Housed in the Department of Pre- and Early Historical Archaeology at the Institute of Ancient Studies, the archaeobotanical reference collection comprises about 10,000 items including modern seeds, fruits, buds, and needles from both cultivated and naturally occurring Central European plant species, systematically arranged by plant families.
Established in 1986 alongside the creation of the archaeobotanical laboratory, then based at the “Rheinisches Landesmuseum Trier”, the collection has since become a valuable resource for research and teaching.
The scope of the collection is continually broadened in line with the research objectives pursued in the archaeobotanical laboratory. Most of the plant seeds and fruits originate from botanical gardens across Germany. Furthermore, specimens are added through field collection and exchanges with professional colleagues.
The collection provides essential reference material for archaeobotanical studies and serves both research and teaching purposes.
