Prehistoric Pile Dwellings around the Alps

For several decades now, research in the lacustrine environment has made a decisive contribution to illustrating the past in very concrete terms. Our knowledge of early settlement in Switzerland and in the Alpine and peri-Alpine region is largely based on scientific data collected in lake environments.

The archaeological material from palafittic settlement areas is culturally very diverse. Research has identified more than 30 cultural groups. As a result, it is now possible to study the cultural traditions of Central and South-Eastern Europe, Western Europe and the Mediterranean rim, and to show how they interacted, particularly across the Alps.