Finding out more about our history: EggensteinExca and STABILA – A fascinating trip to the past

EggensteinExca from Dortmund is known as an established company in the world of archaeology. For over 30 years, Robert Gündchen, an experienced archaeologist with a Master's degree, has been a proud member of this team, which has worked on exploring and preserving our history. EggensteinExca has its headquarters in Dortmund and a team of over ten archaeologists and 15 other staff, which does extraordinary work in archaeological research.

EggensteinExca's mission is clear: it receives orders from building companies and other stakeholders who want to carry out building work in the area of a ground monument. When this type of monument is going to be impacted, EggensteinExca comes into play and conducts archaeological investigations. It works on behalf of the party building in the space and is checked and supervised by official bodies, such as Landschaftsverband Westfalen-Lippe, the Westphalia-Lippe Regional Council.

EggensteinExca aus Dortmund
Faszinierenden Projekt in Horn-Bad Meinberg (Nordrhein-Westfalen) – „Kotzenbergschen Hof“, ein Gebäude aus dem 17. Jahrhundert im Renaissance-Sti

In fact, EggensteinExca works beyond North Rhine-Westphalia, including in East Westphalia, the Ruhr area, the Münster region and adjoining areas such as Lower Saxony. The archaeologists are usually involved in several projects at the same time, often as many as ten, and are sometimes deployed on site as required. Each archaeologist supervises at least one or two projects at the same time.

At the moment, the team is committed to a fascinating project in Horn-Bad Meinberg (North Rhine-Westphalia), where they are investigating the 'Kotzenbergsche Hof', a building dating back to the 17th century, constructed in a Renaissance style on the remains of four older houses. The challenge lies in identifying and documenting the internal structures and the older foundations. This is where STABILA's high-quality measuring tools come in.

Documentation is crucial in archaeology, as excavations can later destroy features and finds. Therefore, everything must be documented as precisely as possible. EggensteinExca relies on the precision of STABILA products to carry out exact measurements and photographic documentation. The rules with geo-scaling in particular are extremely practical, as they are easy to read in photographic images.

Die Dokumentation ist in der Archäologie von entscheidender Bedeutung

The archaeologists not only use STABILA measuring tools for photographic documentation, they also use them to measure artefacts and describe archaeological features. Often, millimetre accuracy is required to achieve precise results. EggensteinExca face their own unique challenges when excavating within buildings, especially cellars, where there are no guaranteed clear visual lines. Yet with professional measuring tools from STABILA, they meet the task with ease.

The clear distinction between 'finds' and 'features' is an essential part of the archaeological process. For example, hollows and walls fall under 'features' that are still discoverable as discolourations. These are documented carefully and all material, including photographs, measurement data and much more, is transferred to the specialist department in charge at the regional council. 'Finds' that the team discovers during the excavations, such as ceramics, shards, beads and bones, are also collected, classified and forwarded to the relevant specialist departments or museums.

"Befunde" aus dem Kotzenbergschen Hof
Fotodokumentation von Funden und Befunden

EggensteinExca likes to use electronic devices for measuring in metres or the team does it by foot. This is particularly important, for example to determine dividing lengths during 'archaeological surveys' – digs of approximately 100 metres long and 2-4 metres wide. When doing so, the team discovered that the 100-metre tape measure from STABILA (LBM 1000 STEEL) is an optimal solution for its requirements, even if it is not as widely available as shorter tapes. In fact, most tapes end at 50 metres, but EggensteinExca appreciates the accuracy and reliability of the 100-metre tape from STABILA for its archaeological measurements.

The history concealed beneath the Kotzenbergsche Hof in Horn-Bad is being revealed bit by bit thanks to EggensteinExca and precise measuring tools from STABILA. It is a journey into the past, made possible only with the commitment and expertise of teams like this. Thanks to their work, we can discover more about our history and culture and preserve it for future generations.

EggensteinExca and STABILA – a partnership for precise and fascinating archaeology!

More information:
 www.eggenstein.info