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Vor 110 Jahren wurde die spätkeltische Siedlung Basel-Gasfabrik in der Nähe des heutigen Voltaplatzes bei Aushubarbeiten zum damaligen Gaswerk entdeckt. Seither fanden in unterschiedlichen Intensitäten mehr als 400 archäologische Rettungsgrabungen statt, die immer in Zusammenhang mit Bauprojekten standen. Mit dem Auslaufen der Feldarbeiten konnten zwei grosse, multidisziplinär konzipierte Auswertungsvorhaben mit den Titeln «Über die Toten zu den Lebenden» (Umgang mit sterblichen Überresten) und «Über den Grubenrand geschaut» (Siedlung) durchgeführt werden. Der wissenschaftliche Bericht beleuchtet schlaglichtartig Resultate der beiden Forschungsprojekte.

Im folgenden Bericht werden die ersten Resultate der archäologischen und anthropologischen Untersuchungen der Bestattung eines kleinen Kindes vorgestellt. Das Grab kam 2006 in einer Nekropole neben der spätkeltischen Siedlung Basel-Gasfabrik zum Vorschein. Im Grab des Kindes fand man neben Schmuck auch Reste von Textilien und Fell. Auffallend ist, dass dem Kind trotz seines geringen Alters kostbarer Frauenschmuck mitgegeben wurde.

To interpret artifact assemblages, it is necessary to understand the processes that have formed and influenced them: layer formation processes, cultural practices, and the way resources were used. In this study, we present our results of micromorphologically analyzed pits, ditches, house floors, and occupation layers found within the younger Iron Age settlement of Basel‐Gasfabrik. We defined 11 microfacies types and put them into a spatial and stratigraphic context. In addition, we quantify waste categories according to the archaeological features and microfacies types. Our results suggest that some ditches played a role in the spatial organization of the settlement, others were used as water canals. Several pits show a secondary use as roofed construction in the context of handicrafts. In addition, mapping the microfacies types reveals a differentiated use of space. Finally, differences between waste categories are visible. Dung was used as fuel and probably as fertilizer, whereas animal bone fragments and ceramic sherds have been stored on rubbish dumps, where they were available as raw material. These new insights into the use of pits, ditches, and settlement areas as well as the handling of resources provide an important basis for understanding everyday life in the settlement of Basel‐Gasfabrik.

As part of an interdisciplinary research project on the Late La Tene period settlement at Basel-Gasfabrik, ceramic sherds, animal bones and archaeological sediments from different archaeological structures (one large pit, two ditches and four archaeological layers) were examined in respect of 21 taphonomic features (proxies). These proxies, in turn, were linked to different processes that can leave traces on objects or sediments: primary use, mechanical stress, heat impact, water, redeposition, exposure, covering and postdepositional processes. The different proxies were compared using a statistical procedure. Our results show significant differences between the different features with regard to taphonomic alteration. For example, ceramic sherds and animal bones from archaeological layers show severe alteration due to exposure, whilst a good and uniform preservation within the pit points to its rapid filling. Furthermore, there is evidence of middens which probably served as material depots. Our results suggest that waste was not simply seen as rubbish, but was stored as a resource. Therefore, materials could take different "paths", each of which resulted in specific taphonomic processes (alterations). The interdisciplinary approach taken in this project has provided new insight into the complex but probably clearly defined handling of various materials at Basel-Gasfabrik, thus allowing us to visualise part of the cultural biography of things.

Basel-Gasfabrik (Switzerland) comprises an extensive La Tene (chiefly Lt D, 150–80 BCE) settlement and two associated cemeteries at which strontium (87Sr/86Sr) isotope analysis of human and animal teeth investigated regional and supra-regional contacts. The interpretation of the analytic data, however, requires information on the isotopic baseline values around the site. Using 102 modern vegetation and 9 water samples from 51 localities, this study characterizes the isotopic ratios of the biologically available strontium of geological units and watercourses around Basel and compares these to 28 human infant, 6 pig, and 5 dog teeth from the site. Furthermore, pedological criteria evaluate the suitability of landforms for crop and pasturelands. The 87Sr/86Sr ratios of the environmental samples from geological units in up to 50 km distance varied between 0.70776 and 0.71794. Human infant teeth exhibited much more homogeneous 87Sr/86Sr ratios (0.70847–0.70950), which coincided largely with those of potential arable soils around Basel and indicate targeted exploitation of landscapes for agriculture. The more variable values of the faunal teeth suggest more widely ranging habitats or imports from the site's hinterlands. Two local isotope ranges were defined based on archaeological enamel samples and modern vegetation data from a confined radius around Basel. The study documents the complexity of distinguishing local and non-local individuals in a geologically heterogeneous region as well as the potential of isotope analyses to explore prehistoric land-use patterns.

The Basel-Gasfabrik site (Switzerland) is among the largest and best investigated proto-urban centres of the La Tene period (chiefly La Tene C2/D1; 200/150–80 BCE). Excavations revealed evidence of an urban lifestyle, crafts production as well as a multitude of imported goods. Human skeletal remains were recovered both from two cemeteries and from various settlement features. Strontium (87Sr/86Sr) and oxygen (δ18Op) isotope analyses aimed at an assessment of the role of residential changes in the makeup of the site's population, the positioning of Basel-Gasfabrik in local, regional, and long-distance networks, and the exploration of possible correlations between the complex mortuary practices and the individuals' residential history. The study involved 94 enamel samples from 54 human individuals, while archaeological animal teeth and modern vegetation and water samples provided baseline information. The 87Sr/86Sr and the δ18Op ratios of the human teeth varied widely between 0.70755 and 0.71655 and 14.7 and 19.3 ‰, respectively, with more variation among adult males and females than among juveniles. Both the archaeological setting and the isotope data attest to lively contacts of the central site to its hinterland, but also to distant regions, such as the Mediterranean. Differences in the isotope data of successively formed tooth crowns of some of the adult population point to residential changes in childhood. Possible explanations include fosterage as an important element in strengthening regional and interregional ties among Iron Age communities, settlement centralization, and mobile animal husbandry practices. However, areas of origin or patterns of mobility were not among the key factors which shaped the complex mortuary practices.

The late Iron Age (150–80 BC) proto-urban site of Basel-Gasfabrik, Switzerland, yielded numerous human skeletal remains, with individuals of all ages and both sexes being found in two cemeteries and in various features of the settlement itself. About 200 inhumations and two cremation burials as well as isolated skulls and bones attest to complex mortuary practices. Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses of 90 human, 48 faunal, and seven cereal samples provide a rich database for dietary reconstruction. The results point to a diet that was largely based on C3 plants with a limited contribution of herbivore or pig meat and/or dairy products. Divergent isotope ratios can be attributed to the consumption of chicken meat/eggs or seasonally available salmon. Moreover, the contribution of C4 plants, supposedly millet, to human diets is well documented at Basel as well as at other central European Iron Age sites. We found no significant dietary distinctions between males and females. In children, indications for breastfeeding terminate between 1.5 and about 4 years of age, with isotopic differences emerging with regard to the investigated skeletal elements. The stable isotope data from different burial contexts, forms of mortuary practice, and presence or type of funerary objects overlap widely, providing only tentative indications for dietary differentiation within the living population. These findings distinguish Basel-Gasfabrik from other Iron Age sites and call for further integrative studies for deciphering the complex mechanisms behind the highly differentiated mortuary practices in the late Iron Age.

The interdisciplinary project "Approaching the living via the dead: human remains from the Late La Tene site Basel-Gasfabrik and their cultural-historical interpretations" revealed a great diversity in the treatment of the dead at the site. The integrative approach implemented over the course of the whole project and involving 8 disciplines lead to more profound and more reflected results of a higher quality.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen der Archäologischen Bodenforschung Basel-Stadt im Jahr 2009.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2007.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2006.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2005.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2004.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2003.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2002.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2001.

Berichte zu den archäologischen Untersuchungen in der Fundstelle «Basel-Gasfabrik» im Jahr 2000.

The aim of this study was to evaluate changes in subjective oral health among patients receiving single dental implants in different anatomic locations.Subjective oral health was surveyed with the Oral Health Impact Profile 14 (OHIP-14) questionnaire after implant placement but prior to uncovering and 3 months after the completion of treatment. The locations of the implants and age and gender of the patients were recorded. Mean OHIP-14 severity scores were compared before and after treatment (paired t test).Ninety consecutive self-referred patients were enrolled in the study, and 80 of them (28 men and 52 women) completed the OHIP-14 both before and after treatment. The mean age of the patients at the time of surgery was 52 years (range, 24 to 75 years). The patients received a total of 131 commercially available dental implants (Astra Tech) and appropriate prosthetic constructions. The mean OHIP-14 severity score decreased significantly, from 10.4 before treatment to 3.1 after treatment (P.001). The drop was from 13.4 to 1.5 (P.001) if the missing tooth was replaced with an implant in the anterior area, from 11.2 to 4.3 (P.001) if it was replaced in the premolar area, and from 6.5 to 3.0 (P = .085) if it was replaced in the molar area. In general, both before and after treatment, women reported subjective oral impacts approximately three times more often than men did.Replacement of missing teeth with single dental implants in anterior and premolar areas, but not necessarily in molar areas, may significantly improve subjective oral health, especially among women.