Stuttgart has two former castles. The new castle was styled like a palace and is now city offices. The old castle became the Landesmuseum, a fantastic archeology museum. At one time it had a moat!
The Landesmuseum contains finds that span thousands of years, from 35,000 years ago, when the inhabitants of this area in southern Germany drilled holes in bird bones and played them as flutes. We’ve got lots of traces from when this area was Roman and elaborate ceramic remains. And the Landesmuseum contains a Celtic prince, dug up in nearby Hochdorf.
Below is a massive – and massively heavy – torque with ram heads. No one is quite sure what it was used for. Was it ceremonial? Did someone actually wear it? In the background is the oldest life-size, anthropomorphic stone grave marker north of the Alps, dating back to the Iron Age. He’s known as the Warrior of Hirschlanden and guarded a barrow with 16 graves. [1]
And these aren’t even the highlight. They say history is written by the victors, and for centuries the Romans handed down an image of the Celts as savage and uncivilized. The discovery of the Hochdorf Chieftain changed everything….
The drinking horns had all been used and weren’t just grave goods. The largest is made of iron and the rest are made of auroch horns.
The drinking cauldron was imported from Magna Graecia over two and a half millennia ago. Two of the lions that adorn it are original. The third lion is a replacement (also ancient) and of Celtic design. The bowl was filled with 400 liters (100 gallons) of summer flower honey mead when the prince’s barrow was closed and sealed. [2, 3] Archeologists also found traces of marijuana in his tomb. That must have been one hell of a party, 530 BC style!
He was laid out on a well-used waggon couch. The wheels are topped by female figures embedded with precious stones. The waggon itself is hammered bronze.
As to the prince himself, Wikipedia says “[h]e had been buried with a gold-plated torque on his neck, a bracelet on his right arm, a hat made of birch bark, a gold-plated dagger made of bronze and iron, rich clothing, amber jewelry, a razor knife, a nail clipper, a comb, fishing hooks, arrows, and most notably, thin embossed gold plaques which were on his now-disintegrated shoes.” [3]
Was he a prince or chieftain? A high priest or Celtic shaman? I don’t know those answers, but I do know that whenever I visit this museum, I go to his rooms and pay my respects.
Happy Samhain, everyone!
NOTES: © 2024 Jadi Campbell. To see Uwe’s photos and pics from our trips go to viewpics.de. [1] Warrior of Hirschlanden [2] The Hochdorf Cauldron [3] The Hochdorf Prince
Landesmuseum Stuttgart Collection
https://kilts-n-stuff.com/hochdorf-chieftain/
My forthcoming book The Taste of Your Name was one of six finalists for the 2025 Compass Press Book Award. Stay posted: The Taste of Your Name will be available soon!
My previous books are Broken In: A Novel in Stories, Tsunami Cowboys, Grounded and The Trail Back Out.
Click here for my author page to learn more about me and purchase my books.
