Medieval ‘Atlantis’ was destroyed by storm 660 years ago. Now, remnants are uncovered

Last year, the ruins of Rungholt, a long-lost medieval city known as “Atlantis of the North Sea,” were located along the coast of Germany.

Now, researchers have discovered more than a dozen mounds that supported dwellings at the site, shedding further light on the famed, ill-fated city.

Rungholt’s discovery

During the 14th century, Rungholt was a trading center along the North Sea, according to previous reporting from McClatchy News. However, a massive flood known as the “Great Drowning of Men” destroyed the city in 1362.

The memory of Rungholt survived though, eventually taking the form of local legends.

One taught that the city was destroyed by God as a punishment for immorality. Another maintained that the city’s church bells could still be heard ringing on a quiet day.

But despite all the mythos surrounding the city, its exact whereabouts had never been found.

That is, until May 2023, when a team of researchers came upon the remains while surveying mudflats near Nordstrand, located about 100 miles north of Hamburg.

They uncovered the ruins of churches, walls and 54 medieval mounds in an area over one mile long.

New findings

Now, an interdisciplinary team of researchers has unearthed the ruins of 19 previously unidentified mounds, according to a June 12 news release from the Johannes Gutenberg University Mainz.

The mounds, known as terps, were found during an eight-day survey of the mudflats.

In the Middle Ages, terp mounds were artificial structures built to provide a foundation for settlements near the coast, according to research from Pennsylvania State University.

The discovery of the mounds has “significantly increased the number of known medieval dwellings in this area,” Sarah Bäumler , a geophysicist at Kiel University, said in the release. “We were able to close a crucial gap in our knowledge of the settlement structure at that time.”

In addition, the recent survey revealed evidence that the site’s elevation was lowered by peat cutting, researchers said. This would have made the area more vulnerable to storm surges.

Still, many other questions about the medieval city remain unanswered, researchers said, noting that surveys of the mudflats are intensive and time-consuming.

This story was originally published June 21, 2024 at 2:48 PM with the headline "Medieval ‘Atlantis’ was destroyed by storm 660 years ago. Now, remnants are uncovered."