Rudelsburg - Prehistory: Early Bronze Age Settlement

Prehistory: Early Bronze Age Settlement

Archaeological finds seem to indicate that an early Bronze Age settlement existed on the site of the Rudelsburg, which has been attributed to the Unetice culture. The discovery of the Nebra skydisk attracted public attention to this prehistoric civilisation and its elevated culture and provoked interest in the settlements in the region of Saxony-Anhalt and Thuringia. The political, religious and economic importance of such settlements has not yet been established, but is the focus of intense research.

The department for pre-history and early history of the Friedrich Schiller University of Jena has been conducting archaeological surveys in the area around the outer keep since 2005. The project (“The hill settlements of the micro and macro region - economic, socio-political, administrative and religious points of importance”, module A3 “Departure for new horizons. The finds of Nebra, Saxony-Anhalt and their importance for the European Bronze Age”) is supported by the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft. Below the layers of Middle Age residue, which are at times up to 3.5 metres (11 ft 6 in) deep, researchers have documented prehistoric finds in the layers of loess. The discovery of prehistoric ceramic products amongst the layers left behind in the Middle Ages however indicates considerable disturbance of the prehistoric residue and therefore also of the finds dating back to the Unetice culture. The project ended in 2007.