Building a megalithic tomb on campus

2015/04/30

This event has been organized as one of the highlights of the anniversary year of Kiel University: On May 14th, students and teachers will construct a megalithic stone tomb near the main lecture hall building (Audimax). In the process, the stones weighing tons will only be moved and put in place with muscle power and simple tools as implemented in the Stone Age, when hundreds of such monuments were constructed in Schleswig-Holstein.

Building a megalithic tomb on campus

An archaeological experiment with a diverse programme of events on Assumption Day.

The megalithic tomb Wangels LA69 in Ostholstein, which has been excavated by archaeologists from Kiel in recent years, serves as a model for the joint project of the Institute of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Archaeology, the Graduate School Human Development in Landscapes and the DFG Priority Programme Early Monumentality and Social Differentiation.

Visitors to the event are also welcomed to take part in a diverse programme. At 14:00 hrs, an oxcart loaded with flint, which began in the morning at the barrow cemetery in Flintbek, will arrive at Christian-Albrechts-Platz. Members of the Archaeological-Ecological Center in Albersdorf will introduce old techniques of grain and flint processing as well as archery and weaving on a warp-weighted loom and the Graduate School will present displayed objects from the exhibition “Manipulated Landscapes”. Posters in Audimax inform guests about the eating habits of our Neolithic ancestors. At 19:00 hrs, a joint lecture will offer insights on the culture associated with the megalithic monuments. Admission to the entire event is free of charge.

Text: Jirka N. Menke