Ringwall Altkönig

from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Ringwall Altkönig
Inner wall in the southeast area

Inner wall in the southeast area

Creation time : Springtime La Tène
Castle type : Hilltop castle
Conservation status: Ground monument
Standing position : unknown
Place: Kronberg
Geographical location 50 ° 12 '44 "  N , 8 ° 28' 58"  E Coordinates: 50 ° 12 '44 "  N , 8 ° 28' 58"  E
Height: 798.2  m above sea level NHN
Ringwall Altkönig (Hesse)
Ringwall Altkönig

The Altkönig ring wall is a prehistoric fortification in the Taunus . It is located in the Hochtaunuskreis on the top of the Altkönig , the third highest mountain in the Taunus at 798  m , and is dated to the early La Tène period (around 400 BC). Carriers of the Latène culture are those since the 5th century BC. In Greek, later also in Roman sources mentioned Celts .

Location and description

The western wall of the annex
Outer wall in the eastern area 2015
Inner wall gate looking west; 2015

The Altkönig is located on the southeastern edge of the Taunus. Its prominent hilltop represents the dominant height of the entire Vordertaunus . Visible from afar, it towers over the southern Wetterau as well as the Main Plain .

The ring wall encloses the summit of the Old King. It consists of a double wall of approximately oval shape. In the south-west there is an annex , which secures a spring that is still flowing today. The facility covers an area of ​​26 hectares, with 11 hectares in the annex. The walls, made of Taunus quartzite , have a length of 950 m (inner ring) or 1390 m (outer ring) and are between 50 m and 80 m apart. In its original form, the wall length of the Annex was 1000 m. The outer wall had two gates, one in the southeast and one in the southwest into the annex. The gates were specially secured by overlapping wall ends. Today there is a 60 m wide gap between the southern connection of the annex to the outer wall. It is not known whether there was a gate here. The inner wall had only a single gate, which was in the east. This was simpler and has no wall overlap. The ramparts originally represented a dry stone wall of the Altkönig-Preist type . The name is based on the fact that the present construction of a post-slot wall was first researched on the Altkönig and parallel to this in Preist . The inner wall was between 6.2 m and 6.5 m wide, the outer about 4.0 m.

There are slight traces of fortification within the inner ramparts. However, there is no knowledge at all about this.

function

Parts of the inner wall with minimal remains of masonry

The exact function of the system is not clear. A use of the annex as well as the outer ring as a refuge seems conceivable. In other, more or less similar buildings, princes' seats at the time could be proven. This also seems likely for the Altkönig ring wall. The only sparse found material , as well as the lack of distinct settlement layers, allow the conclusion that the facility was only used by a few people. The complex was probably only able to protect larger groups of people for a short time. There are no finds from the early Roman or late La Tène periods, which suggests that the complex here had already fallen apart.

Research history

Celtic post slot wall

Excavations were carried out in 1882/83 by Karl August von Cohausen (1812–1894) and in 1894 and 1911 by Christian Ludwig Thomas (1848–1913). The available findings are essentially based on these excavations. A bronze animal fibula is remarkable . In the course of the excavations, the principle of the post slot wall was researched.

Later uses and mentions

  • In the 16th century Erasmus Alberus reported in poetry about the "old Mawern" of the old king.
  • When the French troops of General Custine from Mainz undertook raids in the area in 1792 , the locals took refuge in the ramparts and set up their huts here.
  • Allegedly, a late Roman coin was also found inside the ramparts. How such a find is to be interpreted is unclear.

Monument protection

The area of ​​the ramparts in the Altkönig ring wall is a ground monument according to the Hessian Monument Protection Act . Research and targeted collection of finds require prior approval. Incidental finds are to be reported to the monument authorities.

The wall bears the international symbol for the marking of cultural property according to the Hague Convention.

gallery

  • View of an excavation site


literature

Web links

Commons : Keltenwall Altkönig  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Erasmus Alberus, Von eim old Ziegochssen, and eim young Mestochssen, or Weydochssen in The Fables of Erasmus Alberus , lines 118–152. ( Online )
  2. ↑ Rheinischer Kurier of July 18, 1883