The Düwelsteene are one of the most southwestern finds of a preserved megalithic tomb of the Funnel Beaker culture. This megalithic tomb is dated to about 3300 BC to 2600 BC through ceramic finds and radiocarbon dating of a skull fragment. The Altertumskommission für Westfalen digitized the tomb to create a digital twin and help with preserving the monument, by having an up to date comparison in case of any changes or damage to the tomb structure.
The Funnel Beaker culture dates between 4200 and 2800 BC, the megalithic tombs of this culture were widespread in Germany, the Netherlands, Poland and Scandinavia and are dated between 3500 and 2800 BC. Megalithic tombs of the Funnel Beaker culture were designed as burial places for several generations.
The megalithic grave, which can be translated to "Devil's Stones", is located near the town of Heiden, in the district of Borken, in Westphalia. The Düwelsteene are an interesting subject for virtual reconstruction because of the history and actual restoration in 1932. It is also a perfect example of the cooperation between archaeology and citizen science. Only through the help of participating citizens in the surrounding area of the megalithic tomb in Heiden, it was possible to reconstruct the passage grave based on photographic sources. The Citizen Science project was carried out by the Altertumskommission für Westfalen, part of the Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe (LWL). The Altertumskommission documents, researches and preserves monuments in the region. The Düwelsteene are part of their megalithic project, where all of the megalithic structures in Westphalia will be documented with new methods and presented to the public. The documentation of the monuments using 3D not only creates a digital twin of the tomb, it also helps to discover any changes or damages on the monument, when its used as to compare the structures.
The Düwelsteene today (Image: LWL-Altertumskommission für Westfalen/Priß)
By examining finds from 1932 and before, such as ceramics, as well as by radiocarbon dating of a skull fragment from the tomb, the length of the usage of the tomb can be determined from about 3300 BC to 2600 BC.
The tomb that can be found today has the following dimensions since the restoration in 1932: The entire tomb complex, oriented from southwest to northeast, has an outer length of 12 meters. Inside, the length is 10.2 meters. The width of the megalithic tomb ranges from 2.7 meters to 4.3 meters outside, while inside the structure ranges from 1.5 meters to 2.2 meters in width.
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