Publications
Hohle Fels – A UNESCO Global Geopark Geosite within a UNESCO World Heritage Site: Protection and Cooperation
Hohle Fels Cave, a significant site in the Swabian Jura, offers unparalleled insights into Central European late Middle and early Upper Paleolithic culture. Dating between 42,000 and 35,000 years B.P., the cave contains over 90,000 lithic artifacts, faunal remains, and notable mobile art objects like flutes and beads. As part of UNESCO World Heritage 'Caves and Ice Age Art in the Swabian Jura' since 2017, Hohle Fels also serves as a geosite within the Swabian Alb UNESCO Global Geopark. This dual status fosters collaborative management efforts, integrating cultural heritage with geological significance to develop shared protection programs and monitoring measures.
Possible or Not: Parietal in the Swabian Jura?
Despite the Swabian Jura's rich archaeological record, including Aurignacian ivory carvings and flutes, no Pleistocene parietal art has been documented there. While ochre traces on mobile artifacts suggest pigment use, their absence on cave walls raises questions about preservation or human activity. Geological processes like karstification may hinder paint longevity, and prolonged cave use could have destroyed any existing artwork, though remnants should persist if this were the case. A research gap persists due to the lack of systematic cave wall analysis. Current efforts leverage 3D cave recordings and advanced imaging techniques to systematically search for parietal art in known and potential new caves within the UNESCO-listed World Heritage Site.
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