Two watchtowers have been found on a hill to the east of Birchwil (part of Nürensdorf, to the east of Kloten). They were on a hill and have been called the Upper and Lower Heathen Fort by the local people: Obere Heidenburg and Untere Heidenburg. Plans were published by Ferdinand Keller in 1869, and excavations of the Untere Heidenburg took place in 1937.
All that we know about the Obere Heidenburg is that it consisted of a round central area surrounded by a moat, which in turn was surrounded by earthworks that were 7 m. wide. It seems to have been reshaped in the Carolingian period, but in 1966 a potsherd from the fourth century emerged. The Untere Heidenburg had a square central area measuring 16 x 16 m., with a moat that was 7 m. wide and 1.70 m. deep. In the central area stood a small square watchtower, measuring 3 x 3 m.
Plans of the Obere and Untere Heidenburg. Keller 1869, Taf. III,3 and VIII,1.
The location of the two watchtowers on Google Maps.
Literature
Keller 1869, 75-76, 86; Jahrbuch der Schweizerischen Gesellschaft für Urgeschichte 30 (1938), 118; Drack 1967(1); Drack-Fellmann 1988, 452; Drack-Fellmann 1991, 189.
[29-Mar-2024]
