Focus on the Mesolithic

As part of the DFG project “Mesolithic in Northwest Germany”, the NIhK is shedding light on the living situation of the last hunter-gatherer societies in the area of ​​the ancient moraines of Lower Saxony. The focus is on the use of the landscape by Mesolithic people five to ten thousand years ago and their relationship to rivers, lakes and moors.

The NIhK archaeologists are currently investigating Dr. Svea Mahlstedt and Jeffrey König are supporting technicians and students to discover a particularly exciting site on the edge of the Upper Wümme area in the Harburg district.

The site in Groß Todtshorn has long been known through finds on a field surface. It has a wide range of stone tools found and, due to its location on the edge of the peat bog in the Upper Wümme lowland, is predestined for particularly good preservation in the moist soil area. In the adjacent, waterlogged peat, organic remains of human activities from the Stone Age may have been preserved. In addition to the typical flint finds, the researchers are hoping to find objects made of wood and bones as well as plant remains that can provide information about the diet and economy of people many thousands of years ago.

In addition, the region around Todtshorn could have been something like a Stone Age meeting place: in the area, various rivers and streams flow towards both the Elbe and the Weser. Since rivers are considered orientation and transport routes in Stone Age forests, archaeologists always find sites on watersheds particularly exciting.

Guests are welcome to the excavation on August 20, 2024 from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. The site is located west of Groß Todtshorn on the connection between Freundentalsweg and Moorweg.