The Goseck Circle is a Neolithic structure in the Goseck, Burgenlandkreis district, Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
The circle was first discovered in 1991 during a survey of the area from an airplane, when a round silhouette was discovered against the background of a wheat field. The excavations were started by Francois Bertemes and Peter Biehl of the University of Halle-Wittenberg in 2002. When compared with GPS data, archaeologists found that the two southern passes mark sunrise and sunset on the winter solstice.
Remains of cut stones, ceramics, foundry and weavings were found on the site, which seems to indicate a use of the place over a long period.The existence of the site was made public in August 2003. It was opened to the public in December 2005.
Access : Coordinates: 51.198333, 11.864722 / The site is located on farmland near Goseck, in the Burgenland district of Saxony-Anhalt, between Naumburg and Weißenfels.
Highlights :
- The remains of the original configuration indicate that the Gozek circle originally consisted of 4 concentric circles, a mound, a moat and two wooden palisades.
- There is similarity between the solstitial angle of the portals with the angles identified in the Nebra disk, discovered about 25 kilometers away from the Goseck site
- Goseck is a stop on the tourist route, Himmelswege, which links archaeological sites in Saxony-Anhalt,The reconstructed site is open to the public. An information point has been set up in the nearby Goseck castle, with an exhibition and information about the excavations.
Go next : Goseck ,a German municipality , on the river Saale, in the Burgenlandkreis district of the state of Saxony-Anhalt.