Hirschlanden Warrior Burial Mound
N 48° 49.977 E 009° 00.670
32U E 500819 N 5408885
The most important find at this site is doubtlessly the sandstone stela which was found at the foot of the burial mound.
Waymark Code: WM14RA
Location: Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Date Posted: 01/14/2007
Views: 126
The impressive statue dipicts a naked man. On his head he wears a pointed, conical hat, around his neck a thick circlet. Valuable gold neck circlets are found again and again as burial objects in princely burials. The warrior carries a dagger. The stele, made in the mediteranean style, is the oldest large standing sculpture north of the Alps. The stele and the burial mound have been dated to the late Halstatt period (600 - 450 B.C.) The finds indicate that both men and women were buried here. 16 graves were found in the mound, of which none was exceptionally richly endowed. Also, the burial monument with a diameter of 32 meters, did not have the massive size of an actual prince's grave. (The prince's grave in Hochdorf had a diameter of 60 meters).
The statue was found in the course of a 1962 excavation at Hirschlanden, near Ludwigsburg and approximately five km south of Hochdorf. The statue was discovered lying just outside a low stone wall encircling the burial mound. Erosion and agriculture had leveled part of the mound.
Made of local Stuben sandstone, which is quarried a mere seven km away from the find site, the statue is very badly weathered, suggesting that it stood exposed to the elements for a long time. The lower legs were found beside the body and have been reattached in the Württemburgishen Landesmuseum (Old castle); the feet and any plinth or anchoring mechanism were not found. As a result, its preserved height is less than life-size, about one and one-half m. The ithyphallic figure stands four-square with the weight distributed evenly on both legs, which are set parallel to one another. The hefty calves and legs seem inconogruous with the relatively slender upper body and the tiny head, a puzzle to art historians. The bony shoulders are pulled up and forward, emphasized by sharply delineated triangular shoulder blades. As a result, the front of the torso is very flat and slab-like. The scrawny arms are held tightly against the body; the left hand is flattened against the breast. The small head is tipped slightly back; the face has generally been considered "mask-like," although its state of preservation is quite poor.
Admission Fee (local currency): Free
Opening days/times:
24/7
Web Site: [Web Link]
Condition: Fully Reconstructed
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Visit Instructions:
No special requirements.