Route of Megalithic Culture

The founding section of the Route of Megalithic Culture runs through the territories of Osnabrück, Ostercappeln, Belm-Vehrte, Wallenhorst, Bramsche, Ankum, Berge, Bippen, Fürstenau, Freren, Thuine, Lingen (Ems), Meppen, Sögel, Werlte, Lastrup, Cloppenburg, Visbek, Großenkneten, Wildeshausen, Dötlingen, Ganderkesee and Oldenburg. It is planned to extend the route, on the one side towards North Rhine-Westphalia, and on the other towards northeast Lower Saxony as far as Schleswig-Holstein. The original route in Lower Saxony now forms part of a greater EU initiative with similar routes in Denmark, England, Netherlands, Portugal, and Sweden. == Purpose ==

The Route of Megalithic Culture is intended to give a better understanding of the lives of people who lived over 5,000 years ago in all its member countries. The founding part of the route in northwest Germany has 33 stations, with insights into the function and design of their graves, their conception of the afterlife, understanding of nature and everyday lives. In some cases, the holiday road also leads to groups of Bronze Age and Iron Age tumuli of more recent times. The flyer for the Route of Megalithic Culture not only shows the numerous stone age stations of megalithic culture, but also other sights and points of interest along the way. These include sights especially around the town of Osnabrück with its Cultural History Museum, the castles and palaces in Osnabrück Land, the Venne Iron Age House, the Old St Alexander's Church, the Kalkriese Museum and Park, the Cloth Maker's Museum, Bramsche, Malgarten Abbey, Börstel Abbey, the town of Meppen, the Hüven Mill, Clemenswerth Palace, the Cloppenburg Museum Village, St. Alexander's Church, the village of Dötlingen, Hude Abbey and the city of Oldenburg with its State Museum of Nature and People. ==Stations==

The 33 stations as numbered on the official web site. == Organisation and financing ==

The Straße der Megalithkultur is a community project resulting from collaboration between: • Emsland Touristik GmbH • Landkreis Vechta • Museum am Schölerberg Osnabrück - Natur und Umwelt, Planetarium • • Tourismusverband Osnabrücker Land e.V. • Zweckverband Erholungsgebiet • Zweckverband Naturpark Wildeshauser Geest Authorised by the Behörde für Geoinformation, Landentwicklung und Liegenschaften (Department of Geoinformation, Land Usage and Property), financing for the Route of Megalithic Culture is provided from EU funds, distributed to local tourism and district authorities. In May 2011, at the request of the tourism office for Osnabrück county (Landkreis) the tourism promotion department of the Ministry for Economic Affairs provided a subsidy of €180,600 for the route. ==References==