 1.2 m. After about five meters the passage narrows to a slip of 0.55 to 0.60 m. It was created by working less on the side and top of the rock, but the sole height remained the same. Only afterwards were stones piled up on the ground and covered with clay. Residues of organic material were found in the angle between the running level and the elevation for the hatch. There is another slip in the corridor. After each of these constrictions, the tunnel widens laterally to form a larger, dome-like vaulted space. The rooms are recessed in the front part, a kind of platform is created in the rear semicircular area. The tunnel ends bluntly about 1.7 m after the second lateral extension.

literature

  • M. Rösch: Plant finds from a high medieval earth stable in Rot am See, Schwäbisch Hall district. In: Der Erdstall 20 (Roding 1994), pp. 44-46.

Coordinates: 49 ° 14 ′ 57.3 "  N , 10 ° 1 ′ 34.2"  E