Photo of a mammoth tusk edited and colored using AI
Prehistoric finds in Lauterbach-Dorf (District Falkenau a. E.\Falknov nad Ohří today Sokolov)
(article from the contemporary press)
From Rud. Köhler.*) From the report of Mr. Ing. Hnatek from the construction company of the Redlich brothers in Brno, operating the “Friedrichzeche” mine in Lauterbach-Dorf, dated January 28, 1921, which reached me thanks to the kind mediation of Mr. M.U.Dr. F. Mießl from Svatava, the following emerges: Since the autumn of 1919, the above-mentioned construction company has been carrying out dredging work at the Friedrichzeche mine in Lauterbach-Dorf on behalf of the First Czech Glass Company a.s. in Oloví. The height of the overburden is 1–26 m above the coal. The overburden material itself, in addition to a thin layer of humus, consists of clay, gray and blue clay, mixed with stones in places. In December 1920, a fragment of a 60 mm long deer antler was found 30 m from the northern border, at a depth of 8–10 m below the ground surface, about 1 m above the coal. On January 13, 1921, animal remains were again found at the same depth near the first site. The first piece dredged up was a mammoth tusk 2 m long, with a circumference of the end 45 cm and a weight of 42 kg. The thicker end of the tusk was broken off during the night dredging. Furthermore, during further work at the same site, a piece of curved horn-like formation (a tooth of a young mammoth?) 1 m long was found, 8 cm at its thickest point, 7.5 cm in the middle and 4 cm thick at the other end. Rotten remains of bones were also dug up next to it, of which very little was preserved, however, as they immediately disintegrated. The tibia was at least partially preserved in the following form:
Scale in cm (Drawing: 17 / 60 / 11 / 21)
Dimensions in cm. The mammoth tooth was also very soft when excavated, the material only hardened after 1-2 layers. It is very likely that there are other animal remains in the vicinity of the site. This conclusion can be drawn from the fact that even smaller bone fragments were found during further work. However, despite the greatest caution, it has not yet been possible to recover any more whole pieces of bone.*) All other reports circulated in the newspapers do not correspond to reality.
(Unser Egerland 4/1921)
Photos from Unser Egerland in original resolution
The report states that the bones were very soft when excavated and only hardened after a few days in the air. Unfortunately, many of the smaller fragments immediately disintegrated during handling. The author of the report, Rudolf Köhler, concludes by pointing out that other reports in the press of the time are not based on the truth.
The headline of the local history magazine Unser Egerland, which brought the (serious) news about the sensational find
Specifications and condition of the find
Tusk morphology: The main tusk, 2 meters long, was unusually heavy for its length (42 kg), indicating that it was very well mineralized, even though it was soft immediately after excavation. The 45 cm end circumference corresponds to a robust adult male woolly mammoth (Mammuthus primigenius).
Second tusk: The smaller, meter-long tusk was significantly thinner (central diameter of about 7.5 cm). The author of the report, Rud. Köhler, believed that it belonged to a young animal, but in paleontology it could also be a female tusk, which tend to be smaller and less curved than males.
Geological setting: The tusks did not lie directly in a coal seam, but in an overlying layer of Pleistocene clays and loams (so-called letten). This layer acted as a natural insulator, preserving the bones for tens of thousands of years until the excavator's bucket hit them.
Model of a mammoth calf in the Sokolov Museum exhibition
Historical context (1921)
Mining company: The work was carried out by the Brno-based Brüder Redlich company, which was one of the most important construction and mining companies in Austria-Hungary and subsequently in Czechoslovakia. They specialized in large-scale earthworks and railways.
Customer: The mining was carried out for the Erste Böhmische Glasindustrie A.G. (First Czech Glass Industry) based in Oloví (Bleistadt), which used coal from the Friedrichzeche mine to heat its glass furnaces.
Location today: The Friedrichzeche mine was an open-pit mine and the village of Čistá disappeared as a result of brown coal mining. Today, Lake Medard is located nearby. Photo from Unser Egerland after editingThe find was closely watched at the time, as evidenced by the mention of “false news in the newspapers”. Similar findings in coal basins in the Sokolov and Most regions helped scientists map the so-called mammoth steppe, which spread here during the last ice age.
In the contemporary press at the beginning of 1921, the discovery in Lauterbach-Dorf (Čisté) caused a considerable stir, which also led to the inaccuracies mentioned in your text. News of the “giant mammoth from Falknov” (Falkenau, today Sokolov) spread through regional newspapers and more specialized periodicals.
Here are other traced connections and reports:In January and February 1921, reports of the discovery appeared in German-language newspapers such as Egerer Zeitung or Falkenauer Zeitung.
Mammoth tusk (preserved part) in the exhibition of the Sokolov Museum
Sensational tone: Initial reports were often exaggerated. Some newspapers reported that a “whole mammoth” had been found, which Rud. Köhler puts into perspective in the text presented here – most of the bones disintegrated when touched.
Public involvement: The reports sparked interest among local collectors and amateur researchers, which led to the need to better guard the site against unauthorized persons.
The contemporary press erroneously reported:That the tusks were much larger or that several were found at once.That a complete skull had been saved (in reality it was only a fragment of the jaw).There was speculation that the age of the find was in the order of millions of years, although it was Pleistocene (thousands of years).
Reprophoto of the original report from Unser Egerland
Interesting fact: This particular find is still cited in regional literature as one of the most significant pieces of evidence of the settlement of the area by mammoths, because at such an altitude mammoth finds are not as common as in the lowlands of Moravia.
School painting of a mammoth. Collection of the Sokolov Museum