Heuneburg

The Heuneburg is a prehistoric hillfort by the river Danube in Hundersingen near Herbertingen, between Ulm and Sigmaringen, Baden-Württemberg, in the south of Germany, close to the modern borders with Switzerland and Austria. It is considered to be one of the most important early Celtic centres in Central Europe. Apart from the fortified citadel, there are extensive remains of settlements and burial areas spanning several centuries.

The fortified citadel measures about 300 by 150 m. It stood on a strategically positioned mountain spur that rises steeply 40m above the Danube. It is at the centre of a fertile river plain, surrounded by rolling hill country.

Discovery and excavations

The site was first noted in the 1820s. In 1882, Eduard Paulus recognised its importance and correctly identified it as a prehistoric fortification. He misidentified the lower fortifications as medieval. Some of the nearby burial mounds were opened in the 19th century.

Sporadic excavation on the citadel began in the 1920s. In the 1930s, the Hohmichele mound was examined (see below). A systematic excavation programme took place from 1950 to 1979, directed successively by Adolf Rieth, Kurt Bittel, Egon Gersbach and Wolfgang Kimmig.