Heidengraben ("pagans' moat") is the name given to the remains of a large

Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...

fortified settlement (

oppidum An ''oppidum'' (plural ''oppida'') is a large fortified Iron Age settlement or town. ''Oppida'' are primarily associated with the Celtic late La Tène culture, emerging during the 2nd and 1st centuries BC, spread across Europe, stretchi ...

) dating to the

Iron Age The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly appl ...

, located on the plateau of the

Swabian Jura The Swabian Jura (german: Schwäbische Alb , more rarely ), sometimes also named Swabian Alps in English, is a mountain range in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, extending from southwest to northeast and in width. It is named after the region of ...

(''Schwäbische Alb'') in the districts of

Reutlingen Reutlingen (; Swabian: ''Reitlenga'') is a city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is the capital of the eponymous district of Reutlingen. As of June 2018, it has a population of 115,818. Reutlingen has a university of applied sciences, which ...

and Esslingen in

Baden-Württemberg Baden-Württemberg (; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a German state () in Southwest Germany, east of the Rhine, which forms the southern part of Germany's western border with France. With more than 11.07 million inhabitants across a ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

. The settlement was in use from the 2nd century BC to 1st century BC, during the La Tène period. By surface area, Heidengraben is the largest oppidum in all of mainland Europe.

Geography

''Heidengraben'' is situated in the municipalities of

Grabenstetten Grabenstetten is a municipality in the district of Reutlingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It lies within the area of the Celtic Heidengraben. Municipality arrangement Besides the homonymous village Grabenstetten there are no other places t ...

Hülben Hülben is a municipality in the district of Reutlingen in Baden-Württemberg in Germany. It is located next to the area of the Celtic Heidengraben. Geography Hülben is a municipality on the northern edge of the Swabian Jura, above the spa ...

and

Erkenbrechtsweiler Erkenbrechtsweiler is a municipality in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg in southern Germany. It lies within the area of the Celtic Heidengraben. Erkenbrechtsweiler is the only municipality in the district of Esslingen, whose de ...

in the districts of

and Esslingen in southern Germany. It sits on a part of the high plateau of the

at the steep escarpment known as ''Albtrauf'' which rises as much as 400 m above the foothills. This area is known as the ''Grabenstettener Halbinsel''. Height above sea level is around 700 m. The outer fortifications delineate an area of over 1,700 hectares, making this oppidum the largest known in mainland Europe. The 2.5 km long walls make strategic use of the escarpment to create this large area surrounded either by wall or steep bluff. The walls cut off the inner area from the rest of the plateau and also divide it from three sections that are hard to fortify or oversee. In front of the wall was a moat. The rampart, in parts still about 3 m high, has eight gates – variants of the late Celtic . One of them, with a 35 m long entry way, is one of the largest and best-preserved of its kind. The inner fortification, to the south-west, named ''Elsachstadt'', likely marking the core of the Celtic settlement, covers around 153 hectares. It is surrounded by part of the outer wall and another inner rampart with a double moat and three gates. Not much is known about the internal settlement structures, however, as the buildings were made of wood and the area has been subject to erosion and been used for agriculture for centuries. Only the ''Elsachstadt'' was apparently also fortified in the direction of the escarpment. Overall, there are around half a dozen wall segments visible today, varying in length from a few hundred to over 1,000 m. They are what is known as ''

Pfostenschlitzmauer A ''Pfostenschlitzmauer'' (German for "post-slot wall") is the name for defensive walls protecting Iron Age hill forts and '' oppida'' in Central Europe, especially in Bavaria and the Czech Republic. They are characterized by vertical wooden pos ...

n'' constructed of rocks, wood and earth.

History

Stone artefacts indicate that humans frequented the area from the

Ice Age An ice age is a long period of reduction in the temperature of Earth's surface and atmosphere, resulting in the presence or expansion of continental and polar ice sheets and alpine glaciers. Earth's climate alternates between ice ages and gree ...

to the 3rd millennium BC. There is some evidence that the area was inhabited since the

Neolithic The Neolithic period, or New Stone Age, is an Old World archaeological period and the final division of the Stone Age. It saw the Neolithic Revolution, a wide-ranging set of developments that appear to have arisen independently in several parts ...

period. However, findings make it more likely that it was not used for settlement by Neolithic farmers but for gaining access to . There is just one grave dating to the middle

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second pri ...

(1600-1300 BC) but several graves nearby date to the late Bronze Age and some burial mounds (with wooden chambers) are from the early

. In several locations settlement remains contemporaneous to the necropolis (late

Hallstatt period The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Western Europe, Western and Central European Archaeological culture, culture of Late Bronze Age Europe, Bronze Age (Hallstatt A, Hallstatt B) from the 12th to 8th centuries BC and Early Iron Age Europe ...

and early

La Tène period LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

) have been found in the area that later became the Heidengraben. The ''Heidengraben'' was likely created in the late La Tène period (late 2nd century BC to early 1st century BC). However, in the period of 250 to 150 BC the area seems to have been once again unpopulated. Archaeological findings indicate the presence of a simple agricultural population as well as specialized artisans (metal working, glass production). In addition, a large number of shards from Roman

amphorae An amphora (; grc, ἀμφορεύς, ''amphoreús''; English plural: amphorae or amphoras) is a type of container with a pointed bottom and characteristic shape and size which fit tightly (and therefore safely) against each other in storag ...

dating to 130 to 90 BC indicate that a significant amount of Roman wine was imported. This implies the existence of a rich elite that could afford these luxury items. No evidence of a burial site dating to the ''oppidum'' period has been discovered, but the earlier necropolis seems to have been used as a cult site and possibly for burial rituals. Why and exactly when the settlement was abandoned remains unclear. It appears that the inhabitants left it in the first half of the 1st century BC, but there is no indication of any reasons. This dating fits in with the abandonment of other oppida in that era, pointing to some fundamental changes in social, economic or political circumstances. Around 85 AD the

Romans Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy * Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...

occupied the Swabian Jura and there were some farms or ''

mansio In the Roman Empire, a ''mansio'' (from the Latin word ''mansus,'' the perfect passive participle of ''manere'' "to remain" or "to stay") was an official stopping place on a Roman road, or ''via'', maintained by the central government for the use ...

nes'' in the area. The Romans left c. 260 AD. The next signs of inhabitants date to the 7th century, when the area was settled by

Alemanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pres ...

. In the Middle Ages the area was only sparsely inhabited but some castles were constructed nearby like

Hohenneuffen Castle Hohenneuffen Castle is a large ruined castle in the northern foothills of the Swabian Alb, above the town of Neuffen in the district of Esslingen in Baden-Württemberg. Location The medieval castle is situated on a large late Jurassic rock on ...

(early 12th century) or Burg Hofen east of Grabenstein. The purpose of a medieval fortification surrounding 55 hectares to the north of ''Heidengraben'' (known as ''Bassgeige'') is still unknown. It incorporates parts of a Celtic wall but was extended in late medieval times. Several similar structures nearby (''Brucker Fels'' and ''Beurener Fels'') also served an unknown purpose.

Research

The ''Heidengraben'' is mentioned as early as the 15th century as "Haidengraben". It was first the subject of scientific studies in the 19th century. It was identified as a pre-historic rampart by (1837-1907) in a sort of guide book published by

Gustav Schwab Gustav Benjamin Schwab (19 June 1792 – 4 November 1850) was a German writer, pastor and publisher. Life Gustav Schwab was born in Stuttgart, the son of the philosopher Johann Christoph Schwab: he was introduced to the humanities early in li ...

''Die Schwäbische Alb mit besonderer Berücksichtigung der Neckarseite'' in 1878. Initially, most observers attributed the structures as Roman in origin. (1865-1929) conducted excavations that identified the structure as late Iron Age, an oppidum in the sense used by

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and ...

in his ''

Commentarii de Bello Gallico ''Commentarii de Bello Gallico'' (; en, Commentaries on the Gallic War, italic=yes), also ''Bellum Gallicum'' ( en, Gallic War, italic=yes), is Julius Caesar's firsthand account of the Gallic Wars, written as a third-person narrative. In it Ca ...

''. Hertlein also coined the name ''Elsachstadt'' based on the nearby source of the

Elsach Elsach is a river of Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It flows into the Erms in Bad Urach. See also *List of rivers of Baden-Württemberg A list of rivers of Baden-Württemberg, Germany: A * Aal * Aalbach * Aalenbach * Ablach * Ach *Acher * Ad ...

. Excavations at the burial site near the ''Burrenhof'' since the mid-19th century and in particular after 1983 have yielded significant numbers of findings, pointing to a use by some nearby settlement from the

Urnfield period The Urnfield culture ( 1300 BC – 750 BC) was a late Bronze Age Europe, Bronze Age culture of Central Europe, often divided into several local cultures within a broader Urnfield tradition. The name comes from the custom of cremat ...

(after 1200 BC) to the late Hallstatt period (6th century BC). Valuable funerary goods indicate the presence of a social elite at that time. Some of the over 30 burial mounds have been recreated after having been removed by farming and excavation work. Although there were rescue excavations at several points in 1974, 1976 and 1981, the first systematic excavations of the ''Heidengraben'' itself took place only in 1994–99. These investigated just 1% of the area inside the inner wall and found evidence of widely spaced farm estates typical of oppida. The ''Heidengraben'' offered its residents a number of advantages: It was close to very fertile land, 800 hectares of which were actually inside the outer wall. There was plenty of fresh water nearby, a rarity in the uplands of the Swabian Jura due to its permeable geology. It was located close to important long-distance trading routes, including the

Danube The Danube ( ; ) is a river that was once a long-standing frontier of the Roman Empire and today connects 10 European countries, running through their territories or being a border. Originating in Germany, the Danube flows southeast for , pa ...

and

Neckar The Neckar () is a river in Germany, mainly flowing through the southwestern state of Baden-Württemberg, with a short section through Hesse. The Neckar is a major right tributary of the Rhine. Rising in the Schwarzwald-Baar-Kreis near Schwenn ...

and the ''Albaufgänge'' (passes) connecting the two rivers. Immediately beneath Heidengraben was the ''Lenninger Tal'' offering access to

Lake Constance Lake Constance (german: Bodensee, ) refers to three Body of water, bodies of water on the Rhine at the northern foot of the Alps: Upper Lake Constance (''Obersee''), Lower Lake Constance (''Untersee''), and a connecting stretch of the Rhine, ca ...

(and later the site of a Roman road). The oppidum's inhabitants thus were well placed to profit from the trade flows passing through. In 1930, :de:Paul Reinecke equated the site with a Celtic town named ''Riusiava'' in the area of southern Germany by

Ptolemy Claudius Ptolemy (; grc-gre, Πτολεμαῖος, ; la, Claudius Ptolemaeus; AD) was a mathematician, astronomer, astrologer, geographer, and music theorist, who wrote about a dozen scientific treatises, three of which were of importanc ...

in his ''Geography''. This was later supported by Rolf Nierhaus. However, no hard evidence has been discovered actually linking this oppidum with ''Riusiava''. Similarly, theories that ''Heidengraben'' was the capital of the

Tigurini The Tigurini were a clan or tribe forming one out of four '' pagi'' (provinces) of the Helvetii. The Tigurini were the most important group of the Helvetii, mentioned by both Julius Caesar and Poseidonius, settling in the area of what is now the ...

are highly speculative.

Today

Much of the area is accessible to the public and there is an archaeological hiking trail called ''Achsnagelweg''. In Grabenstetten, there is a museum (''Keltenmuseum''). Other findings can be viewed at the museum of the

University of Tübingen The University of Tübingen, officially the Eberhard Karl University of Tübingen (german: Eberhard Karls Universität Tübingen; la, Universitas Eberhardina Carolina), is a public research university located in the city of Tübingen, Baden-Wü ...

References

External links