Rungholt, the North Sea island city legend says drowned on 16 January 1362 after a desecrated sacrament, has been mapped by archaeologists using geophysical survey plus local sediment cores in 2023. They traced a 2 km chain of 64 dwelling mounds, drainage systems and one of the era's largest churches — a settlement big enough for ~3,000 people. Cast bronze and brass cauldrons, costly swords, and pottery from Muslim Al-Andalus point to a major medieval trade hub. The sea dike failed. ⚓🏘️
2023 geophysical survey finds drowned Rungholt city beneath German North Sea waters
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Key facts
- Legend held that the North Sea island city of Rungholt was destroyed by a flood on 16 January 1362 after townspeople desecrated a sacrament
- In 2023 archaeologists used geophysical mapping and local sediment cores to map a 2 km long chain of 64 dwelling mounds, extensive drainage systems, and one of the largest churches of its time
- Site size suggests a population of about 3,000 at its height
- Finds include cauldrons of cast bronze and hammered brass, expensive swords, and Hispano-Moresque pottery imported from Muslim Al-Andalus in modern Spain
- The find indicates Rungholt was a hub of trade in the medieval North Sea
- The storm surge may have killed about 25,000 people in the region; the inhabitants' sea dike failed to contain the flood
Sources
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dailysabah.com
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DFG - GEPRIS - RUNGHOLT - GEPRIS - DFGgepris.dfg.de
Geophysical prospections (CAU Kiel) aim at a high-resolution mapping of settlement remains, dikes and agricultural areas for the Rungholt period (about 1200- ...
Rungholten.wikipedia.org
In June 2023, the German Research Foundation announced that researchers had already mapped 10 square kilometers of the area including key features such as a ...
Lost city of Rungholt found after 660 yearsarchaeologymag.com
Archaeologists have uncovered the remains of the medieval town of Rungholt, believed to have been engulfed by the sea in 1362.
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