Brillenhöhle Cave
| Brillenhöhle | |
interior of Brillenhöhle
|
|
 Location in Germany
Location in Germany
|
|
| Alternate name | (formerly) Zwickerhöhle |
|---|---|
| Location | near Blaubeuren |
| Region | Ach Valley, Swabian Jura, Baden-Württemberg, Germany |
| Coordinates | 48°24′20″N 9°46′40″E / 48.40556°N 9.77778°ECoordinates: 48°24′20″N 9°46′40″E / 48.40556°N 9.77778°E |
| Type | Jurassic limestone |
| Length | 23 m (75.46 ft) |
| History | |
| Material | limestone Karst |
| Periods | Upper Palaeolithic |
| Cultures | Aurignacian, Gravettian, Magdalenian |
| Site notes | |
| Excavation dates | 1906, 1911, 1951, 1955, 1963 |
| Archaeologists | Robert Rudolf Schmidt, Peter Goessler, Albert Kley, Gustav Riek |
| Condition | advanced decay, ruin |
The Brillenhöhle (German: ''Brillenhöhle'', literally spectacles cave) is a cave ruin, located 16 km (9.94 mi) west of Ulm on the Swabian Alb in south-western Germany, where archaeological excavations have documented human habitation since as early as 30,000 years ago. Excavated by Gustav Riek from 1955 to 1963, the cave's Upper Paleolithic layers contain a sequence of Aurignacian, Gravettian and Magdalenian artifacts. In 1956 the first human fossils were discovered within a fireplace in the center of the cave, a discovery which made important contributions to the foundational understanding of the Magdalenian culture of central Europe.
Brillenhöhle is located in the Ach Valley, lying about 80 m (262.47 ft) above the Ach River below. The site derives its name from the two holes in the cave's ceiling, which together resemble a pair of spectacles. The cave is essentially a single room with a diameter of 17 m (55.77 ft), an average height of 4.50 m (14.76 ft) and a length of 23 m (75.46 ft). A small side cave of 2.50 m (8.20 ft) width and 6 m (19.69 ft) height, called Vespershöhle runs from the entrance around 5 m (16.40 ft) towards the east. As the site is in an advanced state of decay, it has been designated a cave ruin. However, the openings in the roof allow smoke to escape and sufficient light to enter, while still being small enough to keep the cave mostly dry during periods of rainfall. Recurrent prehistoric human occupation at the site indicates that conditions at the cave were tolerable enough to provide reasonable protection from the elements. In the north-western corner, a chimney-like shape tapers towards a 17 cm (6.69 in) wide gap in the ceiling, a gap which allowed a large quantity of reddish-brown clay to ooze into the cave's interior during the .
Explorations by discoverer Robert Rudolf Schmidt and historians Peter Goessler and Albert Kley did not yield notable results. Tübingen historian Gustav Riek eventually took up systematic work in September 1955. Over the course of eleven excavation sessions that lasted until October 1963, he unearthed eleven sediment profiles. Riek recognized and determined a total of 22 distinct layers, of which only 3 were considered post-Pleistocene in origin. The work yielded numerous stone and bone tools, ivory jewelry, human skeletal remains and pottery shards.
...
Wikipedia