Sensational find in Altenberge: 4,500-year-old Stone Age relics discovered!

Sensational find in Altenberge: 4,500-year-old Stone Age relics discovered!

Things are currently going really well in Altenberge, a charming town in the Steinfurt district. Larger construction projects are on the agenda there, which include single, semi-detached, terraced and multi-family houses. The first new homes will be built in late summer. The development work for roads and lines is currently in full swing. But it's not just excavators and construction workers who are active - the archaeologists from the Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (LWL) have also uncovered an exciting chapter of history, as derwesten.de reports.

As part of this construction work, some remarkable finds came to light. The archaeologists have discovered a fragment of a flint blade that is around 4,500 years old and dates back to the late Neolithic period. Remains of arrowheads were also unearthed, indicating the skillful skills of the tool makers of the time. These finds are rare in Kernmünsterland and are of great importance as they illustrate not only the technology but also the lifestyle of the people at the time.

Sensational finds from the Stone Age

The LWL-Archaeology team received support from amateur archaeologists who drew attention to the finds. Particularly noteworthy was the discovery of a piece of waste from the manufacture of small arrowheads, which is dated to the Middle Stone Age (Mesolithic). This era lasted from around 9650 to 4900 BC. BC, and finds from this period are extremely rare in Kernmünsterland. They mark a crucial transition from nomadic hunter-gatherer communities to sedentary farmers, and the results so far from the region expand our knowledge about the development of tool making, as archaeologie-online.de adds.

The preserved materials in the construction area on Bahnhofstrasse are surprisingly well preserved despite decades of agricultural use. The existing residues give archaeologists the hope of being able to gain further valuable knowledge through individual analyses. Nevertheless, it is expected that a large-scale excavation is not worthwhile due to the long-term cultivation. Instead, efforts are now focused on evaluating the individual finds in order to expand our understanding of the settlement history of this region.

Archeology in North Rhine-Westphalia

North Rhine-Westphaliais known for its wealth of archaeological monuments and plays an important cultural and historical role in Europe. The past finds from Altenberge are part of a larger context, which is also recorded in the state exhibition “Histories of Finds”. This shows finds from different eras and includes exhibits such as fossils and various tools from the Stone Age. Regional archeology in particular helps to paint a vivid picture of the development of humanity - from the beginnings of agriculture to the cultural achievements of modernity, as can be found on Wissenschaft.de.

Altenberge could not only create a new residential area, but also make a valuable contribution to the history of the region. The archaeologists will accompany the further construction work and perhaps even more sensational finds will come to light - so we'll be excited to see what the next few days will bring!