Meisterschwanden – Erlenhölzli

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Underwater photo (1996): erosion edge with broken culture layer block

Meisterschwanden – Erlenhölzli refers to an archaeological site in Meisterschwanden in the Swiss canton of Aargau . It is located about 80 m from the shores of Lake Hallwil . It is a lakeside settlement (also called Pfahlbauerdorf or Palafitte) from the Neolithic Age (4th to 3rd millennium BC). The site is not designated as a World Heritage Site, but is recognized and protected as an associated site of the UNESCO World Heritage Site « Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps ».

Discovery and Exploration

The settlement site was probably discovered in 1911 when the Hallwilersee had an extraordinarily low water level. A pile field that was visible at the time stood out about 80 m from the bank as a shoal in the water. The approximate size of the settlement is said to have been 85 m × 25 m. Numerous ceramic, bone and stone finds were recovered in 1911. These show the settlement area as being from the Neolithic Age .

From 1920 Reinhold Bosch examined the site more closely. So he opened some exploratory holes. According to a profile sketch by Bosch, a 10 to 50 cm thick layer of “reed peat” lay beneath a thin layer of sand, which contained numerous finds. This was followed by a layer of sea ​​chalk more than 4 m thick (without any further culture layers).

During a period of collecting activity from 1970 to 1985, additional found material was collected during various dives (Schamböck collection).

Since 1996, the remains of the settlement have been regularly checked by research divers on behalf of the Aargau Canton Archeology . Some finds will be exhibited today (2019) in the Burghalde Museum in Lenzburg .

Findings and dating

Ceramic vessel from the Neolithic period decorated with punctures

Most of the finds come from the three “collector periods” (from 1911, from 1920 and from 1970) as readings without a more precisely documented find context. The main part consists of a few hundred, often small fragments, ceramic shards, artifacts and waste material made of flint and bone, a large number of stone ax blades , a few deer antler artifacts and a few wooden objects such as scoops, spoons and a fragment of an arrow bow.

According to Othmar Wey, the found material “does not make a very homogeneous impression”. Precise dating is therefore not possible. Basically, Wey considers the Erlenhölzli to be populated from the late Cortaillod culture to the time of the Horgen culture . The latter is dominant for Wey. The Neolithic lakeside settlement thus dates from between 3900 and 2400 BC. Chr.

In addition, artifacts were found that would hardly be expected in this area. These include a fragment of what is known as a battle ax with a flat neck and a bowl with a puncture pattern made of horizontal and wavy lines. Parallels can be found in the Pfyner culture in eastern Switzerland.

The settlement type lakeside settlement

Lakeside settlements are archaeologically particularly valuable sites, since in the moist soil environment, residues made of organic material are preserved, for example timber and organic waste that z. B. arise during the preparation and consumption of food (see conservation conditions for organic material ). The wooden structures can be dated particularly well using dendrochronology . However, the cultural layers are very sensitive and threatened by various human and natural influences.

The settlement type of the lakeside settlement appeared in the early Neolithic around 4500 BC. BC and disappeared at the end of the Bronze Age around 850–800 BC. It was widespread on the banks of the lake and in moor areas on both sides of the Alps. The largest number was found in the Swiss plateau . The Neolithic and Bronze Age settlement remains are villages that were built by the first farmers and ranchers in this region (see Neolithic Revolution ).

One of the main reasons why the Neolithic and Bronze Age farmers built their villages on dry-fallen beach slabs of lakes or moorlands was probably the search for a permanent watering hole in times of relative drought. In addition, the soft, hardly overgrown building site was likely to have been an incentive, as it allowed wooden stakes to be driven into the ground to support the roof and walls of the houses.

If the lake level rose as a result of a deterioration in the climate, the flooded settlement was abandoned or relocated to a higher area. The culture layer and the organic remains were then preserved by the water and the silt.

See also

literature

Archaeological reports:

  • Scoreboard for Swiss Antiquities. New episode : pile dwellings in Lake Hallwylersee. Volume 13, 1911, p. 303. ( Online )
  • Annual report of the Swiss Society for Prehistory :
    • Volume 4, 1911, pp. 53-55. ( Online )
    • Volume 5, 1912, pp. 106-107. ( Online )
    • Volume 13, 1921, pp. 34-35. ( Online )
    • Volume 15, 1923, pp. 50-51. ( Online )
    • Volume 16, 1924, pp. 38-39. ( Online )
    • Volume 17, 1925, p. 37. ( Online )
    • Volume 18, 1926, p. 42. ( Online )
    • Volume 19, 1927, pp. 41-42. ( Online )
    • Volume 20, 1928, p. 27. ( Online )
    • Volume 21, 1929, pp. 43-44. ( Online )
    • Volume 22, 1930, p. 29. ( Online )
  • Announcements of the Antiquarian Society in Zurich Volume 29, 1921–1924, Issue 4: Article: Pfahlbauten. Tenth Report , p. 218. ( Online )

Further reading:

  • Marion Itten: The Horgen culture. (= Monographs on the prehistory and early history of Switzerland, Volume 17) Basel, 1970, in particular pp. 18, 36, 75 and plates 6, 12, 13.
  • Othmar Wey: Lakeside settlements on the Hallwiler and Baldeggersee. In: Markus Höneisen et al. (Ed.): The first farmers. Pile construction finds in Europe. Research reports on the exhibition in the Swiss National Museum and on the adventure park / exhibition on pile building land in Zurich. Volume 1: Switzerland. Swiss National Museum Zurich, 1990, p. 286.
  • Othmar Wey: The Cortaillod culture in Central Switzerland. Studies on ceramics and deer antler material. Cantonal archeology Lucerne, 2001, especially pp. 118–119.

Web links

Commons : Meisterschwanden – Erlenhölzli  - collection of images, videos and audio files
  • Meisterschwanden community: history (accessed on July 22, 2019)
  • Meisterschwanden municipality: pile dwellings (accessed on July 24, 2019)
  • Felix Müller: Meisterschwanden. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland . October 23, 2008 version (accessed July 23, 2019).

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland.
  2. ↑ a b c community of Meisterschwanden: pile dwellings .
  3. ↑ a b c Wey: The Cortaillod culture in Central Switzerland. 2001, pp. 118-119.
  4. ↑ a b c d e Wey: Lakeside settlements on the Hallwiler and Baldeggersee. 1990, p. 286.
  5. ^ Annual report of the Swiss Society for Prehistory: Volume 4, 1911, pp. 53-55; Volume 5, 1912, pp. 106-107.
  6. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland. Pp. 2-3.
  7. ^ A b c Pierre Corboud, Philipp von Cranach: Ufersiedlungen. In: Historical Lexicon of Switzerland .
  8. ^ Corboud, Schaeren: The pile dwellings of Switzerland. Pp. 8-10.

Coordinates: 47 ° 16 '41 "  N , 8 ° 13' 39.7"  E ; CH1903:  659701  /  236650