Siedlungsdynamische Prozesse der Eisenzeit im Braunkohlerevier Inden-Weisweiler

Lignite mining in the area of the Ville, carried out by small businesses, already began in the 19th century and irrevocably destroyed the archaeological below-ground heritage in the lignite area. However, large-scale investigations were carried out in advance, making the Rhenish lignite mining zone one of the best-researched areas in Europe. People have always exploited the natural resources of the fertile loess landscapes in the Lower Rhine Bay. From the Neolithic onwards, the high quality of the soil was the basis for the establishment of agrarian settlements, driving the region's cultural development. The excellent archaeological record has been used to suggest that the Rhenish lignite mining area was extensively settled since the Bronze Age. In general, it was assumed that the combination of diverse kinds of archaeological remains within a given area [radius 100 metres] could be reliably combined into settlements. There were no recognisable preferences regarding settlement location. However, a settlement is more than an accumulation of visible archaeological remains. There is another level which archaeologists can only surmise, but which is not materially manifested. Over the last decades, the available information on settlements of the metal ages in the lignite mining area has multiplied. Based on the new results, and with the aid of the theoretical approaches developed by L. De Rouw and J. E. Yellen, an alternative interpretation on settlement distribution patterns was developed for one of the densest archaeological landscapes of central Europe. It fundamentally challenges the previous picture.