Borger, Schoonloo, Drouwen

One in three of Drenthe's hunebeds is located within Borger's municipal boundaries. So too is the Hunebedcentrum, located near the largest hunebed in the Netherlands, in Borger that is. This cycle route takes you past these hunebeds and more. Some of the hunebeds on this route stand in pairs of two, and there is even a trio of hunebeds that together form a triangle. Why these hunebeds were placed so close together has never been elucidated, despite the many studies on the megalithic burial monuments.

The hunebeds are the oldest visible structures in the Netherlands, built by the Funnel Beaker people around 4400 BC. These prehistoric people used gigantic boulders, which were brought to the Netherlands from Scandinavia during the ice age. The boulders (megaliths) could sometimes weigh up to 40 tonnes. Using primitive means and a lot of manpower, they managed to move these colossal stones and stack them into impressive burial monuments. How exactly they did this still remains partially veiled in mists, although you can see a possible answer to this question at the Hunebed Centre in Borger.

Within the funerary crypts of the Funnel Beaker people, which they dug under the dolmens, many special objects were found. These include the characteristic funnel cups, but also other pottery such as bowls, bottles and buckets, as well as weapons, jewellery and human remains. These artefacts give us insight into the customs and rituals of the Funnel Beaker people. They were carefully placed in the burial chambers, possibly as grave goods to accompany the deceased into the afterlife. At the Drents Museum in Assen and the Hunebedcentrum in Borger, many of the excavated artefacts are in the collection and can be admired.

Over the centuries, the hunebeds have had a lot to endure. In the Middle Ages, they were often seen as demonic works and the stones were sometimes reused to build churches and other buildings. Fortunately, in later centuries, many of these stones were recovered and put back where possible.

Systematic research on dolmens began in the early 20th century with Professor Dr Albert van Giffen. He documented and restored many hunebeds on behalf of the Dutch government. His work laid the foundation for our current understanding of these monuments, although his findings have not proved uncontroversial. During his restorations, he regularly relied on, what he himself called, guesswork, because the original situation could not always be determined with certainty. Later, in the years between 1960 and 1970, Dr Jan Albert Bakker focused on the contents of the burial chambers, resulting in a wealth of information on the rituals and daily life of the Funnel Beaker people.

Any new investigations will no longer involve excavations. This is partly because soil research inevitably affects the original situation and partly because new excavations are not expected to lead to new insights. So future archaeologists will have to devise other techniques for their investigations. But it remains likely that the megalithic tombs will also always remain somewhat of a mystery. And that may make them just a little bit more interesting!


This Premium cycling route was compiled by our editor: Désirée van Uffelen.