{"data":{"page":{"__typename":"ExhibitionPage","title":"Archaeology Now","menuTitle":"Archaeology Now","metaImage":{"width":0,"height":0,"src":null,"alt":null,"orientation":"0","focusPointX":null,"focusPointY":null,"id":"0","__typename":"Image"},"metaDescription":null,"content":"

A spade is thrust sharply into the ground, tools clatter, and a wooden walkway creaks underfoot: the exhibition \u201cArchaeology Now: New finds excavated in Canton of Bern\u201d takes visitors on a journey into the world of archaeology and its excavations, documentation and sensational finds.<\/p>","isPermantExhibition":false,"startDate":"2024-03-28","endDate":"2024-10-20","links":{"nodes":[]},"preview":{"mode":"video","color":"666252","image":{"width":0,"height":0,"src":null,"alt":null,"orientation":"0","focusPointX":null,"focusPointY":null,"id":"0","__typename":"Image"},"images":[{"image":{"width":2362,"height":1326,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/4-Staffel\/MM-Archaologie-aktuell_Thun_Schadau_Abb-v3.-1.jpg","alt":"MM Archaologie aktuell Thun Schadau Abb v3. 1","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"1200","__typename":"Image"},"id":"36"},{"image":{"width":1772,"height":1329,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/4-Staffel\/MM-Archaologie-aktuell_Thun_Schadau_Abb.-4.JPG","alt":"MM Archaologie aktuell Thun Schadau Abb. 4","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"1166","__typename":"Image"},"id":"38"},{"image":{"width":4750,"height":3332,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/4-Staffel\/MM-Archaologie-aktuell_Thun_Schadau_Abb.-2.JPG","alt":"MM Archaologie aktuell Thun Schadau Abb. 2","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"1163","__typename":"Image"},"id":"37"},{"image":{"width":4000,"height":3000,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/4-Staffel\/MM-Archaologie-aktuell_Thun_Schadau_Abb.-3.JPG","alt":"MM Archaologie aktuell Thun Schadau Abb. 3","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"1165","__typename":"Image"},"id":"39"}],"video":{"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Uploads\/2024\/Unbenannt-1-v2.mp4","id":"1229","__typename":"File"},"id":"27","__typename":"Preview"},"id":"92","useElementsMenu":true,"elementalArea":{"elements":[{"__typename":"Text","id":"364","title":"The exhibition","showTitle":true,"anchor":"section-364","menuTitle":"The exhibition","showInMenus":true,"variant":"lg","htmlText":"

As part of a collaboration with the Archaeological Service of the Canton of Bern, treasures that not long before were hidden in the Bernese ground find their way to the museum\u2019s excavation site tent. Every six months, visitors can view the latest finds and learn about the stories behind them exclusively at the Bernisches Historisches Museum.<\/p>","button":{"__typename":"Link","id":"0","label":null,"isExternal":null,"href":""}},{"__typename":"ImageText","id":"1208","title":"Pile Dwellings from Lake Thun","showTitle":true,"anchor":"section-1208","menuTitle":"Fourth edition","showInMenus":true,"variant":"big","subtitle":null,"label":"Fourth edition","htmlText":"

Begins 28 March 2024<\/h3>\n
The surprise was great when in 2014, scuba diver Daniel Rubin presented the Archaeological Service of Canton Bern with a bag full of bronze objects that he had found in Lake Thun near Schadau Castle. An initial inspection of the find site by the Archaeological Service\u2019s diving team revealed piles, archaeological strata, and more bronze artefacts. This is the first pile-dwelling site to have been found in Lake Thun. <\/p>\n
The remains of the millennia-old settlement are at severe risk of erosion, particularly in the region of the shipping lane. In order to secure the archaeological remains before they are totally destroyed, the Archaeological Service's diving team has been carrying out rescue excavations in 2020 and 2024. The still extant remains of the settlement are being documented underwater by divers, and the finds (ceramics, weapons, tools and bronze jewellery) rescued. The piles of the one-time houses excavated in 2020 \u2013 which have now been dated by means of dendrochronology (a dating method for wood) \u2013 show that people lived in at least two consecutive settlements, in around 1590 BC and then around 1550 BC.<\/p>\n
The exhibition will bring the hidden world in Lake Thun to life with the aid of wave projections and a fitting soundscape. Interviews with project participants will give insights into the diving excavations and the technique of dendrochronology.<\/p>","image":{"width":2362,"height":1326,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/4-Staffel\/MM-Archaologie-aktuell_Thun_Schadau_Abb.-1.jpg","alt":"MM Archaologie aktuell Thun Schadau Abb. 1","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"1164","typename":"Image"},"video":{"src":null,"id":"0","typename":"File"},"button":{"typename":"ExternalLink","id":"659","label":"Learn more","isExternal":false,"href":"https:\/\/www.thinglink.com\/card\/1821928068961272676"}},{"typename":"ImageText","id":"365","title":"Burial mounds in the Challnechwald","showTitle":true,"anchor":"section-365","menuTitle":"Third edition","showInMenus":true,"variant":"big","subtitle":null,"label":"Third edition","htmlText":"
The Archaeological Service of the Canton of Bern is carrying out a multi-year rescue excavation in the Challnechwald near Kallnach. The finds from the burial mounds, such as a recently discovered gold ring, are being restored in the laboratory and thus preserved for posterity.<\/p>\n
Before the planned gravel extraction would destroy the site, the experts from the archaeological service remove the mounds of earth or stones layer by layer using excavators, shovels and trowels. They document the traces in the ground using the latest technology. The graves examined, some of which are richly furnished, contain grave goods such as ceramic vessels and jewelry. They provide information about the power of the rich upper class, their contacts with neighboring regions and the Mediterranean and the skill of the Iron Age craftsmen a good 2500 years ago.<\/p>\n
The finds from the rescue excavation in the Challnechwald consist of various materials. The metal finds in particular are often in a fragile state of preservation. They are therefore plastered together with the surrounding soil during the excavation, recovered as a block and quickly taken to the laboratory of the Archaeological Service in B\u00fcmpliz. The finds in the blocks can be localized using X-rays or computer tomography. The finds are then uncovered under a microscope, preserved and prepared for subsequent storage in the finds depot or presentation in the museum.<\/p>","image":{"width":4000,"height":6000,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Uploads\/2023\/Archaologie_aktuell_dritte_Ausgabe-v4.gif","alt":"Archaologie aktuell dritte Ausgabe v4","orientation":"1","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"351","typename":"Image"},"video":{"src":null,"id":"0","typename":"File"},"button":{"typename":"ExternalLink","id":"430","label":"Learn more","isExternal":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thinglink.com\/card\/1720749983637963238"}},{"typename":"ImageText","id":"366","title":"Votive offerings from the Ammertenhorn","showTitle":true,"anchor":"section-366","menuTitle":"Second edition","showInMenus":true,"variant":"big","subtitle":null,"label":"Second edition","htmlText":"
The surprising site near the Ammertenhorn in the municipality of Lenk in the Bernese Oberland was discovered by a runner in the summer of 2020. The Archaeological Service then carried out investigations on this remote high plateau in the following two years to secure further finds.<\/p>\n
One hundred Roman coins, a fragment of a bronze votive plate - a votive offering in the form of a leaf - 27 rock crystals and other objects were recovered. But what is the significance of these finds and why did people take on the hardships of climbing to this height around 2000 years ago? Similar find ensembles are often interpreted as votive offerings. The high plateau between the Ammertenhorn and the lofty Wildstrubel massif, visible from afar, could also have been a sacred place.<\/p>\n
A pedestal for a cult image found in 1926 in the Roman sanctuary of Thun-Allmendingen shows that the Alps were of great importance to the Romans. Its Latin inscription states that it was donated to the Alpine goddesses by the local population. By laying down offerings, believers were able to make contact with these deities, for example to appease them, to thank them or to ask them to fulfill a wish. The new finds from the Ammertenhorn now shed new light on the discovery from Allmendingen, which has been known for some time. Apparently there were not only sacred places at the \"Gateway to the Alps\", but also in the high mountains, which were repeatedly visited.<\/p>","image":{"width":640,"height":640,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/AA_Abb._1_Grabung_Ammertenhorn_RG_070edcb782.jpg","alt":"AA Abb. 1 Grabung Ammertenhorn RG 070edcb782","orientation":"0","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"804","typename":"Image"},"video":{"src":null,"id":"0","typename":"File"},"button":{"typename":"ExternalLink","id":"429","label":"Learn more","isExternal":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thinglink.com\/card\/1679815715206463490"}},{"typename":"ImageText","id":"367","title":"Coin treasures of the Engehalbinsel","showTitle":true,"anchor":"section-367","menuTitle":"First edition","showInMenus":true,"variant":"big","subtitle":null,"label":"First edition","htmlText":"
The exhibition series began with finds from the Engehalbinsel in Bern. In the late Iron Age (3rd to 1st century BC), this probably bore the name Brenodurum and was inhabited by the Helvetii, a Celtic tribe. With an area of up to 140 hectares, it was one of the largest in what is now the Swiss Plateau - possibly even the capital of the Helvetii.<\/p>\n
They minted coins there, which are now on display together with the coinage tools that have been found: To kick off the exhibition series, Celtic silver coins from the 1st century BC and the first confirmed gold coin from the site, a so-called quarter stater, will be on display. The coins are accompanied by silver cast remains and a brass tool similar to a coin punch. This ensemble is a strong indication of Celtic silver coin production at the site.<\/p>\n
The treasure of 65 Celtic and Roman silver coins also on display is a few decades younger. It was deposited in a small vessel in the ground around 20 BC, when the Helvetian territory was already part of the Roman Empire. The coins include denarii and quinarii from the time of the Roman Republic and those minted by famous historical figures such as Caesar, Marcus Antonius and Octavian\/Augustus. Coin treasures from this period are rare. Not least because such a large number of silver coins had a considerable value: around 2.5 months' wages of a Roman legionary.<\/p>","image":{"width":1960,"height":2960,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/Abb._2_Roemische_Muenze_RG.jpg","alt":"Abb. 2 Roemische Muenze RG","orientation":"1","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"134","typename":"Image"},"video":{"src":null,"id":"0","typename":"File"},"button":{"typename":"ExternalLink","id":"428","label":"Learn more","isExternal":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.thinglink.com\/card\/1603419208413085697"}},{"typename":"Gallery","id":"708","title":"A look inside the exhibition","showTitle":true,"anchor":"section-708","menuTitle":"Galerie","showInMenus":false,"variant":null,"label":"Discover","button":{"typename":"Link","id":"0","label":null,"isExternal":null,"href":""},"items":{"nodes":[{"typename":"GalleryImagesItem","title":"Kleine Bilder","variant":"lg","images":[{"caption":null,"image":{"width":5471,"height":3647,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/H9A0698.jpg","alt":"H9A0698","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"627","typename":"Image"},"id":"384"},{"caption":null,"image":{"width":6972,"height":4649,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/27A2708.jpg","alt":"27A2708","orientation":"2","focusPointX":-0.5644444444444445263542320390115492045879364013671875,"focusPointY":-0.18666666666666664742280090649728663265705108642578125,"id":"737","typename":"Image"},"id":"385"},{"caption":null,"image":{"width":6981,"height":4654,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/2022DauerausstellungArchMedien-bild09.jpg","alt":"2022DauerausstellungArchMedien bild09","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"739","typename":"Image"},"id":"386"},{"caption":null,"image":{"width":7081,"height":4723,"src":"https:\/\/cms.bhm.ch\/assets\/Wechselausstellungen\/Archaeologie-aktuell\/27A2329.jpg","alt":"27A2329","orientation":"2","focusPointX":0,"focusPointY":0,"id":"738","typename":"Image"},"id":"387"}],"id":"183"}]}}],"id":"139","__typename":"ElementalArea"},"locales":[{"label":"Deutsch","locale":"de_CH","href":"\/de\/ausstellungen\/aktuelle-ausstellungen\/archaeologie-aktuell"},{"label":"Fran\u00e7ais","locale":"fr_CH","href":"\/fr\/expositions\/expositions-actuelles\/nouveautes-archeologiques"},{"label":"English","locale":"en_CH","href":"\/en\/exhibitions\/current-exhibitions\/archaeology-now"}]}}}