AV 70, 2019: Marko MELE

ARHEOLOŠKI VESTNIK

ARHEOLOŠKI VESTNIK 70, 2019

Marko MELE
contribution: Branko Mušič, Barbara Horn

Settlements in the Sulm River valley during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age – new research of the Universalmuseum Joanneum, Graz

Abstract

For almost 175 years, the site Kleinklein near Großklein in the valley of the Sulm River has been synonymous as one of the most famous sites from the Early Iron Age in Europe. The bronze mask and hands, bell-shaped armour, and figural decorated vessels with punctuation are masterpieces of the archaeological collection in the Joanneum, which has been conducting diverse research since the very discovery of the site. In 2010, we started new archaeological landscape research in the Sulm River Basin, which includes analyses of lidar images and aerial photographs, geophysical research, field measurements and archaeological excavations with archaeobotanical and archaeozoological analyses. In the course of these studies, in 2015, we discovered and explored the burnt ruins of a building that dates to the Early Iron Age. With this discovery, we obtained the first data on the prehistoric buildings at Burgstallkogel near Großklein. In 2017, new research on the landscape around the Iron Age centre at Burgstallkogel started, in particular on the 4.5 km distant fortified settlement on Königsberg near Heimschuh.

Keywords: Styria, Großklein, Kleinklein, Burgstallkogel, Königsberg, Early Iron Age, settlements, tumuli

Article (pdf)