Almost two decades ago, the Nebra Sky Disc, one of the most important and extraordinary objects of the Bronze Age was brought to the attention of the public. After a first two-week presentation in 2002, the state exhibition »The Forged Sky: The Wide World in the Heart of Europe 3,600 Years Ago« followed in 2004/05, in which the Nebra assemblage was presented to a broad audience in its European context. Since 2013 the Sky Disc belongs to the UNESCO Memory of the World Register. But that was by no means the end of the exploration of this find. In the following years it was possible to gain more and more extensive knowledge not only about the hoard itself, but also about its cultural environment. The circular sanctuary of Pömmelte (Salzland district) and the monumental princely burial mound Bornhöck near Raßnitz (Saale district) may suffice as examples. An up-to-date compilation of the new research results for a broad public seemed more than necessary. However, a restriction to the Unetice culture, to which the finds of Nebra, Pömmelte, and Bornhöck can be assigned, would be quite inadequate. Because the Early Bronze Age of Europe in particular is characterised by widespread networks in which goods, technologies, and ideas were disseminated across Europe and in which the Middle East and Ancient Egypt were repeatedly included. The Ünetice culture in Middle Germany was an integral part, indeed one of the hubs of this exchange system.

Contents:

Preface of the Federal President

Greetings of the Minister President

Greetings of the Director of the British Museum

Foreword

Introduction

Seamless Transitions – From the Stone Age to the Bronze Age

The Nebra Sky Disc

Cult Objects of the Bronze Age

Wealth and Power in Europe

The Realm of the Sky Disc

Army and State

Sacred Place – Sacred Landscapes

Treasures frorn Rivers, Mountains, and Seas

Departing for New Horizons

Selected bibliography

Illustration credits

Imprint

Lenders