The Swiss Magdalenian Portable Art and Supra-Regional Parallels
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УДК 902, 903.27 DOI: 10.31250/2658-3828-2020-2-42-57 I.M. BRAUN Independent researcher Wyhlenweg 4, CH-4126 Bettingen, Switzerland E-mail: [email protected] ORCID: 0000-0002-8682-7329 THE SWISS MAGDALENIAN PORTABLE ART AND SUPRA-rEGioNAL PARALLELS ABSTRACT There are about fifty Magdalenian jectile points. They are mainly signs and other orna- sites known in Switzerland. Most of these sites were mental motifs. In addition, there are also figurative discovered and excavated at the end of the 19th and subjects such as animals and a animal-human repre- in the first half of the 20th century. Consequently, sentation. The term “figurative sculptures” refers to it is not always possible today to establish clear re- partially sculptured objects, such as decorated spear search contexts and dating is often based on typo- thrower ends and stylized female figurines. With chronological statements. The Swiss Magdalenian the exception of a musk ox head no other evident portable art can be divided into two main groups: animal sculptures have been found in Switzerland. engravings and figurative sculptures. Engravings Some of the Magdalenian portable art objects found mostly appear on reindeer antlers, bones, and rarely in Switzerland show supra-regional parallels with on stone or jet. They are more common than figu- finds from other parts of Europe. The aim of this -ar rative sculptures. The majority of engravings are on ticle is to present the most important Swiss finds in everyday objects such as perforated batons and pro- a broader European geographical context. Key words: Switzerland, Upper Palaeolithic, Magdalenian, portable art, supra-regional parallels. For сitation: Braun I.M. The Swiss Magdalenian portable art and supra-regional parallels. Camera praehis- torica. 2020, no. 2 (5), рр. 42–57. doi: 10.31250/2658-3828-2020-2-42-57. И.М. БрауН МадлеНскОе ИскусствО Малых фОрМ ШвейцарИИ: НадрегиональНые ПараллелИ АннотАция На территории Швейца- Швейцарии можно разделить на две большие рии известно около 50 мадленских памятников. группы: гравюра и фигуративная скульптура. Большинство из них было открыто и исследо- Гравированные изображения в основном вы- вано в конце XIX — первой половине XX века, полнялись на оленьем роге, кости и иногда на поэтому сегодня не всегда удается восстановить камне или лигните. Они более многочисленны, их точный археологический контекст, а датиров- чем статуэтки, наносились главным образом на ки зачастую базируются на типологических на- обычные предметы обихода, такие как выпря- блюдениях. Мадленское искусство малых форм митель с отверстием или наконечники. Под фи- Camera praehistorica №2 (5) • 2020 43 гуративной скульптурой понимаются объекты, рые мадленские объекты искусства малых форм частично оформленные в скульптуру, такие как Швейцарии имеют надрегиональные паралле- декорированные рабочие концы копьеметалок ли с находками из других частей европы. цель и стилизованные женские фигурки. скульптур данной статьи — представить наиболее важные животных, за исключением одной головы овце- швейцарские находки в более широком евро- быка, в Швейцарии найдено не было. Некото- пейском географическом контексте. Ключевые слова: Швейцария, верхний палеолит, мадленская культура, искусство малых форм, над- региональные параллели. Для цитирования: Braun I.M. The Swiss Magdalenian portable art and supra-regional parallels // Camera praehistorica. 2020. № 2 (5). с. 42–57. doi: 10.31250/2658-3828-2020-2-42-57. THE MAGDALENIAN IN SWITZERLAND sculptures (according to: [Höneisen 1993b]). The en- gravings are mainly on reindeer antlers, but also on Around 50 Magdalenian sites are known in Swit- bone and occasionally on stone or jet. They are more zerland (fig. 1). These are, in particular, cave and common than the figural sculptures. The majority of rock shelter sites in the Jura region and open-air the engravings are found on everyday objects such sites, mainly in the Central Plateau (Mittelland). as perforated batons, projectile points (fig. 2: 1) and Large concentrations of sites are found in the re- other tools. Apart from figurative subjects such as gions of Basel, Olten, and Schaffhausen. The reason animals and a possible animal-human representa- for these concentrations is certainly that the area of tion, they are mainly signs and other ornamental the Central Plateau could only be settled after the patterns. Reindeer and horses, typical representa- retreat of the alpine glaciers during the Late Glacial tives of the Ice Age animal world, dominate among Maximum. At that time large parts of Switzerland the engravings [Bosinski 1982; Braun 2005; Braun were in fact covered by ice, with the exception of the 2006; Braun 2009; Braun 2019; Höneisen 1993b]. northern Jura region, north-western Switzerland, The term “figural sculptures” refers to sculptured the Napf region, and parts of the Randen in the can- objects such as decorated spear thrower ends, so- ton of Schaffhausen. Another reason for this may called spindle-shaped sculptures (fig. 2: 2), and styl- also be that at the beginning of Palaeolithic research ized female figurines [Höneisen 1993b]. Apart from in Switzerland at the end of the 19th and beginning a musk ox head from the Kesslerloch, no other evi- of the 20th century the focus was mainly on caves dent animal sculptures have been found in Switzer- and rock shelters, as found in the Jura region. The land to date. majority of the rock shelter and cave sites were al- In the following, the sites in Switzerland that pro- ready discovered during this period and excavated vide portable art are presented with the most impor- using the methods of the time. Therefore, today it is tant objects listed. not always possible to make clear find connections and dating is based on typo-chronological state- Kesslerloch ments [Höneisen et al. 1993; Leesch et al. 2019]. This most important Magdalenian site (fig. 4) with THE SWISS MAGDALENIAN PORTABLE ART portable art in Thayngen in the canton of Schaff- hausen (fig. 1: 1) was already discovered in 1873 by The Swiss Magdalenian portable art can be di- K. Merk. It was excavated several times between vided into two main groups: engravings and figural 1874 and 1903 [Heierli 1907; Merk 1875; Nüesch I.M. Braun • The Swiss Magdalenian 44 portable art and supra-regional parallels Fig. 1. Distribution of the Swiss Magdalenian sites: ● — Cave or rock shelter site, ▼ — Open–air site. Drawing N. Spichtig, © Swiss Federal Office of Topography 1 — Kesslerloch SH; 2 — Schweizersbild SH; 3 — Freudenthal SH; 4 — Gsang SH; 5 — Neue Höhle SH; 6 — Vorder Eichen SH; 7 — Untere Bsetzi SH; 8 — Kerzenstübli SH; 9 — Uf Wigg AG; 10 — Eremitage AG; 11 — Bruderholz BS; 12 — Rütihard BL; 13 — Birseck–Ermitage BL; 14 — Hollenberghöhle 3 BL; 15 — Büttenloch BL; 16 — Brügglihöhle BL; 17 — Kohlerhöhle BL; 18 — Lausen BL; 19 — Heidenküche SO; 20 — Kastelhöhle Nord SO; 21 — Kleine Ganghöhle SO; 22 — Höhle Thierstein SO; 23 — Liesberg BL; 24 — Chesselgraben SO; 25 — Rislisberghöhle SO; 26 — Köpfli SO; 27 — Käsloch SO; 28 — Hard I and II SO; 29 — Mühleloch SO; 30 — Sälihöhle Oben SO; 31 — Trimbach SO; 32 — Hintere Burg SO; 33 — Moosbühl BE; 34 — Champréveyres NE; 35 — Monruz NE; 36 — Noir Bois JU; 37 — Reiden–Stumpen LU; 38 — Fischerhäusen Station 1 LU; 39 — Kottwil LU (several sites); 40 — Wauwil LU (several sites); 41 — Egolzwil LU; 42 — Moos LU; 43 — Baldegg 4 LU; 44 — Hitzkirch–Seematt 4 LU; 45 — Ebikon LU; 46 — Cham–Grindel ZG; 47 — Steinhausen ZG (several sites); 48 — Einsiedeln– Langrüti SZ; 49 — Niederhasli–Mettmenhaslersee ZH; 50 — Solgen–In der Grauen ZH; 51 — Grotte du Scé VD. (Abbreviations of the names of the cantons: AG — Aargau, BE — Bern, BL — Baselland, BS — Basel–Stadt, JU — Jura, LU — Luzern, NE — Neuchâtel, SH — Schaffhausen, SO — Solothurn, SZ — Schwyz, ZG — Zug, ZH — Zürich, VD — Vaud.) Рис. 1. расположение мадленских памятников на территории Щвейцарии: ● — пещерные стоянки, ▼ — стоянки открытого типа Camera praehistorica №2 (5) • 2020 45 0 3 см 3 2 0 3 см 4 0 3 см 1 0 3 см 0 3 см 0 3 см 5 6 7 Fig. 2. Kesslerloch: 1 — decorated everyday objects such as projectile points and perforated batons [Merk 1875]; 2 — spindle–shaped figures [Bandi 1947]; 3 — perforated baton with the engraving of the so–called “Grazing Reindeer” [Merk 1875]; 4 — perforated baton with the engraving of a horse. The length of the object is 27 cm [Merk 1875]; 5 — perforated baton with the engraving of a possible animal–human figure. Drawing B. Scheffold, Kantonsarchäologie Schaffhausen, in: [Höneisen 1993b]; 6 — fragment of a perforated baton with several holes and with a geometrical decoration. Drawing B. Scheffold, Kantonsarchäologie Schaffhausen, in: [Höneisen 1993a]; 7 — spear thrower ends decorated with horse heads [Guyan 1944] Рис. 2. резные изображения и фигуративная скульптура из пещеры кесслерлох: 1 — декорированные предметы обихода (выпрямитель с отверстием и наконечники) [Merk 1875]; 2 — скульптура веретенообразной формы [Bandi 1947]; 3 — выпрямитель с отверстием с изображением так называемого «пасущегося оленя» [Merk 1875]; 4 — выпрямитель с отверстием с изображением лошади (длина предмета 27 см) [Merk 1875]; 5 — выпрямитель с отверстием с изображением возможно антропозооморфного существа [Höneisen 1993b]; 6 — фрагмент выпрямителя с несколькими отверстиями и геометрическим орнаментом [Höneisen 1993a]; 7 — рабочие концы копьеметалок в виде лошадиной головы [Guyan 1944] 1904]. However, the extremely rough excavation plements (e.g. projectile points, half round rods, and method limits the validity of the results. In addition harpoons), the Kesslerloch can be dated typo-chron- to the numerous implements made of stone, bone, ologically into the Middle and Upper Magdalenian. and antlers, the Kesslerloch provided a large number The best-known work of portable art from the Kes- of high-quality portable art, which made the site one slerloch is the engraving of a reindeer on a perfo- of the most important sites with the Magdalenian rated baton, which was described in the history of portable art in Central Europe. It is remarkable that research as a “grazing reindeer” (fig. 2: 3). Behav- certain objects show good parallels with the portable ioural research studies, however, tend to view this art of South West France.