The Horgen Culture © The Comparative Archaeology WEB

Added March 2, 2001. Updated January 21, 2009, 05:34 -5 hours GMT.

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The Horgen Culture

Version 1.23

Maximilian O. Baldia

List of Figures

Map of Europe

Map of North and part of Central Europe

Central and North German Chronological Table

Early Horgen Pottery

Middle Horgen Pottery

Introduction

The purpose of this text is to provide a general overview of the culture and is intended as a resource for students and teachers of European Archaeology.

Location

Horgen core area is in Northern Switzerland and Southwest Germany near the Bodensee (Lake Constance) , but it may have reached farther north along the Rhine River (Map of Neolithic sites).

Dating (Chronological Table)

Horgen starts at 3500/3400 cal BC, lasting until 2850 cal BC. Tree ring dates range from 3370 – 2864 BC (Kolb 1998, Schlichterle 1990).

Evolution

The pottery has been divided into an early, a middle and a late phase. E. Vogt defined Horgen 1934 and postulated a relationship with the French Seine-Oise-Marne culture centered on the Paris Basin. It may be derived from late Pfyn (Kolb 1998:134, Schlichterle 1990). Beyond its core area, pottery attributed to Horgen may have partly influenced the Wartberg culture, located in the hill country east of the Middle Rhein (Rhine) River.

Pottery

The older pottery exhibits affinity with Pfyn. Part of the Cortaillod assemblage at Twann, Switzerland is also seen as a harbinger of Horgen (Kolb 1998:138). Kolb also draws attention to spindle whorls, commonly found at Jevišovice C1 and Altheim. This suggests Late TRB South Group and Early Baden similarities, which may be born out by a virtually identical spindle whorl from the hilltop enclosure with stone rampart of Rmíz, Central Moravia (compare Kolb 1998:135 Fig. 4 with Baldia and Chandler 1998, Fig. 12 and 13). The middle phase (Naschdorf-Strandbad, Bodensee; Dullenried, Federsee) is suggested to be influenced by more westerly traditions (Schlichterle 1990:152). The final Horgen phase exhibits similarities to Burgerroth, Wartberg, and Goldberg III. The end comes with the expansion of Lüscherz and Saône-Rhône assemblages of West Switzerland (ibid.).

Houses

Houses are built on stilts in wetland zones, such as the Bodensee, or close to the ground. The entrance is at the narrow end of the house. Houses can be stacked three deep in rows. Only the first house in each row faced the central village street. Villages may be located within a palisade. The villages are often found in wetlands and have been associated with the “lake dwellings” of the alpine piedmont.

References and Credits

Biel, Jörg, Helmut Schlichtherle, Michael Strobel and Andrea Zee (Eds.)

1998 Die Michelsberger Kultur und ihre Randgebiete: Probleme der Entstehung, Chronologie und des Siedlungswesens. Materialhefte zur Archäologie in Baden-Württemberg, 43, Theiss, Stuttgart.

Fritsch, B., Margot Moute, Irenäus Matuschik, Johannes Müller und Claus Wolf (Eds.)

1998 Tradition und Innovation: Prähistorische Archäologie als historische Wissenschaft. Festschrift für Christian Strahm. Internationale Archäologie 3, VML 1998, Leidorf GMBH, Rahden, Westfalen, Germany (1997).

Höneisen, Markus

1990a Die Ersten Bauern 1: Schweiz. Schweizerisches Landesmuseum, Zürich.

1990b Die Ersten Bauern 2: Einführung, Balkan, angrenzende Regionen der Schweiz. Schweizerisches Landesmuseum, Zürich.

Kolb, Martin

1998 Kulturwandel oder Kulturbruck? – Betrachtungen zum Übergang von Pfyner zur Horgener Kultur. In B. Fritsch et al. 1998:129-141.

Schlichterle, Helmut