Thousands of similar tunnel systems have been discovered across Europe and despite this, their purpose has been subject to decades of theory and debate.
A system of medieval tunnels, formally known as “erdstall,” was discovered by the Saxony-Anhalt State Office for Heritage Management and Archeology (LDA) during excavations near Reinstedt in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany.
The find was announced in a January social media post that said “a very special find was documented in late 2025 in the area of a Middle Neolithic burial site.”
Erdstalls, a mixture of Middle High German’s land (“earth”) and place (“place”), are tunnel systems believed by researchers to have been built in the Middle Ages, although their precise dates are a challenge, as they are commonly found empty.
Even so, a shoe, a fox skeleton, and the bones of several other small mammals were discovered in Reinstedt, according to the LDA.
The publication in Spanish The Green Compass (LBV) added that the archaeologists also discovered a layer of coal in the lower levels of the erdstall, and believe that the fire was “short, perhaps just a source of light.”
A pile of large stones found by archaeologists near one of the tunnel entrances could have been piled there as a way to seal the entrance, said LBV.
LBV also noted that the height of the Reinstedt erdstall varied between “one and 1.25 meters, with a width of between 50 and 70 centimeters, and in some areas, it contained a ganded and vaulted roof.”
According to the LBV, archaeologists also discovered the remains of a possible Bronze Age burial mound near the erdstall and the Neolithic tomb.
What were the erdstalls used for?
Thousands of similar tunnel systems have been discovered across Europe. However, their purpose has been subject to decades of theory and debate.
Some researchers believed that these tunnels were used as temporary hideouts or escape routes, such as those used by Jewish rebels during the Bar Kochba uprising.
LBV, however, explained that the late archaeologist Lambert Karner ignored this theory in his 1903 book “Künstliche Höhlen aus alter Zeit,” claiming that, based on the design of the tunnels, such use was impractical.
According to LBV, Historian Anton Haschner proposed that the tunnels could have been “symbolic empty tombs, erected by medieval settlers in their new settlements as dwellings for the souls of their ancestors, awaiting the Final Judgment.”
“Other interpretations insist on their possible use for initiation rituals, as places of spiritual retreat, or simply as temporary hiding places for people and valuables during periods of instability, although the lack of other exits complicates this last explanation,” continued LBV.
“Their location, often in the cellars of old farms, near churches, cemeteries, or in remote forests, adds more layers of mystery to their original purpose.”