Kellerød

Facts

Zealand's largest long barrow

By Svend Illum Hansen , Bachelor i forhistorisk arkæologi Konservator Tagdækker Sømand (13 stories)

The scenic landscape near Tystrup-Bavelse lake contains the largest long barrow in Eastern Denmark. Only one small burial chamber has been found in the barrow, but more may be concealed in this extremely well-preserved structure. The barrow was constructed around 5,500 years ago as a giant longhouse of soil and stone. A building on this scale would have required many labourers living nearby, which is likely since the location would have been ideal for agriculture, livestock, hunting and fishing. The long barrow may have acquired its unusual length through generations of extensions for the burial of village chiefs.

Public place

Selected entry

Denmark's first brain surgery

Story written by Svend Illum Hansen

0 comments 0 recommendations

In 1933, a dig in the barrow chamber uncovered the skeleton of a man in his late thirties or forties. Dating showed that he was buried around 3300 BC. As grave goods, he had a chip of flint and a decorated earthenware vessel. He had died from a large lesion to the left side of his skull. Before he died, he had undergone surgery, with distinctive marks from flint knives indicating an attempt to smooth and repair the wound. But it was not the first time this man had sustained an injury. One of his templates showed scarring from another wound, but one which had healed. Although he did not survive, this man is the oldest known example of a brain surgery patient in Denmark.