Archaeologists working near the site of Memleben Abbey in Germany have discovered the remains of a medieval village. Two buildings, a church and a residential building, have already been unearth.
The State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt has been undertaking a large-scale research project in and around the lands of the monastery at Memleben, which was established by Emperor Otto II and his consort Theophanu around the year 979.
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The new discovery is of a fortified settlement which lies 1.2 kilometres north of the abbey. Work took place from April 2nd to May 2nd, 2024 under the direction of Dr. Felix Biermann. Geophysical prospections and the excavation provide remarkable insights into this previously completely unknown site, of which nothing can be seen above ground in the farmland.
Photo by Robert Prust / State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt
The village is rectangularly shaped, measuring 240 by 170 metres and surrounded by a rampart and ditch. Gates in the north and west were probably reinforced with stone buildings. The current archaeological excavations focus on an area to the west of the fortifications, where the impressive relics of two large stone buildings have been preserved.
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One building was a 16-meter-long, single-nave medieval church with a semicircular apse in the east and a cellar extension. The church replaced an older, smaller sacred building that was only around 8 meters long. Next to the building was a densely populated cemetery. The graves often show the head niches and stone sarcophagi characteristic of the 10th to 12th centuries.
Child burial found at the site – Photo by Felix Biermann / State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt
At a right angle to the church, a large stone residential building measuring at least 17 by 6.5 metres was found. It had very strong walls and underwent several renovations and additions over the course of its history. In the late Middle Ages, metalworkers used the ruins as workspace leaving behind a number of ovens. The settlement in the area around the stone buildings is evidenced by a pit house and various settlement pits.
The rich finds date from the 9th/10th century to the 14th century. In addition to Slavic wave-decorated ceramics and a cross enamel disk brooch from the Ottonian period, the spherical pots typical of the high and late Middle Ages, bronze knife sheath fittings, crossbow bolts, medieval silver coins, a Gothic key and a late medieval pilgrim sign depicting a crowned ruler can be highlighted.
The remains of a staircase at the church – Photo by Felix Biermann / State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt
The results already add important insights to the overall picture of the micro-region around Memleben, even if various questions cannot yet be conclusively clarified and remain to be answered by subsequent evaluation of the discvoveries and further field research.
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Of particular importance is the scientific dating of the sample material taken, from which a precise chronological classification of the stone buildings and thus a more precise contextualization in terms of settlement and cultural history can be expected. It is of great importance to clarify the relationship of the site to the Ottonian predecessor building of the monumental church of Otto II, which was found in the area of the monastery last year.
Top Image: Photo by Robert Prust / State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt
Archaeologists working near the site of Memleben Abbey in Germany have discovered the remains of a medieval village. Two buildings, a church and a residential building, have already been unearth.
The State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt has been undertaking a large-scale research project in and around the lands of the monastery at Memleben, which was established by Emperor Otto II and his consort Theophanu around the year 979.
The new discovery is of a fortified settlement which lies 1.2 kilometres north of the abbey. Work took place from April 2nd to May 2nd, 2024 under the direction of Dr. Felix Biermann. Geophysical prospections and the excavation provide remarkable insights into this previously completely unknown site, of which nothing can be seen above ground in the farmland.
The village is rectangularly shaped, measuring 240 by 170 metres and surrounded by a rampart and ditch. Gates in the north and west were probably reinforced with stone buildings. The current archaeological excavations focus on an area to the west of the fortifications, where the impressive relics of two large stone buildings have been preserved.
One building was a 16-meter-long, single-nave medieval church with a semicircular apse in the east and a cellar extension. The church replaced an older, smaller sacred building that was only around 8 meters long. Next to the building was a densely populated cemetery. The graves often show the head niches and stone sarcophagi characteristic of the 10th to 12th centuries.
At a right angle to the church, a large stone residential building measuring at least 17 by 6.5 metres was found. It had very strong walls and underwent several renovations and additions over the course of its history. In the late Middle Ages, metalworkers used the ruins as workspace leaving behind a number of ovens. The settlement in the area around the stone buildings is evidenced by a pit house and various settlement pits.
The rich finds date from the 9th/10th century to the 14th century. In addition to Slavic wave-decorated ceramics and a cross enamel disk brooch from the Ottonian period, the spherical pots typical of the high and late Middle Ages, bronze knife sheath fittings, crossbow bolts, medieval silver coins, a Gothic key and a late medieval pilgrim sign depicting a crowned ruler can be highlighted.
The results already add important insights to the overall picture of the micro-region around Memleben, even if various questions cannot yet be conclusively clarified and remain to be answered by subsequent evaluation of the discvoveries and further field research.
Of particular importance is the scientific dating of the sample material taken, from which a precise chronological classification of the stone buildings and thus a more precise contextualization in terms of settlement and cultural history can be expected. It is of great importance to clarify the relationship of the site to the Ottonian predecessor building of the monumental church of Otto II, which was found in the area of the monastery last year.
Top Image: Photo by Robert Prust / State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt
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