Secrets of the Baltic Sea: Researchers reveal 11,000 -year -old hunting facility!

Secrets of the Baltic Sea: Researchers reveal 11,000 -year -old hunting facility!

On May 28, 2025, the starting signal for the interdisciplinary research project Seascape was given, which is devoted to the development and mapping of potential mega structures on the bottom of the Baltic Sea. This project, which was initiated at the University of Rostock, has a term of three years and relies on the cooperation of several important institutions, including the Leibniz Institute for Baltic Sea research Warnemünde (IOW), the Leibniz Center for Archeology (Leiza) and the Christian-Albrechts-University in Kiel. The kick -off event took place on the IOW, where the participants planned the next steps of the project and presented each other.

The main focus of the project is on the examination of a remarkable discovery: an almost one kilometer -long rine that was identified in 2021 at the bay of Mecklenburg before Rerik. This structure, which lies at around 21 meters of water, indicates that it represents a man -made hunting system from the late Pleistocene and was created about 11,000 years ago. Assumptions assume that the row of stone was used to hunt when the surrounding landscapes were not yet under water.

The scientific examination

The Seascape project aims to check this hypothesis by geophysical, geological and underwater archaeological research. In the Flensburg Fjord and Fehmarnsund, other potential mega structures are also to be examined. The first evaluation of the rain series indicates that it was used as a animal trap, comparable to similar structures built by hunter and collector groups in the Arabian Peninsula. The use in connection with a sunken lake or moor is also accepted to make reindeer.

dr. Marcel Bradtmöller, an antiquity scientist from the University of Rostock, leads the project and is also a co -author of the associated study. The interdisciplinary approach is necessary because large Stone Age buildings in Central Europe are rare, especially due to the dense settlement and the resulting erosion over thousands of years.

relevance and future prospects

SESCAPE not only has scientific relevance, but also says something about the cultural practices of the Frühstone People. The research of these mega structures could lead to a better understanding of the way of life of our early ancestors. The first results of the project took place in December 2024 when Seascape received the recognition award of the North German Science Award.

The risky cost efficiency of the project is also supported by promoting almost 1 million euros from the "Cooperative Excellence" funding line of the Leibniz competition. With every step that the interdisciplinary teams take, a more comprehensive picture of the flooded cultural landscapes on the bottom of the Baltic Sea is within reach.