A critical review of Iron Age religious structures in northwest Europe
Channel: European Association of Archaeologists
Date: 2018-09-13

Iron Age religious sites have been researched for decades, especially in England, Germany and France. Most of these sites date to the later Iron Age. The excavation and extensive publications of Gournay-sur-Aronde and Ribemont-sur-Ancre in the 1980s have been determinative for how Iron Age religious structures were - and sometimes still are – perceived, since both sites have been used as comparison and means of identification for newly discovered structures across Northwest Europe. But how representative are these French sites really? In France diversity rather than commonality seems to typify Iron Age religious structures. While the German viereckschanzen seem to represent the complete opposite in their uniform shape and size. Logically, comparing such dissimilar regional phenomena would propose challenges. However, many archaeologists leave these discrepancies out of account and continue to report cult places and sanctuaries based on the mere rectangular shape of the structure. An explicit description of the characteristics and the context that make an Iron Age site a religious one would clearly benefit future finds. Studying sites designated as religious in the centrally positioned Low Countries may provide insights, since some of the oldest rectangular structures are found in this region. This paper therefore discusses the Iron Age religious structures in the Low Countries against their Northwest European background.

Author: MA De Leeuwe, Roosje - Netherlands Forensic Institute (Presenting author)