2,500-Year-Old Pre-Roman Iron Age Settlement Discovered in Hüllhorst, Germany During Fire Station Construction

A remarkable archaeological discovery has been made in Hüllhorst (Minden-Lübbecke district), where construction work for a new fire station has uncovered a settlement dating back more than 2,500 years to the pre-Roman Iron Age. The excavation was supervised by the Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (LWL), whose experts describe the find as a rare and significant breakthrough for archaeology in East Westphalia.

Rare Iron Age House Structures in East Westphalia

According to the LWL-Archäologie für Westfalen, house floor plans from this early Iron Age period (800–600 BC) have previously been identified in the region only in Werther and Minden. Both sites were discovered only in recent years, making the Hüllhorst settlement an exceptional addition to the archaeological record of Ostwestfalen-Lippe.

The excavation took place along Lohagenweg, where the municipality is currently building a new fire station. Before construction could begin, archaeologists investigated the area due to its highly favorable settlement location near the edge of the Wöhrsiek — a spring that remains active to this day. Experts note that prehistoric settlements are frequently found near water sources, which provided reliable access to fresh water for early communities.

Evidence of a Planned Early Iron Age Settlement

In summer 2025, archaeologists initially removed the topsoil in four narrow strips to survey the site. It quickly became clear that the area had once been inhabited more than two millennia ago.

Most of the remains consist of soil discolorations indicating former storage and refuse pits. Particularly significant, however, are small posthole stains in the ground that reveal the former positions of wooden support posts. With careful analysis, these features allow archaeologists to reconstruct entire building layouts.

“We discovered the remains of a large residential building alongside two smaller structures,” explained excavation director Hisham Nabo. The orientation of the main house demonstrates deliberate planning: it was aligned northeast to southwest, positioning its narrow sides toward the prevailing wind direction to reduce wind exposure. This detail highlights the architectural knowledge and environmental awareness of early Iron Age builders.

Pottery Finds Help Date the Site

Artifacts recovered from pit fillings have been crucial in dating the settlement. Fragments of handled cups known as terrines, as well as coarse-walled pottery vessels with distinctive finger-impressed rim decorations, clearly point to an early phase of the pre-Roman Iron Age between 800 and 600 BC.

To refine the dating further, researchers plan to apply radiocarbon analysis to charcoal fragments recovered from the postholes. Such testing is essential because archaeological sites often contain traces from multiple historical periods.

Sebastian Düvel, a scientific advisor specializing in Iron Age sites in East Westphalia, described the discovery as a “stroke of luck for archaeology.” He emphasized that the find offers valuable new opportunities to better understand daily life in the region more than 2,500 years ago.

Fire Station Construction to Proceed as Planned

Despite the significance of the discovery, construction of the new fire station in Hüllhorst will continue as scheduled. Archaeologists have carefully documented and excavated only the areas directly affected by the building project. Initial findings suggest that the settlement may extend further north, but this poses no obstacle to the current development.

Close coordination between the municipality of Hüllhorst, the excavation company, and LWL ensured that archaeological investigations were completed before the official start of construction. This collaborative approach allowed heritage preservation and modern infrastructure development to proceed hand in hand.

The discovery not only enriches the archaeological map of North Rhine-Westphalia but also sheds new light on settlement patterns during the pre-Roman Iron Age in northwestern Germany. For researchers and residents alike, the unexpected find beneath a future fire station underscores how traces of ancient history can still lie hidden beneath everyday construction projects — waiting to be uncovered.

Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (LWL)

Cover Image Credit: Aerial view of the excavation area for the new fire station building on Lohagenweg in Hüllhorst, Germany. LWL-AfW / A. Koch