New archaeological discoveries at Pömmelte provide insights into life at the 3rd millennium BC circular enclosure
The 3rd millennium BC (Bell Beaker Culture) circular enclosure (ring sanctuary) at Pömmelte is often called the German Stonehenge. Between 2018-2022 large-scale archaeological excavations focused on the surroundings of the sanctuary, leading not only to the discovery of houses contemporary to the enclosure, but also of an Early Bronze Age (Únětice Culture) mega settlement with more than 100 houses. Current excavations are now adding more detail to a complex ritual and settlement landscape. Not only could new houses of the Bell Beaker Culture be detected; a variety of scientific methods applied to the finds provides inter alia insights into what people ate and drank at Pömmelte.
From 2018 to 2022, the area surrounding the circular enclosure of Pömmelte was in the focus of large-scale research excavations. This year's archaeological investigations by the State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology (LDA) Saxony-Anhalt are dedicated to areas to the northeast and northwest of the ring sanctuary. The results add to the knowledge of settlement structures surrounding the enclosure. With three new houses from the Bell Beaker period uncovered, the predecessor of the early Bronze Age Únětice Culture mega-settlement can now be addressed as the largest of its kind in Central Germany. A total of 12 buildings are spread over around 39,000 square meters in the immediate vicinity of the sanctuary. It is probably the builders of the sanctuary who lived in these houses in the 24th century BC.
The identification of the houses of the even older Corded Ware Culture is still pending. These people had created a small, square sanctuary and also buried their deceased on site, as evidenced by a new, unfortunately poorly preserved burial. A settlement pit that has now been discovered reflects a classic spectrum of waste disposal with the fragments of two pottery vessels, a completely spent stone axehead and flint blades. It could be a further indication of nearby settlement structures that are now lost. Until now, the Corded Ware Culture settlement could only be spatially delineated by the distribution of individual pottery fragments.
This year, the production areas of the developed Corded Ware Culture (26th to 23rd centuries BC) could be further examined. A storage area, which has a total of 78 grain silos, must have held tons of grain. A single pit of about 1 meter depth has a capacity of about 1.5 cubic meters. This corresponds to around 1,000 kilograms of grain. With a modern per capita grain consumption of around 100 kilograms per year, the contents of this silo complex could easily have fed 780 adults for a year. The few rests of grain remaining in the pits were identified archaeobotanically and show a wide range of cereals that were once cultivated at the ring sanctuary: predominantly wheat (Triticum aevestivum/durum/turigidum), but also barley (Hordeum vulgare) and spelt (Triticum spelta).
But the Corded Ware people in Central Germany did not eat a vegetarian or vegan diet. In a recently published study on lipid analyzes on ceramic vessels, fats identified in the typical beakers and amphorae of the 3rd millennium BC were predominantly found to be from ruminants (e.g. cattle) or 'non-ruminants' (e.g. pig), which suggests a balanced diet with animal products (A. Breu/R. Risch/E. Molina/S. Friederich/H. Meller/F. Knoll [2024], Pottery spilled the beans: Patterns in the processing and consumption of dietary lipids in Central Germany from the Early Neolithic to the Bronze Age. PLoS ONE 19[5]: e0301278. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0301278). Livestock breeding and processing is also evidenced by the range of animal bones from the complexes, most of which come from cattle. The same applies to the subsequent Bell Beaker Culture. Ten drinking vessels from as many graves in Pömmelte were analyzed here, all of which contained dairy products. For the Únětice Culture, which started around 2250 BC, the fat residues are more variable; here the characteristic cups appear to have been used for a wide variety of drinks and foods. According to the first isotope analyses on Únětice burials in Pömmelte, there are also three individuals who preferred a meat-free or low-meat diet.
“The outstanding results that the years of intensive investigation of the settlement in the area around the ring sanctuary have yielded once again demonstrate the outstanding importance of this place, which extends far beyond the borders of Saxony-Anhalt,” said State Parliament President Dr. Gunnar Schellenberger visiting the excavation. “I would like to thank the LDA for carrying out this research at a top international level and for allowing the public to participate in it.” State archaeologist Prof. Dr. Harald Meller adds: “This research project shows what is possible when digging and sampling can be carried out under perfect conditions. For the scientific analyses, the LDA can rely on renowned cooperation partners from a Europe-wide research network."
While the scientific analyses and the interpretation of the results continue with various specialists, excavations will continue in Pömmelte until mid-July 2024. This year's excavation areas west and east of the ring sanctuary amount to 'only' 8,150 square meters. The work is carried out even more carefully than the high standards of the LDA already require, as the investigation not only serves research, but also the qualification of the next generation of skilled workers. The areas have been used since mid-April to train the two future certified excavation technicians working at the LDA.
The most important findings from the interdisciplinary and international research at the Pömmelte ring sanctuary and its surroundings will also be incorporated into the permanent exhibition of the State Museum of Prehistory Halle (Saale) in the future. They are expected to be presented in the newly designed Early Bronze Age exhibition room from summer 2025.
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