Archaeologists Puzzle Over Opulent Prehistoric Burial Find

Source

When archeologists recently excavated a 3,800-year-old palace near the eastern German city of Weimar, they discovered about 100 valuable weapons buried next to a massive structure. Now they are puzzling over how an ancient chieftain buried nearby became so rich.

In 1877, when archeology was still in its infancy, art professor Friedrich Klopfleisch climbed an almost nine-meter (20-foot) mound of earth in Leubingen, a district in the eastern German state of Thuringia lying near a range of hills in eastern Germany known as the Kyffhäuser. He was there to "kettle" the hill, which entailed having workers dig a hole from the top of the burial mound into the burial chamber below.

When they finally arrived at the burial chamber, everything lay untouched: There were the remains of a man, shiny gold cloak pins, precious tools, a dagger, a pot for food or drink near the man's feet, and the skeleton of a child lying across his lap.

The "prince" of Leubingen was clearly a member of the elite. Farmers who had little to eat themselves had piled up at least 3,000 cubic meters (106,000 cubic feet) of earth to fashion the burial mound. They had also built a tent-shaped vault out of oak beams and covered it with a mound of stones, as if he had been a pharaoh.

Just thought I would share this as it is another cool story that seems to be very mysterious. If there is anything better than a good old fashioned mystery, let me know.

Make sure and go the site to read the full article as it is a good one, and really does beg the question, why do this?

I wonder who this person was and why he deserved such treatment as to move 106,000 cubic feet of Earth is no small task, let alone building a structure and leaving a mound of stones.

Any thoughts?

Pred...

This just shows it's a mistake to think people only started thinking in the last several hundred years. Just because they didn't write it down doesn't mean they didn't figure it out.

Originally posted by Schkeptick
This just shows it's a mistake to think people only started thinking in the last several hundred years. Just because they didn't write it down doesn't mean they didn't figure it out.

edit on 2-7-2011 by Schkeptick because: (no reason given)

What? Last few hundred years, humans have been writing things down since more than 5000 years ago. Not only that but we've been drawing representations of surroundings and animals since at least 10000 years ago. We've found structures that were build as long as 12000 years ago.

Noone thinks that humans have only been thinking for a few hundred years. Even my dog can think. Basically every animal on this planet thinks. It may not be what we consider true logic but it is thought.

reply to post by Schkeptick


If anything, it's shows that organized crime was a smart career move even than.

Küssner estimates that the "prince" and his guards kept watch over a "radius of 80 kilometers" and profited exorbitantly as a result. He believes that chieftain's gang of extortionists provided the hatchet blades in the valuable cache as a sign of their loyalty.

Peace

reply to post by Schkeptick


Absolutely. They said that people had no idea of writing when Puma Punku was built, yet it was one of the most intricate designs on one of the hardest rocks known ot man.

I think ancient people just did these things to mess with us. I can picture it now, "lets set up these crazy things and our future civilizations will have no idea what happened". I'm kidding of course, but it would be fun to do now and the future people have no idea what happened.

Pred...

reply to post by predator0187


Then again, 10,000 years from now people, will be finding Picasso's and will be talking about the different lifeforms that existed back in our days.

reply to post by predator0187


we should totally build a weird looking megalithic building, and at the base of it inscribe, "U Mad, Bro?" Maybe that is what Khufu's stela actually said.

Regardless, interesting story in the OP.

The age of this would put it in the range when the Celtics led by the Druids disappeared into the indoeuropean population. Could this be where a chieftan died and his warriors laid down there arms at his burial and left to never return? And these same people are said to had part in stonehenge so the burial mound and structure would be a step down from stonehenge.

What I'd like to know is why they assume the child was a sacrifice? They didn't specify if there is evidence that leads to this assumption. Children died young back then too, you know... Maybe it was his child and they both died in some accident and it was only fitting that they were buried together?

Thanks for the story by the way. I'm off to find out more information about it now.

reply to post by glitch88


This is what i tend to believe, myself.

The peoples of the area have been painted as barbaric. Certainly, that reputation is well earned. But it is also a rich culture. I find it entirely probable that these two died around the same time.