Germanisch-slawische Siedlung von Berlin-Marzahn

Archaeologists uncovered traces of an early Germanic and later Slavic settlement beneath the streets of Berlin-Marzahn, close to the old village core and beside the Rohrpfuhl pond. Excavations between 1976 and 1979 revealed three distinct phases: the first two belonged to a Germanic village, while from the 7th or 8th century Slavs moved into the same plots and kept the old Germanic names for streams. Finds from the 6th century nearby suggest the site may have been occupied without long breaks. The earliest phase dates from the 5th to 1st centuries BC and included three farmsteads with 20-metre-long longhouses, smaller outbuildings, rubbish pits and a bread oven. Craft activities identified here were pottery, ironworking and bronze casting. About 250 metres away a cemetery of thirty urn burials was found. The second phase, probably from the 3rd or 4th to the 5th century AD, produced the remains of six huts used as workshops, along with hearths, rubbish pits and a well. Pottery dominates the small finds, with some evidence for spinning, weaving and possible iron or woodworking, hinting at a largely egalitarian community. From the 7th century Slavic settlers arrived and left the oldest traces of their presence in the area. Their finds consist mainly of rubbish pits and pottery; two wells were dug, often reusing older Germanic shafts with additional timber linings. Tools recovered show the newcomers continued to use the site in new ways while respecting the older landscape.