Jun 16, 2009 8:36 AM

Murder is something that doesn’t happen very often in the little German town of Bad Buchau. Located in Southern Germany, the town has a few thousand inhabitants and is situated right next to a boggy lake called the Federsee. The place was so rural that when I lived there in the 1940s, we would cut peat from the bog and use it to heat our classrooms.

The murder was brutal—and it took place over 3,000 years ago. Archaeologists first found the skulls in the 1920s when they excavated a Neolithic settlement called "Wasserburg". At the time, the Neolithic settlement was a relatively bustling place. The people kept horses that they used to pull wagons and sleds, and even had a metal workshop that was able to cast bronze artifacts.

The scientists found six skulls equally spaced on the outside of the palisade fence surrounding the settlement. Only the skulls of the victims were found. Five of the skulls were children three to sixteen years old. The sixth skull was from a 50 year old woman.

Using forensic tools, scientists have shown that the children died 900 years BC and some of them may have been related. The scientists have also reconstructed their skulls, speculating that the boy was killed with a blunt club. The girl was most likely killed with a sharp metallic instrument like a sword or a lance. Small copper particles were detected in her skull.



Facial reconstruction of one of the children who was killed.


So why were these children murdered? Who wanted them dead? The local museum has devoted a lot of effort to finding out the answers to the cold case. It has sponsored a special exhibition that is open till November 1, 2009. A play will also premiere on June 21, 2009 that reenacts the history of the killings. The play explores the reasons for the murders and concludes that most likely the children and the adult were killed either to ward off enemies or sacrificed to appease the gods who had sent some misfortune.

I came across this news recently, when I received an invitation to my class reunion. It is a long time since I went to school there. I did a bit more research and found the site for the museum and when I looked at the picture of the young boy who was murdered, I realized that I was about the same age when I played in lake Federsee. Strange how a killing that took place over 3,000 years ago can still send chills up your spine.

Images courtesy of the Federseemuseum.