Megalithic tombs in Wenningstedt-Braderup

Hardly any other region in Germany was once as characterized by burial mounds and megalithic tombs (large stone graves) as the North Frisian islands of Sylt, Föhr, and Amrum. Burial mounds from the Neolithic (New Stone Age), the Bronze Age, and the Viking Age dominated the landscape on these largely treeless islands. 


On the trail of the graves
On Sylt, over 530 burial mounds from the Bronze and Viking Ages are known, as well as almost 50 megalithic graves from the Neolithic period (New Stone Age).
Much of this once rich heritage of prehistory and early history has been lost over time.
Over time, burial mounds were destroyed by the sea or buried beneath dunes. Starting in the 19th century, stones were increasingly removed from the burial mounds for building purposes. Massive destruction occurred in the 1930s and 40s at the hands of the Wehrmacht. Many burial mounds were severely damaged or even completely destroyed by military installations, such as the Munkhoog in Morsum, which was destroyed by military installations during World War II.

The importance of the Geest for the islands
Like Amrum and Föhr, Sylt is a geest island. Geest means higher and drier land. It extends to the surface of the islands in so-called geest cores. The geest of the islands was formed during the penultimate ice age. The glaciers of this ice age brought with them a great deal of material that remained after the glaciers melted and today forms the geest cores of the islands.
These geest cores were the high points in the landscape at that time. At the time of the first permanent settlement of the
Islands in the Neolithic period were about 3 m deeper. The Geest was therefore significantly larger than today and could be easily settled. 


The names of the burial mounds
If you investigate the question of how the names of the burial mounds came about, you will quickly find yourself in the world of Sylt legends. 
As early as 1832, the Sylt chronicler and local historian CP Hansen began recording legends and stories as folk tales and rewriting them as myths. All known Sylt legends date back to his collection. Burial mounds play a significant role in these legends, as at that time their origin was unexplained and they were still lying very freely in the landscape. 
Burial mounds that do not bear a name but are marked with a number were only discovered after 1879 with the beginning of the modern archaeological survey of Schleswig-Holstein.

The construction method
The megalithic tombs, often referred to as barrows, were not built by giants but by humans in an astonishingly short time. 
The building material used was the boulders found on the Geest, mostly made of granite, which the glaciers of the Ice Age had brought here.
The stones were probably pulled by teams of oxen or by muscle power over tree trunks to the intended burial sites –
If possible, when the ground was frozen—and fitted together precisely. In this way, a megalithic tomb was constructed within a few months.


Tip:
Follow the hünen.kulTour from Denghoog back to Kampen and Braderup. 
The tour includes a total of 15 locations and starts in Wennigstedt am Denghoog.
The length is 15 km.
Tour duration by bike approx. 1,5-2 hours and on foot at a moderate walking pace approx. 3,5-4 hours. 
Along the way you will find information boards explaining the special features of each burial mound. 

Source: Flyer hünen.kulTour  
The flyer is available from all tourist services and spa administrations on the island of Sylt, from Sylt Marketing GmbH, from the List Natural Forces Adventure Centre and from the Braderup Nature Conservation Centre.