Upper Palaeolithic occupation in the Wachtberg area of Krems: The evidence of surveys, sections and core samples (original) (raw)
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The archaeological record of the Gravettian open air site Krems-Wachtberg
Quaternary International, 2014
Since 2005, annual excavation campaigns have been conducted at the open air site of Krems-Wachtberg in eastern Austria. This paper provides an overview of the preliminary archaeological results, including a presentation of the site's Upper Palaeolithic features and find inventories, as well as a discussion of its position within the Gravettian of the Middle Danube region. The site is characterized by a well-developed occupation layer with associated features like hearths and burials. From a local perspective, the station is part of an extensive Gravettian settlement cluster on the Wachtberg promontory. Beyond that, more far-ranging connections can be established to sites of the older Gravettian forming the regional group of the Pavlovian. These analogies apply to topographic position and economic factors, as well as to technological and typological criteria of the lithic inventories. Furthermore, parallels in burial rituals and art are evident.
2009
Recent archaeological excavations at the Upper Palaeolithic open-air site of Krems-Wachtberg in eastern Austria exposed a well-preserved Gravettian living floor with a number of distinct features. This paper gives a review of the first four years of investigations addressing the research history, methodology, stratigraphy as well as features and finds. First results are presented and implications for the camp site's function are discussed. Zusammenfassung-Neue archäologische Untersuchungen an der jungpaläolithischen Freilandfundstelle Krems-Wachtberg im Osten Österreichs haben zur Freilegung eines gut erhaltenen gravettienzeitlichen Begehungshorizonts mit einer Anzahl evidenter Befunde geführt. Dieser Aufsatz vermittelt einen Überblick über die ersten vier Jahre der Untersuchungen. Dabei werden die Forschungsgeschichte, Vorgehensweise, Stratigraphie sowie Befunde und Funde vorgestellt. Erste Ergebnisse werden präsentiert und Schlussfolgerungen zur Funktion des Lagerplatzes diskutiert.
E&G Quaternary Science Journal, 2013
Excavations at the Gravettian site Grub/Kranawetberg from 1993 to 2011 exposed four archaeological horizons (AH) separated by sterile loess deposits. The lowest AH 4 contains a number of features, consisting of two hearths which both are surrounded by small pits. The overlying AH3 is separated from AH4 by 8 to 10 cm of loess. In AH3 there are no features. Above AH3 there are two more AHs (AH2 and AH1) with significantly lower find densities. Chronologically both AH4 and 3 are very close (Antl-Weiser et al., 2010) but there are big differences in the assemblages and the presence/absence of features. According to the present state of research the assemblages of the two AHs seem to reflect the presence of different groups using this territory possibly under changing environmental conditions. In 2010 and 2011 a series of samples for an IRSL-and OSL-dating program (Zöller et al., this volume) has been collected from two deep trenches in the east of the excavated area. Results suggest an occupation of AH4 to AH1 between 30ka BP and 27ka BP. The site gives an insight not only into an important part of the cultural development before the Last Glacial Maximum but possibly also into climatic changes during a longer time span of the Upper Pleniglacial period in this part of Austria. Das Inventar der archäologischen Horizonte 4 und 3 und das Lössprofil von Grub/Kranawetberg, einem Lagerplatz des Gravettien in Niederösterreich Kurzfassung: Die Ausgrabungen an der Gravettienfundstelle Grub/Kranawetberg bei Stillfried erbrachten vier archäologische Horizonte. Der unterste (AH4) enthält zwei Herdstellen, die beide von einer Reihe von Grübchen umgeben sind. Der darauf folgende Horizont (AH3) ist durch eine 8-10 cm mächtige Lössschicht von AH4 getrennt. In AH3 gibt es keine evidenten Strukturen. Über AH3 liegen zwei weitere archäologische Horizonte mit lediglich einigen verstreuten Funden. Chronologisch sind beide Horizonte zwar nahe beisammen, sie sind aber sehr unterschiedlich, was die Strukturen und das Inventar angeht. Zum gegenwärtigen Zeitpunkt scheinen die beiden Horizonte die Anwesenheit von zwei Gruppen widerzuspiegeln, die dieses Gebiet möglicherweise unter sich ändernden Umweltbedingen nutzten. In den Jahren 2010 und 2011 wurde eine Reihe von Proben für IRSL und OSL Datierungen an zwei langen Profilen im Osten der ausgegrabenen Fläche genommen. So gesehen gibt der Platz nicht nur Einblick in einen bedeutenden Abschnitt der kulturellen Entwicklung vor dem Kältemaximum der letzten Eiszeit, sondern auch in die klimatischen Veränderungen des Hochglazial in diesem Teil von Österreich.
Loess deposits and the conservation of the archaeological record—The Krems-Wachtberg example
Quaternary International, 2009
Recent archaeological excavations at the Upper Palaeolithic open-air site of Krems-Wachtberg in eastern Austria exposed a late Pleistocene loess sequence. An interdisciplinary sampling strategy was applied to the 8-m high North profile. The extraordinary conservation of a Gravettian living floor with several complex features is discussed in this paper. r
14C Dating of the Upper Paleolithic Site at Krems-Wachtberg, Austria
Radiocarbon, 2009
In the course of new excavations at the Upper Paleolithic site at Krems-Wachtberg in the loess region near Krems, Lower Austria, a double burial of newborns was discovered in 2005. One year later, a single grave of an infant was excavated nearby. Both graves are associated with the well-preserved living floor of an Upper Paleolithic hunter-gatherer camp with distinct archaeological features and a rich Gravettian find assemblage. Several charcoal samples from different stratigraphic positions were14C dated with the accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) method at VERA. The14C ages confirm the archaeological assessment of the site to the Gravettian time period. According to the uncalibrated14C ages, the formation time of the living floor is ~27.014C kyr BP.14C data of ~28.614C kyr BP determined for an archaeological horizon below the living floor indicate that the location may have been used earlier by people in the Middle Upper Paleolithic.
Palaeolithic research in Austria
2008
Der Artikel beschreibt die Geschichte der Altsteinzeitforschung in Osterreich von den Anfangen im 19. Jh. bis heute. Einen besonderen Schwerpunkt bildet die Feldforschung Josef Bayers bis zu seinem Tod im Jahr 1931. Die Publikation seines Erbes nach dem 2. Weltkrieg war begleitet von interdisziplinaren Studien die zusammen mit Geologen und Palaontologen durchgefuhrt wurden. Nach einer Stagnation in den 60er Jahren waren es palaontologische Studien, die ein neuer Anstoss fur die Palaolithforschung waren. Mit den Rettungsgrabungen in Stratzing lebten die Feldforschungen in den Lossgebieten Niederosterreichs wieder auf. Der letzte Abschnitt dieses Beitrags zeigt die aktuelle Situation der Palaolithforschung in Osterreich. Summary The article presents the history of Palaeolithic research in Austria from the beginnings in the 19 th century to our days. A special focus is set on the fieldwork of Josef Bayer until his death in 1931. The publication of his heritage after World War II was ac...
Exploring the Surrounding of a Gravettian Site. The Case Study Grub-Kranawetberg, Austria
Archaeologia Austriaca, 2024
In this report we summarize the findings of our fieldwalking survey conducted around the well-known Mid-Upper Palaeolithic (Gravettian) open-air site Grub-Kranawetberg I in Lower Austria, about 40 kilometres northeast of Vienna. In September 2021, we surveyed around 126,000 square metres using GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System) to piece-plot each find. In total, we recovered 359 finds comprising lithic artefacts and faunal remains. In our analysis we show that the state of the fields did not drive how many finds per cadastral parcel were recovered during our survey and did not bias the find density per cadastral parcel. The majority of finds hint at a Gravettian dating and occur in two concentrations on top of the hill west of the known site Grub-Kranawetberg I.