Site of the Nebra Sky Disk

The Mittelberg, which is heavily forested today, was probably unwooded 3600 years ago due to heavy clearing for the processing of bronze. The site was marked by a low circular rampart. Due to the current excavations, the interior of the Ringwallanlage presents itself today again predominantly treeless as a clearing in the forest.
The lookout tower will be the future landmark of the discovery site of the sky disk. It dominates the site and will be the central element for visitors to the site. The design of the surrounding area is therefore very restrained and limited to a few accents. The theme will be the ring wall complex, visual relationships, sites of discovery and the sky disc.

Ring rampart: The ring rampart is modelled in the form of a grass-covered earthen rampart. The rampart follows its original position, but in contrast to a reconstruction, it is created in a new, trabecular cross-section with a slope of 1:1.5 to 1:2. This leads to an exciting contrast between the new rampart in the west of the Mittelberg and the fragmentary original circular rampart in the east. A large meadow of rough grassland will be created within the enclosure, sloping to all sides in keeping with the domed shape of the Middle Hill.

Entrances: Two entrances to the circular rampart will be created. The ringwall will be intersected at both the present entrance and the historic entrance. The trapezoidal profile of the rampart will be marked on the faces of the entrances by concrete slabs, also trapezoidal, with a slope of 1:2. The precast concrete slabs have a size of 1 to 5 x 2 m and receive the stamped inscriptions of the respective entrances of the 21st century A.D. and 17th century B.C. They rest on a gravel bed and have a protective function for the more heavily used entrance areas of the earthen rampart.

Visual relations: On the viewing platform of the tower, the "visual axes" to the Solstice, the Brocken, Kyffhäuser, Petersberg and to the adventure center stand out on the ground and in the form of notches in the parapet. These lines of sight are picked up by concrete bands in the meadow and help to guide the viewer's gaze to the appropriate points. Within the clearing, they facilitate the visitor's orientation. The concrete bands will be constructed from precast concrete elements approximately 50 cm wide and installed on a gravel bed on site. The concrete bands receive stamped inscriptions of the appropriate sight relations (e.g. Brockenblick).

Finding places: Apart from the sky disk there are still further finding places within the plant. These are marked by concrete discs with a diameter of about 50 cm and built flush with the rough grassland on a gravel bed. Only the respective number of the find is engraved into the "find discs". With the help of the catalogued finds, visitors can go on their own "treasure hunt" and assign the respective archaeological finds to the find discs.

Celestial Mirror: The "Celestial Eye" documents the location where the sky disc was found. A slightly curved disc made of polished stainless steel is placed in a 0.5 - 1 m deep depression of the rough grassland on a gravel bed. It serves as a sky mirror and thus establishes a subtle connection between the sky and the place where the sky disc was found in the ground. Visitors can approach the depression and look through the Celestial Eye into the clouds and, at dusk, into the stars.

Outlook Tower: The "lookout tower" made of exposed concrete forms the center of the site. The location and shape of the tower will be maintained and integrated into the landscape architectural concept. Visitors will only be taken by shuttle to the turning circle approx. 400 m before the entrance and will enter the facility on foot. For emergency vehicles, the path to the tower will be formed on both sides with 1m wide flanking gravel lawn strips. There will be an approx. 4m wide access road up to the tower and an approx. 20m diameter turning circle of gravel turf around the tower.

Seating: In the entrance area in front of the ring wall, three seating groups with wooden benches in a barrow will be arranged for approx. 20 people each (a total of 50 - 60 seats). The wooden benches will be made as stylized tree trunks from solid wood or alternatively from glued wood. The surface is planed and the edges rounded for more comfortable seating. They have sizes of 2 to 4 m x 0.5 m x 0.5 m.

Waldsaum: In the eastern, cleared area outside the Ringwallanlage a new Waldsaum is created by initial plantings.

Forest path: On the site of the current forest path for forest maintenance purposes, a new path of gravel lawn with a width of about 3, 50 through the plant is created.

Award for the Architecture Prize of Saxony-Anhalt with Holzer Kobler Architekturen, Zurich 2007