Michelsberg culture

Michelsberg culture
Geographical rangeBelgium, Central Europe, especially West Germany.
PeriodLater Neolithic, Chalcolithic
Dates4400–3500 BC
Characteristicstulip beakers, hilltop settlements, enclosures
Preceded byRössen culture, Cerny culture
Followed byFunnelbeaker culture
Wartberg culture, Pfyn culture

The Michelsberg culture (German: Michelsberger Kultur (MK)) is an important Neolithic culture in Central Europe. Its dates are c. 4400–3500 BC. Its conventional name is derived from that of an important excavated site on Michelsberg (short for Michaelsberg) hill near Untergrombach, between Karlsruhe and Heidelberg (Baden-Württemberg), Germany.

The Michelsberg culture belongs to the Central European Late Neolithic. Its distribution covered much of West Central Europe, along both sides of the Rhine. A detailed chronology, based on pottery, was produced in the 1960s by the German archaeologist Jens Lüning.