Hunting – Neues Museum am See

Showcase Hunting

Hunting – On land and in the water

With its diverse range of fish, Lake Constance served as an important food source all year round. People have been fishing here with nets, fish traps and fishhooks for 10,000 years. The shape and size of the nets and tackle, as well as the food waste found under the houses, indicate that whitefish, perch, pike and catfish were on the menu. Depending on the season, fishing was supplemented by hunting for other wild animals, including deer, roe deer and wild boar, which are still hunted today. Additionally moose, brown bears, wild horses, beavers, cormorants and aurochs were also hunted.

A1

Arrowheads | Flint | 3800 BC | Manzell, Seemoos | APM

A2

Arrowhead | Flint, wayfaring tree, birch tar| 3900 BC | Degersee | ALM

Not all arrowheads are the same

There is evidence of various types of arrowheads from the Stone and Bronze Ages.

They differ depending on their purpose: Small, simple points that were usually made of organic material, such as bone or antler, were used for close-range hunting.

Finely crafted points made of flint or bronze were used for longer distances. The arrow shafts were made from the shoots of the hazel bush, as well as the wayfaring tree. hree feather halves – glued with birch tar radially to the rear end of the arrow shaft and wrapped with sinew – stabilized the flight path.

A3

Arrowhead | Antler | 1000 BC | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | APM

A4

Arrowhead | Antler | 3800 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | APM

A5

Arrowheads | Bronze | 900 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | APM

A6

Blunt arrowhead | Antler | 3800 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | APM

Blunt arrowhead

When hunting birds, blunt arrowheads were the first choice. Not just because they were easy to build, they also spared the feathers, which could then be processed into jewellery.

Illustration: M. Kinsky | APM

A7

Bow fragment with traces of splintering | Yew | 3000 BC | Bad Buchau-Bachwiesen | ALM

Yew bow fragment

Yew wood is highly elastic. There is no doubt that it was already the preferred wood for making bows back in the Stone Age. Ötzi the Iceman also carried a bow made of yew wood.

Modern replicas achieve ranges of up to 180 meters and an arrow speed of 120 km/h.

Illustration: G. Embleton | APM

B1

Spearhead | Flint | 3000 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

B2

Spearhead | Bronze | 900 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | APM

B3

Fish bones | Pike, catfish | 3000 BC | Wallhausen-Ziegelhütte | ALM

B4

Upper arm and pelvic bones | Frog | 2850 BC | Schreckensee | ALM

Frog skeleton | APM

What’s for dinner?

Frog on a stick perhaps? All edible animals on land, in the water and in the air were on the menu – and as a whole: from the body fat to nutritious bone marrow. Bird eggs were also stirred into soups or fried. And sometimes frogs. Especially in April and May they frolicked in the wet meadows near the pile dwellings. But it wasn’t just animal products that were served. There were also wild vegetables, nuts, berries, roots and mushrooms. And with agriculture, grains and legumes moved into the pantry. What have you eaten today?

Illustration: G. Embleton | APM

C1

Fishing hook | Antler | 3800 BC | Unteruhldingen-Bayenwiesen, Unteruhldingen- Stollenwiesen | APM

C2

Gorge hooks | Bone, antler | 3000 BC | Sipplingen-Osthafen | APM

Gorge hook

The gorge hook is probably the oldest form of fishing tackle. When baited with a dough ball or a small bait fish, larger fish such as catfish and pike could be caught.

Illustration: after J. Auler | APM

C3

Fishing hook | Bronze | 900 BC | Unteruhldingen-Stollenwiesen | APM

C4

Fishing hook, bent open | Bronze | 950 BC | Hagnau-Burg | ALM

C5

Handangel, Angelhaken | Geweih, Bronze | 1000 v. Chr. | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | APM

C6

Fishing rod, fishing hook| Antler, bone | 3800 BC | Wangen-Hinterhorn | APM

Pretty slippery

Have you ever tried to catch a fish with your bare hands? Doing so was completely normal for the children of the pile dwellers. But there were also aids. Below the pile dwellings, fish traps and long fishing lines with bait could be lowered into the water to catch fish. A small fishing rod was practical: a pointed fishing hook, attached to a handline and wound around a piece of wood or bone.

Photo: Sunti | Shutterstock

C7

Ball of string | Plant fibres | 3000 BC | Switzerland | REM

C8

Fragment of a fish trap | Willow | 3900 BC | Bad Buchau-Tannstock | APM

Fish trap

Basket traps were suitable for fishing in shallow water – even in the immediate settlement area of the pile dwellings.

Illustration: Penta Springs Limited | alamy

C9

Fragments of a fishing net | Plant fibres | 3900 BC | Robenhausen (Switzerland) | REM

C10

Fragment of a fishing net | Plant fibres | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

D1

Floats | Poplar bark | 2900 BC | Bodman-Weiler | ALM

D2

Fragment of a fishing net | Plant fibres | 3900 BC | Horn-Hornstaad Hörnle | ALM

D3

Net sinkers | Pottery | 3800 BC | Bad Buchau-Neuweiher | ALM

Gillnets

To stabilize a net in the water, fishermen still use wooden floats at the top and stone weights or notched pottery sherds as sinkers at the bottom.

Illustration: after J. Auler | APM

D4

Harpoon head | Antler | 1000 BC | Bad Buchau-Wasserburg | APM

Fishing with a harpoon

Barbed harpoons made it easier to hunt large fish such as pike and catfish, which could not be easily caught with fishing hooks.

Illustration: G. Embleton | APM