Back Prähistorische Pfahlbauten um die Alpen ALS Paumahan masaka pralelintihan nampek Alpén BAN Prehistorische Pfoibauten um de Oipm BAR Дагістарычныя палевыя паселішчы ў Альпах Byelorussian Llocs palafítics prehistòrics al voltant dels Alps Catalan Prehistorická kůlová obydlí v Alpách Czech Forhistoriske pælehuse i Alperne Danish Prähistorische Pfahlbauten um die Alpen German Προϊστορικά καταλύματα των Άλπεων Greek Prahistoriaj palafitoj ĉirkaŭ la Alpoj Esperanto
| UNESCO World Heritage Site | |
|---|---|
 Reconstructed pile dwellings at the Pfahlbau Museum Unteruhldingen on Lake Constance in Germany | |
| Location | (see map) |
| Includes | 111 locations in Austria, France, Germany, Italy, Slovenia and Switzerland |
| Reference | 1363 |
| Inscription | 2011 (35th Session) |
| Area | 274.2 ha (678 acres) |
| Buffer zone | 3,960.77 ha (9,787.3 acres) |
| Website | www |
Prehistoric pile dwellings around the Alps are a series of prehistoric pile dwelling (or stilt house) settlements in and around the Alps built from about 5000 to 500 BC on the edges of lakes, rivers or wetlands. In 2011, 111 sites located variously in Switzerland (56), Italy (19), Germany (18), France (11), Austria (5) and Slovenia (2) were added to the UNESCO World Heritage Site list.[1] In Slovenia, these were the first World Heritage Sites to be listed for their cultural value.[2]
Excavations conducted at some of the sites have yielded evidence regarding prehistoric life and the way communities interacted with their environment during the Neolithic and Bronze Ages in Alpine Europe. These settlements are a unique group of exceptionally well-preserved and culturally rich archaeological sites, which constitute one of the most important sources for the study of early agrarian societies in the region.[1]
Contrary to popular belief, the dwellings were not erected over water, but on nearby marshy land. They were set on piles to protect against occasional flooding. Because the lakes have grown in size over time, many of the original piles are now under water, giving modern observers the false impression that they have always been this way.[3] Climate change is changing the habitats of these sites.[4]
- ^ a b UNESCO World Heritage Site - Prehistoric Pile dwellings around the Alps
- ^ Maša Štiftar de Arzu, ed. (14 October 2011). "Pile-dwellings in the Ljubljansko Barje on UNESCO List" (PDF). Embassy Newsletter. Embassy of Slovenia in Washington.
- ^ Armando Mombelli, Lake dwellings reveal hidden past, SwissInfo.ch, Nov 11, 2011
- ^ Dworsky, Cyril (2023). "Sunken landscapes and settlement areas. On the reconquest of underwater archaeological sites". Internet Archaeology (62). doi:10.11141/ia.62.5.