Nartum

Nartum is a grand dolmen with a northeast-southwest oriented chamber of originally around 5 m length. Three (of formerly four) supporting stones on each side and the southwestern end stone are preserved. All capstones, which were still present in the 19th century, are all missing. At the eastern end of the tomb is a beautiful oak that is believed to be more than 100 years old.

The tomb is located directly on the outskirts, about 150 m southwest of the cemetery of Natum on the so called Hünenkellerfeld plot. Drive on the Hauptstrasse in Nartum westward. Turn right into Raiffeisenstrasse just before you leave the village. After 150 m you reach the car park of the cemetry, park here. The access path to the tomb is signed on the left about 10 m before you reach the car park.

Visited May 2019

taken from the information board
Landkreis Rotenburg – Kreisarchäologie

The Hünenkeller
Remains of a megalithic grave
from the Neolithic (3000 – 2000 BC)

Megalith tombs served as burial vault in the recent Stone Age. The burial chambers were covered with large boulders. All the gaps between the boulders were wedged with broken granite boulders and all of it was grouted with mud and covered by a mound of earth. A 19th-century report describes that this site owned 4 capstones and 8 support stones. The stone chamber was surrounded by a layer of rectangular hills.
Compared to other megalithic tombs, one can imagine the site as reconstructed in the adjacent drawing.
In the so-called long Hunebeds (Hünenbetten) was always only a stone chamber. Excavations proved that in the remaining part of the hill were mostly traces of wooden chamberd graves, which were little older than the stone grave.
It is likely that the construction of the second and third (stone) burial chamber has expanded the hill. The foundling walls around the long Hunebed will be built with the most recent construction phase.

Scientific excavations have not yet taken place. From earlier improper excavations come Stone Age pottery shards with the typical for the younger Stone Age “Tiefstich” ornament”. The oak growing in the stone grave has germinated around the year 1910 here.