Zürich-Parkhaus Opéra / CH: Erster direkter Nachweis für eine neolithische Bienenbehausung

Abstract

Zurich, Car Park Opéra / CH: First Direct Evidence for a Neolithic Beehive

A tube of lime bark (3176-3153 BC) discovered in the Late Neolithic wetland settlement under the car park Opéra in Zurich / CH was suspected of representing the remains of a beehive. The resulting gas chromatography-mass spectrometry analysis, carried out by the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology in Zurich, confirmed this. A range of substances from hydrocarbons, alcohols and free fatty acids typical of beeswax could be proven beyond doubt. This is probably the earliest, direct evidence for a beehive. A hollowed out tree-trunk, dated to shortly after 3400 BC, from the wetland settlement of Arbon-Bleiche 3 (Ct. Thurgau / CH) has already been interpreted as such, but the analytical proof was not possible. The use of bee products in Neolithic Europe has already been shown several times. The precise operating processes, as well as the type of use for beeswax and honey are still unknown, however. The rich pool of finds, including the organic ones, from the wetland sites north of the Alps, certainly offers the potential for discovering more in the future about the use of bee products.