Germering (dpa / lby) – Archaeologists came across a well from the Bronze Age during excavations in Upper Bavaria. The content of the more than 3000-year-old find suggests that it may have served ritual purposes, the Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments announced on Tuesday. The well-preserved well discovered in Germering (district of Fürstenfeldbruck) was once five meters deep. It would have contained 26 bronze clothing pins and more than 70 clay vessels.
The good quality of the objects suggests that they were not thrown down but probably lowered unharmed during cult rituals. The pottery was not everyday crockery, but rather finely crafted, decorated bowls, cups and pots, such as people in the Middle Bronze Age (1800-1200 BC) would have used as grave goods.
“Even today, fountains have something magical for many people. They throw coins into them in the hope that their wishes will be fulfilled,” said General Conservator Mathias Pfeil, head of the State Office for Monument Preservation. What motives would have moved people 3000 years ago to offer jewelry and other valuable gifts can no longer be understood today. “But it would be obvious that they were intended as sacrifices for a good harvest.”
