Vogelherd

Vogelherd Cave

Vogelherdhöhle
Vogelherd Cave interior
Location in Germany Show map of Baden-Württemberg Location in Germany Show map of Germany
Alternate name	Vogelherd
Location	Archäopark Vogelherd, Stetten ob Lontal
Region	Swabian Jura, Baden-Württemberg, Germany
Coordinates	48°33′31″N 10°11′39″E / 48.55861°N 10.19417°E / 48.55861; 10.19417Coordinates: 48°33′31″N 10°11′39″E / 48.55861°N 10.19417°E / 48.55861; 10.19417
Type	karst cave
Length	40 m (130 ft)
Area	170 m2 (1,800 sq ft)
History
Material	limestone Karst
Periods	Upper Palaeolithic
Cultures	Aurignacian
Associated with	Paleo-humans
Site notes
Excavation dates	1931, 2005 to 2012
Archaeologists	Gustav Riek
Website	Archäopark Vogelherd

The Vogelherd Cave (German: 'Vogelherdhöhle' , or simply Vogelherd) is located in the eastern Swabian Jura, south-western Germany. This limestone karst cave came to scientific and public attention after the 1931 discovery of the Upper Palaeolithic Vogelherd figurines, attributed to paleo-humans of the Aurignacian culture. These miniature sculptures made of mammoth ivory rank among the oldest uncontested works of art of mankind.

The site is located on the edge of the valley of the river Lone near Stetten ob Lontal, part of Niederstotzingen in the eastern Swabian Jura, Baden-Württemberg, southern Germany. It is not publicly accessible, but since 2013 has been embedded in the Archäopark Vogelherd that includes a museum and a visitor center.

The cave is located on a hill 20 m (66 ft) above the river Lone with a 180 degree view over the valley. The Y-shaped cave occupies about 170 m² (1,800 sq ft) and had an initial height of three to four meters. There are three entrance holes. Two large, 2.5 to 3.5 meter high entrance holes are connected by an approximately 40 m (130 ft) long curved gallery - called the "Big Cave". The second gallery, the "Small Cave", is of the same length but very narrow, the entrance being too small to be used. A passage between the two caves is except for a tiny gap at the top completely filled with debris and sediment deposits.

On 23 May 1931 amateur archeologist Hermann Mohn unearthed a number of flintstone flakes while examining a badger's den. He informed the University of Tubingen. Excavations in the cave were undertaken in the same year by paleo-historian Gustav Riek from Tübingen over the course of three months from 15 July until 1 October 1931. Human occupation of the site was documented, as sediments from the Palaeolithic to the Bronze Age yielded tools and artefacts. The excavation also yielded several figurines of 5 to 10 cm length carved from mammoth ivory, found in an Aurignacian layer (see below). They featured ornamentation like dots, lines and x-shaped markings. These seem to be not an attempt to depict actual surface features of the creature in question, but may well be of a ritual or even religious character.