'Astonishing' Neolithic burial containing a human, cattle and chariot discovered in Germany

By Jennifer Nalewicki published March 20, 2024

The massive Neolithic burial site was part of a processional route where cattle were sacrificed.



An aerial view of a burial containing animal remains and a chariot.
An aerial view of the burial site, which includes the male individual, cattle remains and the remnants of a chariot. (Image credit: State Office for Heritage Management and Archaeology Saxony-Anhalt, Klaus Bentele)

Archaeologists in Germany have discovered a Neolithic burial ground containing human and animal remains and the remnants of a chariot that may have been part of an ancient ritual.

The excavation site is located at an industrial park near Magdeburg, the capital of the German state of Saxony-Anhalt. It includes a pair of 6,000-year-old "monumental mounds" that contain multiple burials, according to a statement from the State Office for Monument Preservation and Archaeology of Saxony-Anhalt.

However, one burial in particular stands out, and researchers think it could be part of a ritualistic offering. This conclusion is based on the unique positioning of the skeletal remains of a man who was 35 to 40 years old when he died, two cattle and a chariot, which were placed in such a way to create "the image of a cart with a driver or a plow pulled by cattle," according to the statement.

Researchers stressed the importance of the burial, since it "symbolize[s] that with the cattle the most important possession, the security of one's own livelihood, was offered to the gods," they wrote in the statement.

More:
https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/astonishing-neolithic-burial-containing-a-human-cattle-and-chariot-discovered-in-germany