The older LBK site of Niederkassel-Uckendorf revisited

Pottery traditions and social interaction in the earliest Neolithic of the Lower Rhine Area , 2010

In the course of a PhD thesis at the University of Cologne a total of 15 Early Neolithic (LBK) settlements in the vicinity of Königshoven (Rhineland) were studied. The examination of the preserved features and finds permitted the reconstruction of the settlement history and structure of the sites, as well as the social networks existing between the Early Neolithic settlers. One offshoot of this research was a rather detailed treatment of the technological aspects of the pottery, an otherwise neglected aspect of LBK pottery research in the Rhineland. In addition to the well known coding system for decorations the temper of the vessels and the size of its particles were recorded. An analysis of the temper showed that chronological differences exist between assemblages of the older, middle and later phases of the LBK in the Lower Rhine Basin. In fact, in some cases this approach enables the dating of LBK assemblages comprising solely undecorated vessels. Furthermore, one non-LBK vessel (Limburg pottery) from one of the sites near Königshoven is de- scribed here, although it does not deliver a basis for statistically significant comparisons.

Journal of Archaeological Science:Reports, 2019

The lack of consensus surrounding the macroscopic determination of high-quality black flint discovered at the Aldenhoven Plateau sites (Rhineland, North-Western Germany) from the beginning of the Middle Neolithic has far-reaching consequences for the anthropological understanding of the socio-cultural dynamics involved in the neolithization of North-Western Europe. This flint has been assigned to Western Belgian 'Obourg' flint type and is used as a key indicator of strong links between populations from West Belgium (Mons Basin) and the German Rhineland at the beginning of the 5th millennium BC. Here, we present an integrated study of this flint using geochemical and lithic technological approaches. This work rules out attribution of the analysed flint artefacts to the Upper Cretaceous flint sources of the Mons Basin; however, the exact origin of the black flint used in the Rhineland remains unanswered. Our results do not support the hypothesis of intensive contact between populations from West Belgium and the German Rhineland and highlights the urgent need for further combined petrographic and geochemical analyses in the region, particularly on geological samples, in order to build up an extensive and reliable comparative reference collection.

Reports for the Second Wallertheim Workshop, Tübingen, March 23-25, 1997, 1997

The remains of an Early and Middle Neolithic settlement were examined in an area of over 3000 m2 on the western edge of Gächlingen from 2001 to 2006. The site was severely threatened by modern agriculture and yielded the first ever settlement features from the Linearbandkeramik Culture found on Swiss soil. Though the structures were badly damaged by erosion and crop farming, the remains of at least 23 Neolithic buildings were uncovered. Unfortunately, the settlement history could only be partially reconstructed because many of the features had been so severely damaged during the long history of settlement and as a result of erosion, modern farming and bioturbation. This had also led to considerable commingling of the pit assemblages, which meant that it was not possible to build a detailed reconstruction of the settlement’s development. The excavations carried out so far have only uncovered a small section of the area that was originally covered by the prehistoric settlement. The surface finds that were scattered around the excavated trenches suggested that many more archaeological features must still be hidden below ground, which may yet change the current picture we have of the Neolithic settlement at Gächlingen. Judging by the Early Neolithic pottery, Gächlingen was one of the earliest examples of a farming settlement in the High Rhine area. The decorations and fabric of the Linearbandkeramik pottery suggest that the settlers had moved to Gächlingen from the River Neckar region. It is not yet clear if the indigenous people they encountered upon their arrival had already adopted the Neolithic lifestyle or whether they were still Late Mesolithic hunters and gatherers. A collection of sherds that belonged to the western European pottery tradition is of particular interest. It finds its closest parallels in the pottery of the La Hoguette type, but clearly sets itself apart, mainly by virtue of its rather peculiar decorative style. Its relative-chronological position as compared to Linearbandkeramik ware must remain open for the time being because of the problems with the archaeological context at Gächlingen. Analyses of clay samples, however, did at least show that the pottery had been made from local materials and that therefore it had not been imported in the context of cultural contacts. Whilst unfortunately we cannot make any statements about the economy (crop farming, animal husbandry) of the Gächlingen farming community because of the poor preservation conditions for organic materials, geoarchaeological examinations of soil columns showed that the Early Neolithic soils in the Klettgau region had probably not been overly fertile. It would therefore have required a significant effort on the part of the settlers to produce a good yield. Numerous lithic artefacts recovered from the site provided a rare glimpse into how the natural resources that were available in the region had been used at the time. This allowed us to make a detailed reconstruction of the use of flint deposits available in the region. Thanks to extensive geological surveys carried out on site and subsequent microfacial analyses it was possible to localise and characterise the individual deposits quite closely. We were also able to almost completely reconstruct the chaîne opératoire of flint production. The most striking insight was that the Gächlingen farming community had obviously used various deposits and had worked the raw materials using techniques specifically modified to suit the local flint. Another very interesting discovery was that raw materials from deposits south of the River Rhine had been processed at Gächlingen, which suggests that there were functioning communication networks in the region. The evidence also suggested that surplus was produced at the site, which could have been supplied to neighbouring regions. The analysis of the rock artefacts yielded interesting information. The raw material used to make the axe blades, for instance, does not appear to have been sourced locally. The closest deposits were located in the Hegau region (basalt) and in the southern Black Forest area (so-called knotenschiefer or nodular shale). Other materials may have been brought to Gächlingen from even further afield. The raw materials used to make querns or grinding stones, on the other hand, came from local natural deposits, from the area around Schleitheim and the neighbouring Wutach Valley, just under 5 km from the site as the crow flies. Unworked quernstone blanks found at the settlement suggest that large stones had been brought to the site as raw or half-finished objects which were then further worked on site to create serviceable implements. Numerous pieces of evidence suggested that Gächlingen must have played an important role within the Early Neolithic regional settlement landscape; the site may even have served as a central place. Besides the Linearbandkeramik settlement traces, remains of Middle Neolithic, Urnfield-period, La Tène-period, Roman and early medieval settlements also came to light on the western edge of Gächlingen. Certain sherds could also point to the presence of a Late Neolithic settlement. The intensive settlement activity on site shows that over the course of several thousand years Gächlingen was one of the most favoured places to settle in the region and that the choice of location for the first settlement had obviously not been a coincidence. Although it was not possible due to the poor preservation conditions to answer numerous questions regarding the chronology and history of the settlement, the finds and features from Gächlingen have nevertheless allowed us to gain considerable new insight into the lifestyle of the earliest farmers in the High Rhine region. A completely new light has thus been shone on the Neolithisation of the northern foothills of the Alps. Future discoveries and research will complete this rather sketchy picture and extend the chapter on the changeover from a hunter-gatherer lifestyle to one of sedentary farming with the addition of numerous important aspects as yet unknown.

One of the most popular recent research themes in the early historical archaeology of southern Scandinavia and northern central Europe is the character and development of trade and communication, and the way these aspects are reflected in settlements and material culture. Until recently, little was known about the northwest German coastal area with regard to ‘trading centres’. This undetailed picture is starting to change. As a result of metal detecting, field surveys and excavations, knowledge on the habitation of this region in the 1st millennium A. D. and its relations to other regions is rapidly increasing. One of the most notable sites is Elsfleth-Hogenkamp (Lower Saxony). This site is the subject of the monograph published by Kai Mückenberger, which is reviewed here.

Journal of Archaeology in the Low Countries, 2012

This article concerns the distribution of LBK adzes and post LBK Rössen Keile in the Lower Rhine Basin. In the Rössen stage contacts are more intensive and Keile are distributed over a wide area. Two distinct spheres of influence can be distinguished. In the south of the Lower Rhine Basin no Keile are found, indicating no eastern contact with the Rössen communities in the Rhineland. In the middle and north there is an eastern, Rössen sphere of influence, visible by the distribution of Keile north of the line Amsterdam-Liège. The function of Keile in Mesolithic territory is hard to specify. Based on wear traces an identical use as in Rössen territory can be proposed in which working wood was the main activity. They may have had a complementary role as club heads for hunting and warfare or as prestigious symbols. Repairs of shaft holes in a Mesolithic pecking technique and the presence of possible imitations in the form of Spitzhauen are indications that contacts between the hunter-gatherers and agrarian communities were limited and not direct.

Beiträge zur Ur- und Frühgeschichte Mitteleuropas, 2019