Corded Ware Tomb from Laußnitz
| Place: | Laußnitz (Laußnitz, Bautzen) |
|---|---|
| Type: | Inhumation burials with unknown grave structure |
| Dating: | Late Neolithic | Corded Ware Culture | 2800 - 2200 BC. |
Description
At the end of 1963, the beekeeper Arthur Gaitzsch discovered the remains of a grave from the Corded Ware culture in a gravel pit on the edge of the Laußnitzer Heide forest. During a later inspection by an employee of the Dresden State Museum of Prehistory, neither traces of a burial mound nor of a burial pit could be found. Skeletal remains were also not preserved in the sandy soil. Nevertheless, the composition of the objects found clearly indicates a late Neolithic burial.
Annemarie ReckGrave goods
Due to the distance between the finds, it is conceivable that this was a single grave, but it is also possible that there were two close to each other. In addition to the shattered remains of a large undecorated amphora, a smaller vessel of the same design with cord decoration on the neck was found only 20 cm away. A thick-necked rock axe and a pointed-necked flint axe were also found not far away. The latter can be assigned to the Viervitz type and is, however, rather rare as a burial object next to a rock axe. Just 50 cm to the north-east were the fragments of a large decorated handle cup. It has a multi-line angular band between horizontal lines of string.
Annemarie ReckImage Source R. Spehr 1964, 78.
Influences of ceramics
According to Reinhard Spehr, the type of decoration in the neck area of the beaker appears to be typical of the Uckermark group of the Oder Cord pottery, which shows clear links to this area. In addition to the find from Laußnitz, several vessels with this decoration are already known from Upper Lusatia, and a few individual examples are also found in the Saxon-Thuringian distribution area of the Corded Ware. Within the Upper Lusatian group of the Corded Ware, the grave at Laußnitz is one of the westernmost.
Annemarie ReckImage Source OA 52470, 333/A. Reck Bearbeitung ©LfA 2023.
Literature
Reinhard Spehr, Ein Grabfund der Schnurkeramik von Laußnitz, Kr. Kamenz. In: Ausgrabungen und Funde 9, 1964, 76–79.
Reinhard Spehr, Der Schnurkeramische Grabfund von Laussnitz, Kr. Kamenz. In: Heinz-Joachim Vogt (Hrsg.), Archäologische Feldforschungen in Sachsen. Arbeits- und Forschungsberichte zur sächsischen Bodendenkmalpflege, Beih. 18 (Berlin 1988) 87.
Note on monument protection
Archaeological monuments are protected by the Saxon Monument Protection Act. A permit under monument law is required for ground interventions or construction measures.
Permalink
https://archaeo-sn.de/en/ort/corded-ware-tomb-from-lausnitz/
Citation
Annemarie Reck, Corded Ware Tomb from Laußnitz. In: Landesamt für Archäologie Sachsen, Website archaeo | SN (01.02.2024). https://archaeo-sn.de/en/ort/corded-ware-tomb-from-lausnitz/ (Stand: 17.06.2026)
