Archäologische Staatssammlung München
N 48° 08.650 E 011° 35.452
32U E 692720 N 5335570
To ensure they would be good hosts in the hereafter, early Celts buried their dead together with a great deal of crockery, as the imposing "Schirndorf Wall" in the museum collection demonstrates.
Waymark Code: WM2WRQ
Location: Bayern, Germany
Date Posted: 01/01/2008
Views: 90
Non-flash photography is permitted in the museum.
In the iron age (750 to 15 BC), which can be divided into the Hallstatt period from 800 to 500 BC and the Latène period from 500 BC. until the Roman invasion in 15 BC, the threshold of written history is reached:
Only from this time onward are there written reports about the tribes north of the Alps. From the 6th century BC, Greek authors wrote about the Celts, inhabitants of central Europe. Iron was used sporadically during the Urn Field period, but it was not available in such quantities as it is at this time.
During the Hallstatt period - named after a famous archaeological site in Salzkammergut, Austria - weapons and domestic utensils could now be made of this new, more accessible metal.
Members of the ruling elite were buried beneath massive mounds together with a rich assortment of burial offerings. As this extravagant method of burial is also encountered far beyond the immediate region, it can be concluded that various local centres of power in Europa had started to appear, and that these were doing brisk trade with each other.
The Latène era, the time of recorded history in the Celtic world, is named after an archaeological site at lake Neuchâtel (Switzerland). According to written sources, the Celts were considered fierce and even ungovernable.
Their tribal society is divided into several castes: The nobility (the ruling classes to which the Druids belonged), merchants, craftsmen, farmers, warriors and slaves. The Celtic culture experienced its zenith in the 5th century BC, during which time they developed a unique artistic style.
One innovation of Celtic craft is the rapidly rotating potter's wheel, the use of which made the quality and form of vessels different from the efforts of earlier civilizations. Celtic glasswork is also considered highly innovative. Art objects such as numerous animal figurines, each representing one of their gods, gives insight into the great variety of deities in the Celtic pantheon.
Impressive evidence of Celtic skills at minting are the wealth of gold and silver coins discovered in Großbissendorf (borough of Neumarkt), Sontheim (borough of Unterallgäu) and Wallersdorf (borough of Dingolfing-Landau).
After the great celtic migration of the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, Celtic society became more and more structured. Large cities also appeared in Bavaria, the so-called Oppida.
One of the most extensive of these urban centres was Manching (near Ingolstadt).
A great many ceramic, glass and iron finds are evidence of an advanced Celtic civilization during the 2nd century BC. The high standard of civilization is not only demonstrated by the appearance of tools and other utensils - often indistinguishable from those of the 18th and 19th centuries AD, but also by the signs of mass production evident in jewellery and ceramic articles.
The golden cult tree of Manching, with its finely worked leaves and branches are not only evidence of the high standards of Celtic craftsmanship, but also of mediterranean influence on Celtic art.
The Manching tree, as well as the two elaborate owl-headed axle-pins from a Celtic nobleman's carriage, stand as prime examples of the peak of Celtic civilization in Bavaria.
Admission Fee (local currency): €3.00
Opening days/times:
Daily except Mondays, 9.30 am to 5.00 pm
Web Site: [Web Link]
Condition: Partially Reconstructed
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Visit Instructions:
No special requirements.