Cultural Heritage
Germany is a country rich in archaeological treasures. Roman settlements in the Rhineland, princely mounds in the Lüneburg Heath, elaborate burial sites on the river Saale, Stone Age jewelry from the Swabian Alb and shipwrecks in the tidelands are all valuable testimonies to past cultures and lifestyles in the context of their finds. But this archaeological heritage is exposed to many threats.
Last edited: 16. March 2026
Publications of the working group
- Open letter: "Thinking ahead together: for a strong, networked archaeology" (2025)
- Discussion paper "Shared responsibility for archaeological heritage: Why archaeological cultural heritage protection must be better integrated into academic education" (2024) | German only
- Discussion paper "Networked emergency preparedness for cultural assets" (2023) | German only
- Discussion paper "Organisational requirements for emergency preparedness for cultural assets" (2023) | German only
- Discussion paper "The legal basis of emergency preparedness for cultural assets" (2022) | German only
- Discussion paper "Traces under water: Exploring and protecting the cultural heritage in the North Sea and Baltic Sea" (2019) | German only
Infrastructural measures, construction projects or modern forms of land and forest management may damage or irretrievably destroy archaeological culture assets. Floods and fires can also threat-en archival documents of human history that are already stored - presumably safely - in museums or archives.
Archaeological objects are repeatedly the target of probe runners and illegal excavations, even in Germany. In 2002, investigators succeeded in securing a circular bronze plate in Switzerland. Since then, the so-called “Nebra Sky Disk” illustrates just how detailed the knowledge of astronomy was four millennia ago. At the same time, chemical analyses show that trading in precious metals already existed throughout Europe at that time.
Archaeological structures and relics in the soil represent a unit of meaning in the context of their discovery, whether on dry land or under water. Excavations are always irreversible intrusions into the find context. In illegal excavations, all information about the find context is permanently lost.
The working group "Archaeological Cultural Heritage" is working on the following publications:
- “Traces under Water - Exploring and Protecting the Cultural Heritage in the North Sea and Baltic Sea” (Discussion Paper)
- Disaster Prevention and Risk Management for our Cultural Heritage (Statement)
- Illegal Excavations and illegal Trafficking (Statement)
- Archaeological Heritage in Education and Research (Statement)
Spokespersons of the working group
Further members of the working group
- Prof Dr Marie-Theres Albert †, Brandenburg University of Technology Cottbus-Senftenberg
- Prof Dr Maja Apelt, University of Potsdam
- Dr Martin Bachmann †, Koldewey Society, German Archaeological Institute (DAI) - Martin Bachmann passed away unexpectedly on 3 August 2016
- Dr Mike Belasus, University of Copenhagen, Denmark
- Dr Roland Bernecker, UNESCO Germany, Bonn
- Prof Dr Olivier Berthod, ICN Business School, Berlin
- Prof Dr Kerstin von der Decken, University of Kiel (member until June 2022)
- Prof Dr Peter Funke, Westphalian Wilhelms University of Münster
- Prof Dr Hans-Joachim Gehrke ML, University of Freiburg
- Prof Dr Hauke Jöns, Lower Saxony Institute for Historical Coastal Research
- Prof Dr Markus Hilgert, Cultural Foundation of the German Federal States
- Prof Dr Matthias Knaut, University of Applied Sciences, Berlin
- Prof Dr Jürgen Kunow, Office for the Preservation of Monuments in the Rhineland, Bonn
- Prof. Dr Dr Sabine Freifrau von Schorlemer, TU Dresden
ML = Member of the Leopoldina
Contact us
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Kontakt Dr. Constanze Breuer
Scientific Officer, Department Science - Policy - Society
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Kontakt Dr. Christian Anton
Scientific Officer, Department Science - Policy - Society