Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps
Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps
This serial property of 111 small individual sites encompasses the remains of prehistoric pile-dwelling (or stilt house) settlements in and around the Alps built from around 5000 to 500 B.C. on the edges of lakes, rivers or wetlands. Excavations, only conducted in some of the sites, have yielded evidence that provides insight into life in prehistoric times during the Neolithic and Bronze Age in Alpine Europe and the way communities interacted with their environment. Fifty-six of the sites are located in Switzerland. The 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.
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0
Sites palafittiques préhistoriques autour des Alpes
Ce bien en série regroupe 111 sites où se trouvent des vestiges d'établissements préhistoriques palafittiques (sur pilotis) dans et autour des Alpes. Datant d'environ 5 000 à environ 500 av. J.-C., ils sont situés sur les bords de lacs, de rivières ou de terres marécageuses. Seul un petit nombre ont été fouillés mais ils ont fourni des éléments qui donnent un aperçu de la vie quotidienne dans l'Europe alpine du Néolithique et de l'Age de bronze, ainsi que des informations sur la façon dont les communautés interagissaient avec leur environnement. Cinquante-six sites se trouvent en Suisse. Ces établissements constituent un groupe unique de sites archéologiques particulièrement riches et très bien conservés ; ils représentent des sources importantes pour l'étude des premières sociétés agraires de la région.
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0
المساكن المعلقة على ركائز حول جبال الألب
يشمل هذا الموقع المتسلسل الذي يتألف من 111 موقعاً صغيراً معالم أثرية لمساكن معلقة على ركائز تعود إلى مرحلة ما قبل التاريخ. وبُنيت هذه البيوت داخل منطقة جبال الألب وحولها في الفترة الممتدة بين عام 5000 وعام 500 قبل الميلاد على تخوم البحيرات والأنهر والأراضي الرطبة. وأتاحت أعمال التنقيب التي أُجريت في عدد من هذه المواقع العثور على قطع أثرية تسلط بعض الأضواء على حياة الإنسان خلال العصر الحجري والعصر البرونزي في سلسلة جبال الألب الأوروبية وعلى طريقة تفاعل المجتمعات مع البيئة المحيطة بها. وهذه المساكن التي توجد 56 منها في الأراضي السويسرية عبارة عن مجموعة فريدة من المواقع الأثرية حافظت على خصائصها على نحو متميز وتمثل بفضل تراثها الثقافي الغني أحد أهم المصادر لدراسة مجتمعات الفلاحين الأولى التي سكنت في المنطقة.
source: UNESCO/ERI
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0
阿尔卑斯地区史前湖岸木桩建筑
这一遗产包括位于阿尔卑斯山区内、外的湖边、河岸及湿地边的111处（其中的56处位于瑞士）史前木桩建筑（又称干栏建筑）遗迹。这些小型定居点建于约公元前5000年至500年。对部分遗址的考古挖掘，已为我们提供了了解史前新石器时代及青铜时代欧洲阿尔卑斯山地区人民的生活以及人类社区与周围环境的互动情况的证据。这是一组保存极其完好、文化内涵丰富的定居点考古遗址，是研究这一地区早期农业社会的最重要的史料来源之一。
source: UNESCO/ERI
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0
Доисторические свайные поселения в Альпах
Этот объект включает 111 небольших памятников. Здесь находятся остатки доисторических поселений, состоящих из свайных построек (или домов «на ходулях»), относящиеся к 5000 - 500 годам до н.э.. Они строились по берегам озер, рек и болот как в самих Альпах, так и в предгорьях. В результате раскопок, проведенных лишь в немногих из них, удалось получить представление о жизни в доисторические времена, в эпоху неолита и бронзового века, людей, обитавших в Альпах, а также об их взаимодействии с окружающей средой. Пятьдесят шесть таких объектов находятся в Швейцарии. Эти поселения представляют собой уникальную группу прекрасно сохранившихся археологических сооружений высокой культурной ценности. Они являются наиболее важным источником сведений о жизни аграрных сообществ региона на самой ранней стадии их развития.
source: UNESCO/ERI
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0
Palafitos del entorno de los Alpes
Este sitio comprende 111 lugares con vestigios de asentamientos humanos prehistóricos en palafitos, esto es, viviendas edificadas sobre pilotes. Situados dentro de la zona de los Alpes y en su entorno, esos vestigios datan del periodo comprendido entre el quinto milenio y el siglo V a.C. y están situados a orillas de lagos, ríos y pantanos. Las excavaciones arqueológicas, efectuadas solamente en algunos lugares hasta la fecha, han proporcionado elementos que dan una visión de la vida diaria del hombre del Neolítico y de la Edad de Bronce en la Europa Alpina, así como de su interacción con el medio ambiente. En Suiza se hallan cincuenta y seis de los lugares que integran el sitio. Estos asentamientos humanos, que forman un conjunto único de vestigios arqueológicos excepcionalmente bien conservados y extraordinariamente ricos en el plano cultural, constituyen una de las más importantes fuentes para el estudio de las sociedades agrarias primitivas de la región.
source: UNESCO/ERI
Description is available under license CC-BY-SA IGO 3.0
アルプス山系の先史時代杭上住居跡群
６カ国に点在する111の小規模な遺跡群からなり、紀元前5000年から同500年頃に、アルプス山系の湖や川、湿地沿いに建てられた先史時代の杭上住居跡あるいは高床式住居跡である。これまでに、アルプスヨーロッパの新石器時代・青銅器時代の先史生活や、自然環境とどのように共存していたかを示す証拠が発見されている。111の遺産のうち56の遺産はスイス国内にある。これらの集落は、非常に保存状態が良い考古学遺跡で、この地域の初期農耕社会の解明にとって最も重要な事例のひとつとなっている。source: NFUAJ
Prehistorische paalwoningen in de Alpen
Deze reeks van 111 kleine individuele gebieden vormt het restant van prehistorische hei- of paalwoningnederzettingen in en rond de Alpen. De paalwoningen werden gebouwd in de periode van rond 5000 tot 500 voor Christus aan de randen van meren, rivieren of moerasgebieden. Opgravingen hebben inzicht gegeven in het leven in dit gebied tijdens de prehistorie en in de interactie tussen gemeenschappen en hun omgeving. 65 van de locaties bevinden zich in Zwitserland. De nederzettingen zijn een unieke groep van uitzonderlijk goed bewaard gebleven en cultureel rijke archeologische vindplaatsen. Ze vormen een van de belangrijkste bronnen voor de studie naar vroeg-agrarische samenlevingen in de regio.
Source: unesco.nl
Outstanding Universal Value
Brief synthesis
The series of 111 out of the 937 known archaeological pile-dwelling sites in six countries around the Alpine and sub-alpine regions of Europe is composed of the remains of prehistoric settlements dating from 5,000 to 500 BC which are situated under water, on lake shores, along rivers or in wetlands. The exceptional conservation conditions for organic materials provided by the waterlogged sites, combined with extensive under-water archaeological investigations and research in many fields of natural science, such as archaeobotany and archaeozoology, over the past decades, has combined to present an outstanding detailed perception of the world of early agrarian societies in Europe. The precise information on their agriculture, animal husbandry, development of metallurgy, over a period of more than four millennia, coincides with one of the most important phases of recent human history: the dawn of modern societies.
In view of the possibilities for the exact dating of wooden architectural elements by dendrochronology, the sites have provided exceptional archaeological sources that allow an understanding of entire prehistoric villages and their detailed construction techniques and spatial development over very long time periods. They also reveal details of trade routes for flint, shells, gold, amber, and pottery across the Alps and within the plains, transport evidence from dugout canoes and wooden wheels, some complete with axles for two wheeled carts dating from around 3,400BC, some of the earliest preserved in the world, and the oldest textiles in Europe dating to 3,000 BC. This cumulative evidence has provided a unique insight into the domestic lives and settlements of some thirty different cultural groups in the Alpine lacustrine landscape that allowed the pile dwellings to flourish.
Criterion (iv): The series of pile dwelling sites are one of the most important archaeological sources for the study of early agrarian societies in Europe between 5,000 and 500 BC. The waterlogged conditions have preserved organic matter that contributes in an outstanding way to our understanding of significant changes in the Neolithic and Bronze Age history of Europe in general, and of the interactions between the regions around the Alps in particular.
Criterion (v): The series of pile dwelling sites has provided an extraordinary and detailed insight into the settlement and domestic arrangements of pre-historic, early agrarian lake shore communities in the Alpine and sub-Alpine regions of Europe over almost 5,000 years. The revealed archaeological evidence allows an unique understanding of the way these societies interacted with their environment, in response to new technologies, and also to the impact of climate change.
Integrity
The series of prehistoric pile-dwelling sites represents the well defined geographic area within which these sites are found to its full extent, as well as all the cultural groups in it during the time period during which the pile dwellings existed. It therefore comprises the complete cultural context of the archaeological phenomena. The sites selected have been chosen to be those that still remain largely intact, as well as to reflect the diversity of structures, groups of structures and time-periods. As a whole the series and its boundaries fully reflect the attributes of Outstanding Universal Value. The visual integrity of some of the sites is to a degree compromised by their urban setting. Many of the component sites can also be said to be vulnerable to a range of threats ranging from the uses of the lakes, intensification of agriculture, development, etc. Monitoring of the sites will be crucial to ensure their continuing integrity.
Authenticity
The physical remains are well preserved and documented. Their archaeological strata, preserved in the ground or under water are authentic in structure, material and substance, without any later or modern additions. The remarkable survival of organic remains facilitates the highest levels of definition in relation to the use and function of the sites. The very long history of research, co-operation and coordination provide an unusual level of understanding and documentation of the sites. However the ability of the sites to display their value is difficult as they are mostly completely hidden underwater which means that their context in relation to the lake and river shores is important in order to evoke the nature of their setting. This context is compromised to a degree on those sites that survive in intensely urbanised environments. Because the sites cannot be overtly presented in situ, they are interpreted in museums. An over-arching presentation framework needs to be developed that allows coordination between museums and an agreed standard of archaeological data to ensure understanding of the value of the whole property and how individual sites contribute to that whole.
Protection and management requirements
The series of pile dwelling sites are legally protected according to the legal systems in place in the various States Parties. There is a need to ensure that the highest level of legal protection available within each of the States Parties is provided. The common management system integrates all States levels and competent authorities, including the local communities, in each country, and connects the different national systems to an international management system, through an established International Coordination Group, based on a Management Commitment signed by all States Parties. Common visions and aims are translated into concrete projects on international, national and regional / local levels in a regularly adapted action plan. Funding is provided by Switzerland for the Secretariat and by the States Parties for the different projects. Proposed actions that may have a significant impact on the heritage values of the archaeological areas nominated for inscription are restricted. There is a need for consistent application of protection arrangements across the six States Parties to ensure consistency in approaches to development, particularly in terms of lake use, mooring arrangements and private development, and to heritage impact assessments. Given the extreme fragility of the remains, and the pressures on sites especially in urban areas, there is a need to ensure that adequate funding is in place for on-going monitoring.
