A fortified settlement once found itself here, on a scenic hillfort in Germany known as Bruchhauser Steine. High above the forests of the Sauerland, though a popular hiking spot today, individuals from the Iron Age decided to fortify this location with rocks, but why these Iron Age men would secure the mountain puzzled archaeologists.
Chief archaeologist of a new study, Sandra Peternek, explained in a press release by LWL, that “the Bruchhauser Steine are situated in a location unfavorable for settlement, significantly removed from the preferred settlement areas along the Hellweg trade route. They are frequently exposed to challenging weather conditions.”
A site of mystery and intrigue, archaeologists suspected that this hillfort might have held religious significance. Back in 2013, archaeologists found an arm ring and a deliberately damaged spearhead, which encouraged this hypothesis to take shape.
Now, in 2025, local historian Matthias Dickhaus announced yet another extraordinary find: two iron axes whose blades were aligned at right angles to each other. Stunned by the sight, he contacted the LWL Archaeology department immediately, who then found socketed axes, or Tüllenbeile, as per LBV.
Beneath them, they discovered a thrilling piece of evidence substantiating the developing theory — maybe closer to fact now— that Bruchhauser Steinewas a place of worship: a quartz pit.
New evidence of ritual at Bruchhauser Steine
In this remarkable pit, which had been carved into the rock and sealed with soil, archaeologists uncovered quartz. A flat stone slab and a rounded stone, known as a Pochstein, a hammer or crusher, to break these materials up, all began communicating a story to archaeologists that this was a hillfort that they protected because it held a symbolic and religious purpose, as per LBV.
In a press release, LWL Archaeology described the find as “exceptional” because quartz could have been mined at the base of the rock. However, they, intriguingly, sourced it elsewhere. These Iron Age men and women instead decided to mine quartz from this elevated location, near the “Otherworld,” which refers to the realm beyond life, inhabited by gods or spirits in Celtic mythology. Quartz was even utilized in Iron Age pottery.
“It is conceivable that the quartz from the fieldstone was an ingredient in special, perhaps ritual, vessels,” as per a press release.
Making history accessible
“Here, we are witnessing ritual acts on one of the landmark’s most exposed rocks: People mined quartz, crushed it, and finally, the ‘wound in the mountain’ had to be sealed again,” Dr. Manuel Zeiler said, from the LWL Archaeology. “The laying of two axes on the ground solemnly concluded the ritual.”
Researchers were able to interpret what the ritual consisted of based on the construction of this remarkable pit.
As a site of increasing importance, the Brücke-Hausen Steine Foundation announced that it intends to make the new findings accessible to the public in a new display case.
“Communicating new archaeological findings is a major priority…,” Nadja de Pierpont-Freifrau von Fürstenberg, chairwoman of the foundation, concluded in a press release. “We can present current research and integrate the cultural heritage into our museum’s presentation of geology and nature.”
“We are proud not only to preserve and make accessible to the public one of the most extraordinary hillforts in North Rhine-Westphalia, but also that new archaeological pieces of the puzzle are gradually revealing our understanding of the past.”