Ofnet

Ofnet

 

two Paleolithic caves (the Large Ofnet and Small Of-net) in the south of the Federal Republic of Germany (northwest of Augsburg). Each contains several cultural layers, overlying one another, from various stages of the Upper Paleolithic, Mesolithic, and Neolithic periods and from the Bronze and Iron ages. In the Large Ofnet cave, a Mesolithic burial of human skulls belonging to ancient Europeoids was discovered in 1908 by R. R. Schmidt. One round depression contained 27 skulls, and a nearby one, six. The skulls were placed with the facial parts toward the entrance of the cave and thickly sprinkled with red ocher. Also found were ornaments made of perforated shells and deer teeth. Most of the skulls belonged to women and children.

REFERENCES

Efimenko, P. P. Pervobytnoe obshchestvo, 3rd ed. Kiev, 1953.
Müller-Karpe, H. Handbuch der Vorgeschichte, vol. 1: Altsteinzeit. Munich, 1966.