Princely grave of Planig

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The prince's grave in Planig is a richly decorated male grave from the early Merovingian era , which was discovered in 1939 in Planig (then: Bingen district ) during construction work. An apparently high-ranking Frankish warrior, who is colloquially known as Prince von Planig , was buried here . The outstanding single item from the find is a well-preserved spangen helmet . The preserved grave finds including a reconstruction of the burial place and their scientific documentation are now in the Landesmuseum Mainz .

Find history

In May 1939, sewer workers came across ancient finds at a depth of 1.20 m during earthworks in Planig, then an independent community northeast of Bad Kreuznach . The local teacher, Johann Merkelbach, who was then called in, immediately informed the Roman-Germanic Central Museum in Mainz, and from then on, the further investigations of the site were under the supervision of experienced archaeologists. The preciously furnished grave of a high-ranking figure from post-Roman times was uncovered under a sandstone block with traces of Roman processing. The person was buried in the middle of a Frankish cemetery, which was already in use in Roman times.

Human remains

Very few bone fragments have survived from the buried person. Therefore, no conclusions can be drawn about the age, gender or cause of death of the person. The presumption that the person buried is a man is based on the grave goods and other comparable burials of this time.

Single finds

Due to the diverse and valuable grave equipment, the find was quickly referred to as the “ Prince's Grave ”. The deceased must have been a warrior of higher rank from the early Franconian period, who was given his various equipment in the grave.

An outstanding find is a Spangenhelm of the Baldenheim type (inventory number 39/9). The approximately 32 cm high helmet consists of an iron frame with silver plates, a forehead band and gold-plated bronze cheek flaps. Parts of the helmet structure are gold-plated and, like the browband, are lavishly decorated with Christian and allegorical (grape) symbols. Remnants of the original leather lining have been preserved inside the helmet. Another rare find in Franconian graves of the early period were the heavily corroded and caked remains of chain mail . An elaborately decorated spathe with precious almandine decorations , an equally preciously decorated sax , shield, lance , throwing ax , throwing spear and several arrows in various stages of preservation completed the warrior's equipment in his grave.

In addition to other items for everyday use such as bowls, bronze basins, glass vessels or combs , a gold coin was found at head height of the corpse - as Charon penny for the ferryman to pay for the journey to the realm of the dead . It is a Byzantine solidus of Emperor Leo I (ruled from 457 to 474).

Textile remnants, like most of the skeleton, did not survive. However, fine gold threads were found in the grave, which probably belonged to the woven trimmings of a tunic or a similar item of clothing.

Scientific evaluation

Due to individual typical finds as well as the dating and duration of the solidus, the grave could be dated relatively reliably to the first third of the 6th century. The warrior buried here wore essential parts of a typical Byzantine traditional officer outfit with a spangenhelm and chain mail. The location of the grave (and thus of the nearby place of residence) near the intersection of two important Roman highways from Bingen to Worms and from Mainz to Bad Kreuznach, as well as a presumed military facility (guard station?) Underline the importance and the military-social Rank of "Prince of Planig".

Museum preparation and presentation

After salvage and restoration, all finds were presented in the Landesmuseum Mainz. Until 2010 they were scattered in individual smaller showcases and shown without an overall context. With the redesign of the collections of the Landesmuseum Mainz in 2010, the presentation of the Princely Tomb of Planig was significantly upgraded in 2010 in accordance with its importance as "one of the most important comparative finds of the early Middle Ages" . All remaining finds are now grouped together in a single exhibition room. A recreated scene with a 1.70 m tall figure of a Franconian warrior in a slightly raised stone grave with replicas of the grave goods illustrates the possible appearance of the burial. A large wall drawing behind this scene shows the burial of the "Prince of Planig" by his followers. In addition to the original finds, their restoration and the scientific knowledge gained from them are shown.

Web links

literature

  • Peter Thaddäus Keßler: Merovingian princely grave of Planig in Rheinhessen. In: Mainz magazine. Volume 35, 1940, p. 1 ff.
  • Alexandra Hilgner: The princely grave of Planig - revision of an old find. In: Mainz magazine. Volume 105, 2010, pp. 41-86.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Last rest for Prince von Planig. Cruciniacum blog from January 22, 2010, accessed on November 18, 2017.