The Ipf is a mostly treeless mountain ( high), near
Bopfingen
Bopfingen ( Swabian: ''Bopfeng'') is a small city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is situated in the Ostalbkreis, between Aalen and Nördlingen. It consists of the city Bopfingen itself and its suburbs Aufhausen, Baldern, Flochberg, Kerkin ...
,
Ostalbkreis
The Ostalbkreis is a Districts of Germany, ''Landkreis'' (district) in the east of Baden-Württemberg, Germany, on the border to Bavaria. Neighboring districts are (from the north clockwise) Schwäbisch Hall (district), Schwäbisch Hall, Ansbach ( ...
,
Baden-Württemberg
Baden-Württemberg ( ; ), commonly shortened to BW or BaWü, is a states of Germany, 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 i ...
,
Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
, with a prehistoric
hill fort
A hillfort is a type of fortification, fortified refuge or defended settlement located to exploit a rise in elevation for defensive advantage. They are typical of the late Bronze Age Europe, European Bronze Age and Iron Age Europe, Iron Age. So ...
on its top.
The fort is situated on an
isolated hill, with a flattened summit surrounded by a stone wall,
ditch
A ditch is a small to moderate trench created to channel water. A ditch can be used for drainage, to drain water from low-lying areas, alongside roadways or fields, or to channel water from a more distant source for plant irrigation. Ditches ...
and large
counterscarp
A scarp and a counterscarp are the inner and outer sides, respectively, of a ditch or moat used in fortifications. Attackers (if they have not bridged the ditch) must descend the counterscarp and ascend the scarp. In permanent fortifications, the ...
(outer bank). The overall diameter is about . Extensive
ramparts traverse the slopes to protect a large enclosed area and entranceway. There is evidence of occupation from the
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...
(
Urnfield culture
The Urnfield culture () 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 cremation, cremating the dead and placin ...
) through the
Iron Age
The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...
to the early
Celt
The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...
ic
La Tene period, a span of almost a thousand years (1200 BC – 300 BC). The summit was already levelled, fortified and densely settled in the Urnfield period. During the early Iron Age
Hallstatt
Hallstatt () is a small town in the district of Gmunden District, Gmunden, in the Austrian state of Upper Austria. Situated between the southwestern shore of Hallstätter See and the steep slopes of the Dachstein massif, the town lies in the Sa ...
period and into the early
La Tène period the Ipf was an important 'princely seat' – a regional centre of power and aristocratic residence with long-distance trade connections, including with Greece and Italy.
Gallery
File:Ipf , Bopfingen - panoramio.jpg, Ipf mountain
File:Ipf-bei-Bopfingen 21.04.2012.JPG, View showing remains of fortifications
File:Luftipf.JPG, Aerial view
File:Ipf Wall.jpg, Remains of fortifications
File:Ipf Hanggraben.jpg, Remains of fortifications
File:Wall und Graben , Bopfingen - panoramio.jpg, Remains of fortifications
File:Ipf Befestigungssystem.png, Diagram of fortifications
File:Rekonstruierte Pfostenschlizmauer am Ipf bei Bopfingen.JPG, Reconstructed fortification wall/ rampart of the early La Tene period (5th century BC)
File:Ipf Archäologische Freilichtanlage.jpg, Reconstruction of rampart and building (left)
See also
*
Urnfield culture
The Urnfield culture () 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 cremation, cremating the dead and placin ...
*
Hallstatt culture
The Hallstatt culture was the predominant Western Europe, Western and Central European archaeological culture of the Late Bronze Age Europe, Bronze Age (Hallstatt A, Hallstatt B) from the 12th to 8th centuries BC and Early Iron Age Europe (Hallst ...
*
La Tene culture
LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second most populous city in the United States of America.
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 Smi ...
*
Heuneburg
The Heuneburg is a prehistoric Celtic hillfort by the river Danube in Hundersingen near Herbertingen, between Ulm and Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, in the south of Germany, close to the modern borders with Switzerland and Austria. It is consid ...
*
Hochdorf Chieftain's Grave
The Hochdorf Chieftain's Grave is a richly-furnished Celtic burial chamber near Hochdorf an der Enz (municipality of Eberdingen) in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, dating from 530 BC in the Hallstatt culture period. It was discovered in 1968 by a ...
*
Hohenasperg
Hohenasperg, located in the federal state of Baden-Württemberg near Stuttgart, Germany, of which it is administratively part, is an ancient fortress and prison overlooking the town of Asperg.
It was an important Celtic oppidum, and a number of ...
*
Glauberg
The Glauberg is a Celtic hillfort or oppidum in Hesse, Germany consisting of a fortified settlement and several burial mounds, "a princely seat of the late Hallstatt and early La Tène periods."
Archaeological discoveries in the 1990s place t ...
*
Vix Grave
The Vix Grave is a burial mound near the village of Vix in northern Burgundy. The broader site is a prehistoric Celtic complex from the Late Hallstatt and Early La Tène periods, consisting of a fortified settlement and several burial mounds.
...
*
Burgstallkogel
*
Ipf bei Bopfingen German-language wikipedia page with more information
*
Alte Burg (Langenenslingen)
*
Magdalenenberg
Magdalenenberg is the name of an Iron Age tumulus near the city of Villingen-Schwenningen in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. It is considered the largest tumulus from the Hallstatt period in Central Europe with a volume of 33.000 cubic meters.
His ...
*
Lavau Grave
The Lavau Grave is princely burial dating to the middle of the 5th century BC, located by the town of Lavau, Aube, Lavau in the Aube department of north-central France.
The grave was discovered in 2014. Excavations revealed a chariot burial contai ...
*
Oppidum of Manching
External links
Mount Ipf in southern Germany. The fortification, spatial organization and territory of a “Princely Seat” of the Early Iron Age (Krause 2021)Crossing the Alps: Early Urbanism between Northern Italy and Central Europe (900-400 BC), Edited by Lorenzo Zamboni, Manuel Fernández-Götz & Carola Metzner-Nebelsick (2020)Includes a visual reconstruction of the Ipf hillfort.
References
Ostalbkreis
Former populated places in Germany
Mountains and hills of Baden-Württemberg
Hill forts in Germany
{{BadenWürttemberg-struct-stub