The Hamburg culture or Hamburgian (15,500-13,100 BP) was a Late Upper Paleolithic culture of reindeer hunters in northwestern Europe during the last part of the Weichsel Glaciation beginning during the Bölling interstadial. Sites are found close to the ice caps of the time.From the First Humans to the Mesolithic Hunters in the Northern German Lowlands, Current Results and Trends - THOMAS TERBERGER. From: Across the western Baltic, edited by: Keld Møller Hansen & Kristoffer Buck Pedersen, 2006, , Sydsjællands Museums Publikationer Vol. 1 They extend as far north as the Pomeranian ice margin. The Hamburg Culture has been identified at many places, for example, the settlement at Meiendorf and AhrensburgDer umstrittene Ehrenbürger - Region - Stormarn - Hamburger Abendblatt
/ref> north of Hamburg, Germany. It is characterized by shouldered points and ''zinken'' tools, which were used as chisels when working with antler. In later periods tanged Havelte-type points appear, sometimes described as most of all a northwestern phenomenon. Notwithstanding the spread over a large geographical area in which a homogeneous development is not to be expected, the definition of the Hamburgian as a technological complex of its own has not recently been questioned. The culture spread from northern France to southern Scandinavia in the north and to Poland in the east. In Britain a related culture is called Creswellian. thumb|50px|left|A Hamburg culture shouldered point In the early 1980s, the first find from the culture in Scandinavia was excavated at Jels in Sønderjylland. Recently, new finds have been discovered at, for example, Finja in northern Skåne. The latest findings (2005) have shown that these people travelled far north along the Norwegian coast dryshod during the summer, since the sea level was lower than today. In northern Germany, camps with layers of detritus have been found. In the layers there is a great deal of horn and bone, and it appears that the reindeer was an important prey. The distribution of the finds in the settlements show that the settlements were small and only inhabited by a small group of people. At a few settlements, archaeologists have discovered circles of stones, interpreted as weights for a teepee covering.

See also

* Federmesser culture * Alfred Rust * Creswellian * Ahrensburg culture * Nationalencyklopedin


References

{{Prehistoric technology|state=expanded Category:Paleolithic cultures of Europe Category:Upper Paleolithic cultures of Europe Category:Archaeological cultures of Central Europe Category:Archaeological cultures of Northern Europe Category:Archaeological cultures of Western Europe Category:Archaeological cultures in Belgium Category:Archaeological cultures in Denmark Category:Archaeological cultures in France Category:Archaeological cultures in Germany Category:Archaeological cultures in the Netherlands Category:Archaeological cultures in Norway Category:Archaeological cultures in Poland Category:Archaeological cultures in Sweden Category:History of Hamburg