Hamburg culture
The Hamburg Hamburg group or culture ( 13700-12200 BC) is a common in the Netherlands, northern Germany, Denmark and Pomerania, northern Poland archaeological culture of the late Paleolithic. Making it one of the last Upper Paleolithic culture groups at the end of the Weichsel glaciation and is classified in part as a late Palaeolithic. Climatically, it falls into the time of the first re-heating in Meiendorf interstadial and the subsequent short cooling phase.
The Hamburg culture was named after discoveries at the banks of the Alster in Hamburg- Wellingsbüttel from 1931. Coined the term in 1933 working in Kiel prehistorians Gustav Schwantes. 1933 Alfred Rust discovered the find site Stellmoor in Hamburg- Meiendorf.
Distribution and structure
The distribution area of the Hamburg culture lies north of the Central Upland Range. Characteristic are seasonal hunting places where mainly reindeer were hunted. Winter camp are in today's southern North Sea, whose shoreline at that time reached to the Dogger Bank due to the sea water binding in the glacial ice of the Weichsel ice age. The Hamburg culture precedes the penknife groups and the Ahrensburg culture.
In the subsequent cold phase (older Dryas ) there may have been a brain drain in the middle mountain zone. Evidence of this is provided, for example, typical cusps on Peter Rock at Engen (Baden- Württemberg).
In the recent phase from about 13,000 BC formed in the northwestern area of distribution, the so-called Havelte sub-group that specialized more on the immigrant status wild red deer and elk.
Way of life
The environment was initially shaped by the ice age. However, increased from about 12,700 BC, especially the summer temperatures sharply ( Meiendorf interstadial GI 1e); the pollen diagrams in Central Europe show you a parkland of willow ( Salix), birch (Betula ) and juniper (Juniperus ).
Large herds of reindeer wandering in the summer in the northern tundra, in the winter back in the more southerly areas. These reindeer were probably hunted by the hunters of this culture with spear and spear-thrower, in addition they hunted horses, small game, birds and fish. As dwellings of settlement sites of the Hamburg culture only floor plans of rod tents are known.
Find sites
Hunting places with numerous reindeer remains and tools are located in Ahrensburg tunnel valley east of Hamburg, such as the find spots Stellmoor and Pogge wiping. On finding place Meiendorf A. Rust discovered in his excavations in 1933-34 in the sapropel layers of a late-glacial pond total of 33 reindeer antlers and numerous bones in conjunction with artifacts made of flint. Contrary to Erstinterpretation, if it were complained with stones reindeer carcasses, can be assumed by a natural migration process of this cadaver today.
On Stellmoor Hill (near Hamburg) showed A. Rust in his excavations in 1935-36 for the first time the stratigraphic sequence of the younger Ahrensburg culture Hamburg's culture. In the excavated in 1951 by A. Rust find site Pogge wiping in Ahrensburg tunnel valley a tent floor plan was exposed. A special Fund also forms a 15 cm long rod with antlers face representation, the similarity suggests the simultaneity of objects from the Magdalenian stage IV in southern France (eg face of Le Placard ).
More Fund places, for example rabbit wiping ( Stormarn ), are at Grimm / Weber (2008 ) are listed.
Material Culture
Typical flint tools are cusps, as well as drills, gravers, scratch and tines ( partly double tines ). Harpoons were made of bone and antler.