Before diving into the subject, it should be clarified that the dates of the Iron Age in Scandinavia do not correspond with those of other regions such as the Mediterranean or the Near East. In Scandinavia, the Iron Age began around 500 B.C. and extended at least until 800 A.D., when the Viking Age began. […]
Germany
Posted inCulture, History
Go, the Oldest Continuously Played Board Game to Date
Born in Berthelsdorf (Saxony, before German unification) in the mid-19th century, Oskar Korschelt had barely reached adulthood when he accepted a position as a chemistry professor at the Tokyo Medical College, later working for the Japanese government and industry. He spent almost a decade in the land of the rising sun, enough time to develop […]
Posted inModern Era
The German General who Died Dressed in Tutu and Crown of Roses Dancing for the Kaiser
A deep shock must have seized those attending the party at Donaueschingen Castle on the night of November 14, 1908. There, in the middle of the ballroom, in the presence of Kaiser Wilhelm II, lay the body of a high-ranking German Empire general, Dietrich von Hülsen-Haeseler, who had just suffered a heart attack. This might […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
Turtle Shells from 50,000 Years Ago Carried as “Living Provisions” by Early Humans or Neanderthals During the Last Ice Age, Found in Germany
Numerous gravel quarries in the middle Elbe valley near Magdeburg have already yielded many significant archaeological discoveries from the period between the Middle Pleistocene (Weichselian glaciation) and the modern era. At the Barleben-Adamsee gravel quarry, in addition to flint tools, five fragments of turtle shells between 42,000 and 50,000 years old have been found. These […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
The sculpture of a snake-bodied deity, a hybrid from Roman-Germanic mythology, found at the Roman fort of Stuttgart
Excavations have been ongoing since the beginning of the year at the Roman fort of Altenburger Steige in Bad Cannstatt, the oldest area in the city of Stuttgart, under the supervision of experts from the State Office for Monument Preservation (LAD) of the Stuttgart Regional Council. The archaeologists are investigating the expansion works of the […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
Analysis of Schöningen Spears, the Oldest Complete Ones Preserved, Reveals Advanced Wood Processing Techniques 300,000 Years Ago
Back in 1994, something incredible happened during archaeological digs at an open-pit coal mine in Schöningen. Archaeologists found the oldest complete hunting weapons ever discovered, ancient spears and a throwing stick buried alongside old animal bones near a lake, about ten meters deep. Over the following years, they dug up a bunch of wooden pieces […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
Roman Fort Remnants Uncovered in Aachen, Germany
Construction crews doing utility work in Aachen, Germany, uncovered the remnants of a late Roman fort from nearly 2,000 years ago. Experts were called in to excavate and analyze the archaeological finds beneath the Pontstrasse street. You don’t often get the chance to glimpse almost two millennia of history without any filters, remarked city planner […]
Posted inStone Age Archaeology
Burial Mounds with a Ritual Path and a Neolithic Chariot Tomb Found in Magdeburg
Near Magdeburg, an industrial area is being developed for the US chip manufacturer Intel. Archaeologists from the Saxony-Anhalt State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology (LDA) have been investigating the area since 2023. The work will be completed in April 2024, months before construction of the first two semiconductor plants begins. The investigations have once […]
Posted inScience
Researchers Identify World’s Oldest Long-Necked Sea Dinosaur
A team of international scientists, led by paleontologists from the Stuttgart Natural History Museum, has made a remarkable discovery that sheds new light on the early evolution of long-necked marine dinosaurs. The fossil in question, known as Trachelosaurus fischeri, was first described in the early 20th century and has been a subject of debate among […]
Posted inClassical Archaeology
First-Ever Discovery of “Pila Fossata”, Intact Defensive Wooden Stakes of the Roman Army in Germany
After successfully concluding archaeological research campaigns at two Roman military camps near Bad Ems, the findings and discoveries have been presented to the public in Mainz. For the first time, researchers have managed to recover sharply pointed wooden stakes from a Roman defensive trench (1st century AD) virtually intact. So far, this defense technique and […]
