Grave field on the Spöllberg

The grave field on Spöllberg (Hochdt. Spielberg) is located northwest of Nordhorn and south of Gölenkamp , on a heather with juniper trees in the Grafschaft Bentheim district in Lower Saxony .

The burial ground consists of eight barrows , the central hill of which stands out due to its height of 2.5 m. The smallest, in the north, is only 60 cm high. The other hills stand out in the terrain with more pronounced arches. During mostly unsystematic excavations and during the excavation by JH Müller in 1877, finds and findings were repeatedly made on the Spöllberg , their chronological classifications ranging from the late Neolithic (rock ax of the individual grave culture ) to the end of the Bronze Age or the beginning of the Iron Age .

A sensational find came to light during sand excavations in 1840. A golden cup filled with black earth was found, the lid of which was placed over a vessel filled with white sand that had broken during the rescue. It was bought by Prince Ludwig zu Bentheim-Steinfurt (1812–1890). The conical cup, which has become famous as the “gold cup from Gölenkamp”, is 11 cm high (14.0 cm mouth diameter) and weighs 255 grams. There are four narrow beads running around the edge. Below there are three circumferential rows of humps with thicker ridges that are separated by smooth rings. The lower third of the wall is smooth. The base is decorated with three concentric grooves.

The analysis of the filling material of the gold cup and the ceramic vessel revealed residues of burnt human bones and hair remains as well as starch grains, which indicates a cremation. The dating of the gold vessel, which was initially referred to as the oldest in Central Europe, turns out to be difficult, as there is no parallel in the fund of prehistoric metal and especially gold vessels that takes into account the design and shape elements. Most researchers assume, due to the morphological characteristics and the thick walls, that the find originated in the early Bronze Age. S. Fröhlich considers a younger Bronze Age dating to be possible.

literature

• Siegfried Fröhlich: The burial mound field on the Spöllberg, municipality of Gölenkamp, ​​county of Bentheim. Location of the golden cup. In: Publication series Kulturregion Osnabrück of the Landschaftsverband Osnabrück e. V. Volume 5. Rasch, Bramsche 1992, ISBN 3-922469-72-8 .

Web links

• Brief description on uelsen.de

Coordinates: 52 ° 30 ′ 10 ″  N , 6 ° 54 ′ 53 ″  E