The fortified Late Bronze Age hilltop settlement on the Hohenberg near Annweiler in Rhineland-Palatinate, West Germany. Settlement structure, economy and function within the settlement pattern of the micro-region

上莱茵河地区是一个有利于农业和商业的地区，在青铜时代晚期就有密集的人口，并产生了壮观的发现。然而，到目前为止，只发现了几个乌恩菲尔德文化的山顶定居点，而且在考古保护和调查方面证明是有问题的。最近在霍亨伯格发现的位于巴拉蒂纳森林边缘的山顶定居点保存得非常完好，为考古调查提供了极好的条件。几处藏有先进和晚期乌恩菲尔德文化(公元前11-9世纪)的青铜物品和粗铜的藏品表明，聚落对于金属的分布具有特别重要的意义。在对占地3.5公顷的定居区进行初步调查时，可以检查两个山顶围栏和人工定居梯田。这项科学计划的目标是首先重建梯田上的建筑结构，以及山顶聚落的布局、开发和经济。在此基础上，研究了与邻近山顶住区和与邻近微型区域上莱茵河流域住区的时间和功能关系。分析将集中在不适宜居住的山峰上的聚落是如何在地方、地区或超地区层面上提供食物、陶器和金属和石头产品的，以及该遗址是否有专门的工艺。在山顶定居点地区的挖掘将特别集中在圆形防御墙、围栏的一个大门和定居点梯田。由于斜坡考古地层学的复杂性，该项目包括了分析斜坡建模过程的地理方法。除了对陶器和小发现的年代学研究外，还对陶瓷、石头、玻璃和金属文物进行了考古分析。考古植物学分析还提供了有关自给自足的经济和环境的信息。作为进一步的步骤，将以示范的方式记录和分析附近莱茵河流域平原上挖掘出的定居点的丰富发现组合，目的是确定与山顶定居点可能的经济互动。此外，还将在霍亨贝格附近的另外两个乌恩菲尔德文化的山顶聚居地进行考古实地调查，这两个居民点到目前为止几乎没有被调查过。这里的目的是澄清三个青铜时代晚期山顶聚落之间的准确年代关系。

The Upper Rhine area, a region favourable for agriculture and commerce, has been intensely populated in the Late Bronze Age and has yielded spectacular finds. However, only a few hilltop settlements of the Urnfield culture have so far been identified which, moreover, prove problematic as regards archaeological preservation and investigation. The recently discovered hilltop settlement on the Hohenberg at the fringes of the Palatinate Forest is extraordinarily well preserved and provides excellent conditions for archaeological investigations. Several hoards with bronze objects and raw copper from the advanced and late Urnfield culture (11. – 9. century BC) suggest a particular importance of the settlement for the distribution of metal. In preliminary investigations in the settlement area, which has an extension of 3,5 ha, two hilltop enclosures and artificial settlement terraces could be examined. The goal of the scientific project is first to reconstruct the building structures on the terraces, as well as the layout, development and economy of the hilltop settlement. On this basis the chronological and functional relations to neighbouring hilltop settlements and to settlements in the Upper Rhine valley of the adjacent micro-region are examined. The analysis will focus on how the settlement on the inhospitable mountain peak was supplied with food, pottery, and products of metal and stone on a local, regional or supra-regional level, and further, whether there was specialized craftsmanship at the site. Excavations in the area of the hilltop settlement will especially focus on the circular fortification walls, one gate of the enclosure and settlement terraces. Due to the complexity of the archaeological stratigraphy on slopes soil geographic methods for analysis of slope modeling processes are included in the project. In addition to typo-chronological studies of the pottery and small finds, archaeometric analysis of ceramic, stone, glass and metal artefacts is carried out. Archaeobotanical analyses also supply information on the subsistence economy and environment. As a further step, the rich find assemblages from excavated settlements in the nearby plain of the Rhine valley will be documented and analysed in an exemplary manner, with the goal of working out possible economic interactions with hilltop settlements. Additionally, archaeological field surveys will be carried out in two more hilltop settlements of the Urnfield culture in the vicinity of the Hohenberg which have scarcely been investigated until now. The objective here is to clarify the precise chronological relation between the three Late Bronze Age hilltop settlements.