In the west of North Rhine-Westphalia, not far from the Dutch border, lies the Rhenish open-cast lignite mining area. Due to the decades-long opening up of the ground and mining of the lignite, it is not surprising that a wide variety of archaeological finds and features have come to light. In addition to the expected findings of medieval and Roman colonisation, far older sites, including from the Neolithic, were also found.

However, the finds from the Inden-Pier open-cast mine to the south-west shed light on a previously underrepresented period: The Metal Ages.

‘Metal Age’ is a collective term for the periods of the Bronze and Iron Ages and describes a period of approx. 2000 years, before or up to the turn of time. The finds from the Inden-Pier site mainly cover the period from the Late Bronze Age to the Middle Iron Age (~ 1200 BC - 400 BC), with outliers dating back to the beginning of Roman colonisation in the Rhineland. The predominant type of burial at that time was cremation.

After being uncovered from the loess, the pottery is carefully and scientifically analysed. The pottery is then dismantled and only the core remains. This is separated from the sediment using a special processing method and then handed over to the anthropological analysis for further research.

There, an initial basic examination of the cremated remains is carried out to determine age and sex. In a later step, the bone fragments are subjected to microscopic examination in order to gain further insights, such as on palaeopathology. Working with the cremated remains also allows conclusions to be drawn about archaeotechnological issues, e.g. the development of funeral pyre construction.

The range of artefacts found so far includes a variety of materials, including bronze, iron, lead, ceramics (miniature and accompanying vessels), organic materials (charcoal, seeds) and glass, which will also be analysed on an interdisciplinary basis. Collaboration with the archaeobotany department of the University of Cologne and the restoration office of the Landesmuseum Bonn has already been established.

An initial synthesis of archaeological finds and anthropological analysis is to be produced in a master's thesis to be completed in the near future. To this end, the northern section of the burial site will be investigated. The aim is to find connections between the burials, their position in the grave field and their supposed position within the burial community. The funerary pottery used will also be analysed.

The Inden-Pier burial site represents a highlight of pre- and protohistory in the Rhineland and fits perfectly into the known area. Nevertheless, it is impossible to estimate what surprises the numerous cremation burials lying dormant en bloc still hold in store.

Prof. Dr. Thomas Stöllner
Professor for Pre- and Protohistory
Institut of Archaeological Studies
Ruhr-Universität Bochum
Am Bergbaumuseum 31, 44791 Bochum
Room: 0.3.1a
Phone: +49 (0)234 32-22546
Email: thomas.stoellner@rub.de oder thomas.stoellner@bergbaumuseum.de

The anthropological analysis is carried out by Dr. Ihab Al-Oumaoui.
The archaeological analysis is carried out by Katharina Fröhlich, B.A.

Since 2022, this project has been funded by the Stiftung zur Förderung der Archäologie im Rheinischen Braunkohlerevier under project number 342.