Gravettian Open Air Site Krems-Wachtberg

Research is to be continued at the Gravettian site of Krems-Wachtberg where excavations have been carried out since 2005. As the Gravettian find horizons are located 5.5 metres beneath the present-day surface, further archaeological investigations accompanying the construction of a residential building are not enforceable by the Austrian Federal law on the protection of monuments since no destructive effects are to be expected by the building project. Negotiations between the Austrian Academy of Sciences, the Province of Lower Austria, the municipality of the city of Krems and the land owners authorize a limited continuation of excavations until 2015. The Province of Lower Austria is financing the construction of a deep cellar underneath the planned detached house, which will exclusively serve the purpose of enabling archaeological excavations. It is therefore necessary to intensify the investigations by doubling the team and developing the infrastructure. A further examination of the well-preserved in situ layer with its central and multi-phased hearth is proposed in order to seize the complete Gravettian settlement including its periphery, which had already delivered the unique infant burials in 2005 and 2006. So far latent structures indicate a dwelling in the centre. A continuation of the excavations to the west will open a zone which is likely to provide further evidence for such features. Due to the limited area excavated so far, clear distinctions in the spatial distribution of the lithic and faunal material cannot yet be sufficiently interpreted. An extension of the exposed settlement area will not only enlarge the database for refitting but also better characterize different activity zones. With the discovery of the infant burials, Krems-Wachtberg has already provided important results for an understanding of the social structure of the Gravettian in the Middle Danube Region. The settlement structures uncovered so far indicate the site`s great potential for a further investigation of the spatial organisation of Gravettian open-air sites.

With the discovery of the 27000 years old infant burials the open air site Krems-Wachtberg has provided important information for a better comprehension of the Gravettian's social structures in the Middle Danube Region. The documented settlement structures uncovered since excavations began in 2005, show the site's great potential for a further investigation of the spatial organisation and function of Gravettian open-air sites. Due to financial support of the government of Lower Austria, excavations could be continued by realizing the construction of a cellar underneath a meanwhile completed single-family house. It was thereby legally secured to enable archaeological research at this important site until 2015. Several well-preserved evident features are connected to the in situ find horizon (AH 4.4), among a multi-phased hearth with associated pits. The boundaries to the west and south periphery of the preserved in situ layer have been captured. Slope processes are evident; slip and shifting led to an accumulation of larger findings. The site's spatial organisation can already be better comprehended. Lithic artefact morphology and analysis suggest a locally dominated raw material economy and shows typological accordance with inventories of the Moravian Pavlovian. Current results of lithic raw material analysis confirm these attributions. The spatial distribution of lithic artefacts suggests the differentiation of a peripheral workshops and dump zones and centrally located working areas. The faunal inventory provides information on subsistence and exploitation strategies, as well as activity zones within the site. The mammoth-dominated faunal remains consist mainly of small chips and splinters, which are interpreted as products of marrow extraction and grease skimming. An occupation during autumn to early winter is suggested by seasonality. Countless scorched and charred fragments suggest an intensive use of animal bones as fuel. Xylotomic analysis provided evidence for pinus and salix. Individual charcoal fragments can count up to 140 annual rings and indicate extreme climate conditions. For the first time, dendro-chronological analysis supplied data for the compilation of a floating tree ring curve. In the future, an extended dendrochronology can help to control the micro-stratigraphy in the central hearth, provide a high-resolution chronology for AH 4, and maybe even establish detailed chronological relationships to neighbouring Gravettian sites like Krems-Hundssteig.