Attachment to the sheep's heads
The fortification on the Schafsköppen near Kallenhardt (municipality of Rüthen ) is a ground monument from the Iron Age . Dating points to a period between the 8th or 5th century and the 3rd century BC . Their function is unclear.
Research history
About one kilometer east of Kallenhardt is the Önningsberg in the Altenrüthen community forest . A plateau-like spur in the southwest is called First Sheep's Head , a little further east is the Second Sheep's Head . There are fortifications on the mentioned spur to isolate it. The systems were discovered by Eberhard Henneböle . This was a primary school teacher in Rüthen. He took the first photos of the ramparts in 1933. The system was surveyed in 1938 on behalf of the Antiquities Commission for Westphalia . In the same year Henneböle started the first excavations. He continued this on behalf of the then Westphalian State Museum for Archeology in 1951. His investigations were at the height of the archeology of the time. He published the results in a series of smaller articles.
In the following period there were no more investigations. A new measurement was only carried out in 2006. The hurricane Kyrill in 2007 destroyed many trees on the spur and also damaged the archaeological site. In 2014, a wall cut made by Henneböle was reopened to find charcoal for a C-14 measurement . In addition, the area was examined with a metal probe, without this having produced many findings.
description
An inner line of fortifications with a length of around 180 to 230 m can be seen. This turns in the south on the flank to the west and is lost there. At one point the line of defense appears to be interrupted about 20 m. Upstream is another fortification with a length of about 114 m. This consists of two wall parts , each of which is preceded by trenches. These also seem to be interrupted at one point. The two lines are not parallel and diverge in the north. The inner line encloses an area of around 1.8 hectares, the outer 2 hectares. In the northern area there is another 24 m long line between the ramparts. More recent investigations with a laser scan show that the two wall lines at the apparent gaps pass through a depression only in a strongly flattened manner. To the south of the depression, a flat wall seemed to stretch from the outer to the inner line. Parts of the spur flanks were also secured with flat walls.
It is no longer possible to reliably determine where the access to the interior was. There was possibly an entrance in the northeast corner or on the southern flank of the complex. There the walls run parallel, slightly offset from one another. This would result in a gate with overlapping wall ends. This would be comparable to other Iron Age ramparts, such as the Wittekindsburg near Porta Westfalica . The Henneböle excavations revealed that the walls were covered with wooden palisades . There were partly clear traces of fire.
The recent excavations showed that the wooden structures of the outer wall line came at least partially from two phases. Settlement pits were found inside the facility for clay extraction. They were later filled with rubbish. The finds made during the Henneböle excavations are sparse. This includes some pottery shards. The clay fragments found are from the Iron Age. A distinction can be made between two types that may come from different times. In later publications Henneböle indicated that in 1951 he would also have made finds similar to those at the Kneblinghausen Roman camp . In fact, there are corresponding shards that are said to come from the excavation of 1951. Some can be dated to the second half of the 6th to the 4th century BC. Others are newer and date from before the middle of the 1st century BC to the beginning of the Roman conquest around 12 BC. But there are doubts as to whether the surviving finds come from the fortification at Kallenhardt.
Dating
The C-14 examination from the area of the inner wall indicates a date to the 8th to 5th centuries BC. Two other samples date from the beginning of the 3rd century BC. This fits in with the dating of other ramparts in the slate mountains on the right bank of the Rhine.
interpretation
The function of the rather small system is unclear. It is unlikely to have been a refuge or a meeting place. Rather, it served to protect permanent settlement, such as a homestead. It may also have served as a control or as a path station for a proven old path connection running nearby. The scorch marks need not necessarily indicate violent destruction in combat. It could be a deliberate destruction, for example when handing over to an opponent or after leaving the facility. The burial mounds in the area were not related to the fortification, as they date from the Bronze Age . It is unclear whether and what connections there are with the finds from the Hollow Stone Cave from the 3rd century BC.
literature
- Bernhard Sicherheitsl: The fastening on the sheep's heads near Rüthen-Kallenhardt, Soest district . Münster, 2016 (= Early Castles in Westphalia , Vol. 39) Digitized version (PDF; 3.9 MB)
Coordinates: 51 ° 27 ′ 19.4 " N , 8 ° 26 ′ 47.8" E