Here you can get informed about our society’s activities, that is our partnerships, events, projects and plans. At present, our Internet site does not aim at presenting our scientific projects and results in the form of a data base or the like, but it is meant to support our public relations work. We hope to give you an insight into our work and to arouse your interest in coming and visiting us at our events. There you have the possibility to ask all questions that may come to mind and to evaluate us according to our work’s results. We are looking forward to these meetings as well as to your questions and discussions. We are receptive to any suggestions and critical remarks and are eagerly awaiting your e-mails.

We hope that all visitors will find our site interesting and inspiring!

Die Milzener e.V.



About us

The registered society ‚Die Milzener e.V.‘ is based in Melaune, a village between Görlitz and Bautzen, and does theoretical and practical research on medieval everyday life of the Elbslavic tribes, the Milzener especially, and presents the results of this research at events, workshops, in lectures and publications to the public. Some questions we are dealing with are, for example: How can one reconstruct the material culture of the 11th century? How do certain craft techniques applied in the Middle Ages differ from those applied the Modern Period? In how far is it possible to differentiate the Elbslavic region in its culture from neighbouring tribes and peoples?

The members of the society are, on the one hand, students of different subjects as, for example, archaeology, medieval history, restoration, cultural management, educational theory, excavation technology and landscape architecture, and, on the other hand, craftsmen like carpenters, tailors, moreover a smith and a potter. At present, the group has 25 members.

An integrating part of the society’s work is the exchange with other groups in Poland, Germany and Denmark. This exchange is to be understood in the figurative as well as the literal sense, as events are taking place every year in all of the three countries, at which the groups are supporting each other and exchange knowledge, etc. In this way, strong partnerships have been built up over a period of five years, which play an important role for each project by ‘Die Milzener’.

Partners:

Kruk (PL)

‘Die Milzener e.V.’ has already been working in the field of Experimental Archaeology for four years and has been building up partnerships in the meantime, especially in Eastern Europe. Due to geographical proximity and similarities in content to “Kruk”, a group from Wroclaw, a close contact has developed between us over the last two years, which resulted in personal friendships, the eagerness to learn Polish and English respectively, or successful events organised together. Two years in a row, a “Wendenlager” (a camp) was organised at “Tag des offenen Denkmals” (which is the German contribution to the European Heritage Days), at which visitors could see a harmonious and productive cooperation of Polish and German groups. By doing so, the international partnership also contributes to reducing prejudices and stereotypes as one central message will stick in the minds of the groups’ members and the visitors: they have a common history.

The European Idea also puts emphasis on preserving national cultural diversity and to extend one’s hand for dialogue and exchange. This principle is the guideline for the work of both groups. The first step is to go back to one’s cultural roots and thus to support the process of identity formation.

The second step then is that in the West Slavic area especially, history can be understood as a perfect key for cross-national understanding due to the fact that the German influence to the right of the Elb made itself noticible in the 11th century at the earliest and that still today the “Sorben”, who have German and Slavic ethnical roots, live in Lusatia.

There may hardly be another European region that can resort to history as an integrating moment between two peoples in such an exemplary way as is the case in the Euroregion Neisse.

Die Ulvsborg (DK)

Seit nahezu 6 Jahren bestehen enge Beziehungen zwischen den elbslawischen „Milzenern“ und der dänischen Gruppe des Archäologen Eric Zehmke, die insgesamt über 80 Mitglieder zählt.

An der Nordspitze Seelands beheimatet, hat die Gruppe 2005 begonnen, eine eigene „Motte“ (also eine der frühen Burgformen Mitteleuropas) zu errichten und mit Leben zu füllen. Der historische Anspruch, den die Gruppe an sich stellt und realisiert, ist vorbildlich und die Größe der Gruppe stellt einen der seltenen Fälle dar, bei dem die Darstellung einer mittelalterlichen Gesellschaft realistisch und verhältnismäßig erscheint.

Die Historischen Werkstätten Ukranenland e.V. (D)

“Die Historischen Werkstätten Ukranenland e.V.” are also one of our long-standing partners. The quality and scope of this registered society’s work in imparting historical knowledge is unparalelled in Germany.

For almost 6 years, both groups have supported each other in an informal and constructive way at workshops and events that were organised together as well as by exchanging experiences.

Friedrich Schiller Universität Jena (D)

Department for Pre- and Early History

The scientific basis of our presentation of history is ensured by a cooperation the the Department for Pre- and Early History at the university in Jena.

In exchange, “Die Milzener e.V.” presents the basic principles of Experimental Achaeology as part of regular courses held at the department such as in the Summer Semester 2005, when “Die Milzener e.V.” will carry out experiments on scientifically important questions. These experiments will be carefully documented, their results analysed and published later on.