Viereckschanze (Langenburg)
The late Celtic Viereckschanze of Langenburg is located about 1.8 kilometers east-southeast of the urban area of the small town of the same name in Baden-Württemberg in the Schwäbisch Hall district . The archaeological monument is considered to be extremely well preserved.
location
The Viereckschanze is located on the western edge of the Strut forest on a gently undulating plateau about 480 m above sea level. NHN . The field name in Struth (Struth = street) probably refers to an old street, still in use today, called Höhweg , which runs only a few hundred meters north.
description
The facility is one of the four- cornered jumps to be found mainly in southern Germany, northeastern France and on the lower reaches of the Seine . It is roughly aligned with the cardinal points. The structure has an almost square shape and is surrounded by a pointed moat. The outer walls that were apparently present in the past are hardly recognizable. The inner wall and the surrounding ditch, on the other hand, are clearly visible in the terrain. The corners of the system are slightly raised due to the ditch being thrown up on both sides. Around 1900 the ramparts were up to 3.2 meters high and the trenches up to two meters deep. Further reinforcing entrenchments such as wattle walls or picket fences could not be verified to date (2014).
The hill is 85 meters wide on the north side, 93 meters on the west side and 80 meters on the south side. The slightly bent east side is 79 meters long. The entrance is roughly in the center of the west side. As a defense system, the ski jump could only be used to a very limited extent due to its low wall heights and ditch depths and the unfavorable location in the area.
Archaeological investigation
During an exploratory excavation in the interior in 1946, the school teacher and local researcher Emil Kost (1892–1953) discovered two graphite clay fragments decorated with combs, the edge of a pot decorated with coarse fingertips, two edge pieces of bowls with a curved edge and a small piece of chert blade. Based on these finds exhibited today in the Hällisch-Fränkisches Museum in Schwäbisch Hall , the complex is dated to the late Celtic Latène period. A final interpretation of the purpose of the system is not yet possible. It is conceivable that the ski jump served as a cult facility, as remains of small, wooden handling stamps as well as sacrificial shafts filled with remains of blood and meat, in the soles of which there were cult stakes, were found. Recent research suggests that the complex was a manor with “central functions of power, cult and judgment”.
Individual evidence
- ↑ a b c d Römisch-Germanisches Zentralmuseum Mainz (ed.): Guide to prehistoric and early historical monuments 24: Hohenloher Land, Öhringen, Jagsthausen, Künzelsau, Langenburg . Mainz 1973. pp. 216/217
- ↑ a b c Information according to the information board on the Viereckschanze.
- ↑ Pro-Region.de: Langenburg - Viereckschanze . Accessed October 2, 2014.
Coordinates: 49 ° 14 '59.3 " N , 9 ° 52' 26" E