The Daensen folding chair consists of the metallic remains of a folding chair which were discovered in 1899 in sand from a Bronze Age tumulus near Daensen, a part of Buxtehude, Lower Saxony, Germany. The chair is the southernmost and most richly decorated example of the eighteen known folding chairs of the Nordic Bronze Age in Northern Europe. The fittings, along with a reconstruction, are in the permanent exhibition of the Archaeological Museum Hamburg in Harburg, Hamburg. [1] [2]
The tumulus is located in a prominent location about 300 meters northwest of the village Daensen, at 53°25′27″N9°41′20″E / 53.424047°N 9.688783°E in open countryside owned by former farmer and municipal mayor Eickhoff. The Bronze Age tumulus is known as Backelsberg or Baaksberg and according to local legend, contains the remains of a Chauci prince called Baak. [3] or Back [4] Before 1897, half of the northern mound was removed for sand extraction. In the centre of the mound Eickhoff's workers discovered a rectangular stone packing of boulders. Inside they found bones and a complete human skull. The workers gave the bones to a dog. Their work was witnessed by the Moisburg pastor Wittkopf who noted his observations in his Parishs book of accounts:
This hill was until 1879, removed from the north end half ago and it found a large oblong of unhewn granite, containing nothing special. Further more in the middle of a bunch of medium-sized boulders, about 4 feet high, on the shallow side of the same was lying residues of burnt human bones, a complete skull, with e.g. two very healthy molars and some other bones, which were not destroyed by fire, but by age. The skull was in the west, and there at the east there was a line gray ash-colored earth, without any epithets, and all this was overwhelmed with 3-4 feet of earth. N.B. Here lies the Germanic Chauci heros Back buried. Farmers Eickhoff's servants have profaned his rest and his head was thrown before a dog who abducted him. Sic transit gloria mundi [5]
In 1899 sand was again removed from the mound again, and this time the workers discovered a second stone circle. In its interior they found several bronze fitting and partially gold decorated fittings, including two 45 centimetres (18 in) long stripes with gold inlays, which they broke into several pieces. In November 1899 Eickhoff forwarded a part of the fitting along with a ribbed armring of bronze to the museum. In 1934 the museum's director Willi Wegewitz acquired the remaining fittings from Eickhoff's sons, for the museum. [4]
The remains of the folding chair consist of four bronze knobs with diameters of 36 to 40 millimetres (1.4–1.6 in) with 15 millimetres (0.59 in) long spouts and a total length of 23 millimetres (0.91 in). The end caps are ribbed and their faces decorated with a pattern of four concentric circles. A cast loop with a diameter of 29 millimetres (1.1 in) supports a ring of 28 millimetres (1.1 in) diameter with four rattle 73 millimetres (2.9 in) long plates. These components were attached to the frame of the seat. Two small knobs with diameters 27 to 29 millimetres (1.1–1.1 in) and lengths of 18 millimetres (0.71 in) were found among the baseboards of the stool. Most likely the stool had originally four of these knobs, the other two being presumed lost. There were also four bronze studs with gold plated heads. The nail heads are 18 millimetres (0.71 in) in diameter and have a pin length of 27 millimetres (1.1 in). Three figure-eight shaped bronze fittings of 41 millimetres (1.6 in) length, 15 millimetres (0.59 in) width and thicknesses of 2 millimetres (0.079 in) with line ornaments wearing a gold metal insert at the waist. The gold plate was fixed by two fine incisions in the bronze fitting and then folded on the reverse. Two rectangular bronze plates of 38 millimetres (1.5 in) in length, 7 millimetres (0.28 in) in width and about 1.8 millimetres (0.071 in) thickness are entirely covered with gold foil and bent around the edges for fixation. Furthermore, there are five rectangular fitting plates whose broken edges were put together. It is most likely that some of their fragments are still missing. Only a few organic components were preserved, one is a piece of leather, and there were seven or eight pieces of wood, one of ash, the other of maple. Among the pieces of wood, there is a corner piece and one with the mounting of the seat's leather. [4] The remains of the chair have been typologically dated to c. 1400 BC. [3]
Compared to earlier previous finds from grave mounds and tree coffin burials in Denmark, Sweden, Schleswig-Holstein and Mecklenburg the present metal objects were identified as fitting parts of a folding chair typically for the Nordic Bronze Age. These numerous comparative findings in connection with the survived wooden structures of the Vamdrup folding chair found at Guldhøj in the Danish municipality of Ribe in 1891 [6] allowed a precise reconstruction of the Daensen folding chair. [4]
Due to the improper excavation and documentation of the find, precise statements about the archaeological context are not possible. The chair is the most magnificent decorated folding chair of the Nordic Bronze Age. This type of chair, or their fittings is present in 17 comparable finds. The remains of two folding chair fittings originate from hoards, all the rest were grave goods from tree coffin or grave mound burials. Given the role of the stool in placing the sitter above others who are seated on the floor, it is possible that the individual buried in Daensen was a high-ranking person, a chieftain or religious official. The absence of further grave goods may indicate that the grave had been raided by antique grave robbers. Comparably equipped graves with folding chairs typically included additional offerings such as weapons, jewellery, and household items, which are absent in Daensen. The ribbed bronze arm bracelet provided by farmer Eickhoff to the museum must come from a female burial, supporting the interpretation of the burial of a religious leader. Similar folding chairs originate from Ancient Egypt, whose most famous specimen comes from Tutankhamun's tomb of 1330 BC, [4] demonstrating the extensive international connections of the later Bronze Age.
Furniture refers to objects intended to support various human activities such as seating, eating (tables), storing items, working, and sleeping. Furniture is also used to hold objects at a convenient height for work, or to store things. Furniture can be a product of design and can be considered a form of decorative art. In addition to furniture's functional role, it can serve a symbolic or religious purpose. It can be made from a vast multitude of materials, including metal, plastic, and wood. Furniture can be made using a variety of woodworking joints which often reflects the local culture.
A kurgan is a type of tumulus constructed over a grave, often characterized by containing a single human body along with grave vessels, weapons and horses. Originally in use on the Pontic–Caspian steppe, kurgans spread into much of Central Asia and Eastern, Southeast, Western and Northern Europe during the 3rd millennium BC.
A tumulus is a mound of earth and stones raised over a grave or graves. Tumuli are also known as barrows, burial mounds or kurgans, and may be found throughout much of the world. A cairn, which is a mound of stones built for various purposes, may also originally have been a tumulus.
The Tumulus culture was the dominant material culture in Central Europe during the Middle Bronze Age.
A folding chair is a type of folding furniture, a light, portable chair that folds flat or to a smaller size, and can be stored in a stack, in a row, or on a cart.
The Hochdorf Chieftain's Grave is a richly-furnished Celtic burial chamber near Hochdorf an der Enz in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, dating from 530 BC in the Hallstatt culture period. It was discovered in 1968 by an amateur archaeologist and excavated from 1978 to 1979. By then, the burial mound covering the grave, originally 6 m (20 ft) in height and about 60 m (200 ft) in diameter, had shrunk to about 1 m in height and was hardly discernible due to centuries of erosion and agricultural use.
The Vix Grave is a burial mound near the village of Vix in northern Burgundy. The broader site is a prehistoric Celtic complex from the Late Hallstatt and Early La Tène periods, consisting of a fortified settlement and several burial mounds.
Bush Barrow is a site of the early British Bronze Age Wessex culture, at the western end of the Normanton Down Barrows cemetery in Wiltshire, England. It is among the most important sites of the Stonehenge complex, having produced some of the most spectacular grave goods in Britain. It was excavated in 1808 by William Cunnington for Sir Richard Colt Hoare. The finds, including worked gold objects, are displayed at Wiltshire Museum in Devizes.
The Inariyama Kofun (稲荷山古墳) is a kofun burial mound located in the city of Gyōda, Saitama Prefecture, in the Kantō region of Japan. The tumulus was designated a National Historic Site in 1938 and re-designated as a Special National Historic Site of Japan in 2020 as part of the Sakitama Kofun Cluster. It is also referred to as the Sakitama Inariyama Kofun (埼玉稲荷山古墳) or the Gyōda Inariyama Kofun (行田稲荷山古墳) to disambiguate it from other tumuli using the name of "Inariyama" in other parts of the country.
The Archäologisches Museum Hamburg is an archaeological museum in the Harburg borough of Hamburg, Germany. It houses the archaeological finds of the city of Hamburg and the neighbouring counties to the south of the city. It focuses on northern German prehistory and early history as well as the history of the former city of Harburg. The museum is also home to the cultural heritage landmarks commission of the city of Hamburg and the adjacent district of Harburg in Lower-Saxony and thus supervises all archaeological undertakings in the region.
The Sutton Hoo purse-lid is one of the major objects excavated from the Anglo-Saxon royal burial-ground at Sutton Hoo in Suffolk, England. The site contains a collection of burial mounds, of which much the most significant is the undisturbed ship burial in Mound 1 containing very rich grave goods including the purse-lid. The person buried in Mound 1 is usually thought to have been Rædwald, King of East Anglia, who died around 624. The purse-lid is considered to be "one of the most remarkable creations of the early medieval period." About seven and a half inches long, it is decorated with beautiful ornament in gold and garnet cloisonné enamel, and was undoubtedly a symbol of great wealth and status. In 2017 the purse-lid was on display at the British Museum.
The Tangendorf disc brooch is an Iron Age fibula from the 3rd century AD, which was dug up in 1930 from the sand of a Bronze Age tumulus near Tangendorf, Toppenstedt, Harburg, Lower Saxony, Germany. The front of the elaborately crafted garment fibula is decorated with a rear-facing four-legged animal, probably a dog or a deer. It is one of Harburg's most important finds from the period of the Roman Empire, and is in the permanent exhibition of the Archaeological Museum Hamburg in Harburg, Hamburg.
The Metzendorf-Woxdorf head of burial is the Neolithic burial of a single human skull that was found in 1958 in the Seevetal district of Woxdorf, in Harburg, in Lower Saxony. The find is currently the only one of its kind of the Single Grave Culture in Germany and is in the permanent exhibition of the Archaeological Museum Hamburg in Harburg, Hamburg.
The Maschen disc brooch is an Early Medieval fibula, which was found in 1958 during archaeological excavations of the late Saxon grave field near Maschen, in the Lower Saxony district of Harburg, Germany. On its face side, the fibula shows an unidentified saint with a halo. It was found in a woman's grave of the beginning of the Christianization of northern Germany, and is in the permanent exhibition of the Archaeological Museum Hamburg in Harburg, Hamburg.
Part of series of articles upon Archaeology of Kosovo
The Arioka Kofun Cluster is a group of kofun burial mounds located in the city of Zentsūji, Kagawa Prefecture, on the island of Shikoku of Japan. The tumuli were collectively designated a National Historic Site in 1984. It is claimed to be a group of tombs of the powerful local family who were the ancestors of the famed prelate Kūkai.
The Knowes of Trotty is a Bronze Age cemetery located in Mainland, Orkney in Scotland. The ancient site consists of a group of twelve surviving burial mounds, dating to 2030–1770 BC. Along with cremated human remains, four gold discs and a number of amber beads and pendants were discovered in the largest mound in 1858. Knowes of Trotty is one of the earliest group of burial mounds in Orkney and one of the largest Bronze Age cemeteries in the United Kingdom.
The Armorican Tumulus culture is a Bronze Age culture, located in the western part of the Armorican peninsula of France. It is known through more than a thousand burial sites covered by a tumulus or otherwise. The culture is renowned for some exceptionally richly endowed burials of chieftains of the time, which are contemporary with the elite of the Wessex culture, in England, and the Unetice culture, in Central Europe.
The Myōkensan Kofun (妙見山古墳) is a Kofun period burial mound, located in the Onishi neighborhood of the city of Imabari, Ehime on the island of Shikoku in Japan. It was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 2010. It is the largest rectangular burial mound in Shikoku.
The Kajiyama Kofun (梶山古墳) is a Kofun period burial mound located in the Okamasu, Kokufucho, neighborhood of the city of Tottori, Tottori Prefecture in the San'in region of Japan. The tumulus was designated a National Historic Site of Japan in 1979.
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