Arnkielpark

The Arnkielpark is an open-air archaeological site in Munkwolstrup, a village near Flensburg in Schleswig-Holstein. It lies about eight kilometres south of Flensburg along the B 76 road. The park covers a stretch of land where ancient monuments once stood, some of which were nearly lost in the 19th century. In the early 2000s the site was restored and opened to the public. The reconstruction finished in 2003 used 160 heavy boulders from a nearby gravel pit. The park preserves traces of the Trichterbecherkultur, a Neolithic culture that built its megalithic tombs between 3500 and 2800 BC. One of the most impressive reconstructions is a 75-metre-long burial mound with two chambers, the second of its kind rebuilt in Schleswig-Holstein. Archaeologists found traces of ploughing beneath the mound dating back to about 3600 BC, one of the earliest signs of arable farming in northern Europe. The site also includes six other graves and around twenty-five burial mounds scattered across the landscape. Visitors walk along gravel paths that lead past the large reconstructed Hünenbett and smaller tombs. The long mound is framed by rows of standing stones, some of which are original survivors from the 18th century. Two hollows mark the positions of chambers inside the mound, while other depressions show where smaller graves once stood. From the southern edge of the park the land falls away toward fields and scattered farmsteads. The setting is quiet, with only the wind and occasional traffic on the B 76 breaking the silence.