ABSTRACT

Ideas about wrapping and unwrapping the body can enhance our understanding of the burial mound from Eberdingen-Hochdorf, which belongs to the early Celtic people of southwest Germany. This grave constitutes part of an early Iron Age princely burial set within a cultural context identified specifically as the western group of the late Hallstatt period. A textile archaeologist in central Europe typically deals with fragments. Before one can begin to interpret the wrapping of the deceased one has to ask what sort of activities accompanied the burial ceremony. The bronze couch with the mattress, the body, and different organic layers were brought into the laboratory, and it took almost a year to remove the layers. The final evidence for the wrapping of the body was revealed by microstratigraphy. Ethnology reveals that the production of cloth intended for a special use is quite often run through specific production methods and can take months to complete.