The Lake-Dwellings of Europe: Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888Munro, Robert
History
The Lake-Dwellings of Europe: Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888
Munro, Robert
Lake-dwellers and lake-dwellings -- Bibliography; Lake-dwellers and lake-dwellings -- Europe
VINELZ (FENIL).--This station, which is now entirely on dry land, was
accidentally discovered in 1881 by labourers while digging a ditch
to carry off water accumulating on the fields.[4] At a depth of two
or three feet of sand and gravel they came upon a blackish bed of
mud-earth, in which were detected a number of piles, the heads of
which projected upwards into the sand and gravel for about a foot.
Dr. Gross, who was informed of the circumstance, soon visited the
spot, and at once recognised the site of a lake-dwelling. It appears
that the locality is much exposed to the north winds, and that the
settlement had thus become completely covered over with sand and
gravel thrown up on the shore, as was the case with the station of
Wangen in the Untersee. During the spring and summer of 1882 the new
Pfahlbau was investigated by several experts, including Drs. Gross
and v. Fellenberg. The station is remarkable for the number of copper
objects which it has yielded to the systematic explorations ordered by
Fellenberg, and carefully conducted by Ed. Matthys, of Ligerz. From
the results thus obtained, the station at Vinelz is the most typical
yet discovered of the final Stone Age period (_Uebergangszeit_). (B.
462, p. 33.) The following are some of the antiquities collected, most
of which are in the Cantonal Museum of Bern and the Gross collection.
Among nearly 100 copper objects (including 46 beads, =Fig. 7=, No.
31) are several daggers (Nos. 26 and 28), flat axes (No. 27), chisels
(No. 24), rude knives, awls (Nos. 17 and 25), pendants (No. 23), tubes
and spirals (Nos. 22 and 30). No bronze or iron object has yet been
found on this station. Bone and horn handles, polished daggers, large
button-like objects (Nos. 20 and 21), perforated clubs, ornamental
pins (Nos. 15, 16, and 18), etc., are numerous. Perforated stone axes
and the ordinary polished celts are common (about 40 of the former and
100 of the latter being in the Bern Museum). Flint daggers, sometimes
worked at both ends (No. 12), are also very fine; two were found in
their wooden handles (No. 11). For more firmly fixing them a fine
band of reed or withe was neatly rolled round the handle. A variety
of flint arrow-heads, scrapers, etc. (Nos. 1 to 9), clay weights of
different forms, implements of pointed ribs, basket-work, etc. For
bits of well-woven cloth, thread, and fishing-nets, this station vies
with Robenhausen. A portion of a spindle has some thread still round
it. There was an entire fishing-net (carbonised) associated with a
number of stone sinkers.
The pottery (Nos. 29, 32, and 33) was ornamented with dots and
string-marks. One vessel had a horn-shaped handle projecting from the
body of the vessel.
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