Acoustic aspects of the Goseck Circle area

This article presents a study conducted to evaluate the acoustic quality of the Goseck Circle, an ancient circular enclosure, also known as a rondel, situated in Saxony, Germany. Goseck Circle is an example of monumental buildings from the Neolithic period, which are called rondels. The facility was discovered in the 1990s. Then the facility was archaeologically reconstructed and opened to the public in 2005. Currently, it is considered to be the oldest known structure of this type, and its creation is estimated at around 4900 BC. Goseck Circle is roughly of a circular shape. It has one ditch and two palisade rings. There are three entrances leading to the interior of this facility. Therefore, the Goseck Circle is considered as the oldest solar observatory, as a worship, or a ritual place. A number of studies on both contemporary and archaeological facilities indicate that the facilities display the characteristic features depending on their intended use. Therefore, it can be assumed that if the Goseck Circle was to be a place of worship, then in terms of the acoustic aspects, it should be characterized by such values of the acoustic parameters, that will also prove this. This concept was the reason for carrying out a series of numerical calculations that allowed for the determining of the selected parameters characterizing the acoustic field inside the analysed facility.