Historian Dr. Thomas Dahms came across the three settlement pits by chance during a walk. Because he was conducting professional research into the settlement history around what is now Gebhardshagen and was working on his doctorate, he realized that the shards he had spontaneously recovered were archaeologically significant. So he asked for an immediate assessment and interruption to the construction work, which was carried out immediately.
Archaeologist Christine Kellner-Depner M.A. from the Salder Castle Municipal Museum confirmed the historical value of the find and, in an initial assessment, dated the shards to the period between the 1st and 2nd centuries AD. The museum employee and Hartwig Paul, the honorary commissioner for the archaeological preservation of archaeological monuments in Salzgitter, agree that this allows the conclusion that people settled there around 2000 years ago. The further investigations that are now beginning will show whether and what conclusions can be drawn about the existence of the deserted village of Kirchheerte. It was first mentioned in 1238 and recorded until the 16th century, but was then abandoned.
Last Sunday, the Salzgitter archaeological working group led by Hartwig Paul, together with several members and helpers and with the support of the building owner, surveyed and marked out the find spots on a voluntary basis. During the excavations, the more than ten volunteers with an interest in archaeology found numerous pieces along with other shards, stones and animal bones, just as had been expected after the initial finds. "From an archaeological point of view, objects such as rim pieces of vessels and larger shards of pottery that belong together are particularly revealing finds. They confirm the initial assumption that waste or storage pits were uncovered during the construction work. We have thus discovered and documented another piece of the puzzle for the Germanic settlement in the Salzgitter area," said Hartwig Paul. The finds from Sunday's excavation, which was coordinated with the Lower Saxony State Office for the Preservation of Monuments, are still being washed and examined. They will then be handed over to the State Museum in Braunschweig.
The excavation work was completed on Sunday without having unearthed any conspicuous objects. "If something spectacular had been found, we would like to show it in our museum in Salder. There is a high density of Germanic settlements in the Salzgitter region, the best known of which is the settlement of Salzgitter-Lobmachtersen, which was excavated in the 1950s. Steel production there can be traced back almost 2000 years.
