Hunebeds

The hunebeds are the oldest monuments in the Netherlands. They are prehistoric tombstones built by the Funnelbeaker people using boulders transported to Drenthe during the Ice Age.

Drenthe has no fewer than 52 hunebeds in a 30-kilometre radius.

Go back to prehistoric times and find out all about the hunebeds at the Hunebed Centre in Borger on the Drentse Hondsrug. At this museum, you’ll be introduced to Funnelbeaker culture and see what life was like in the Stone Age. Moreover, the largest hunebed in the Netherlands is located next to the museum.

Visit the Hunebed Centre

Since there is so much to discover in Drenthe, you’ll most likely not have enough time to visit all 52 hunebeds. So we’ve compiled a Big Five list for you to allow you to discover the best of prehistoric history in Drenthe in one fell swoop.

Dolmen D10
Dolmen D10
Gasteren
Dolmen D17 and D18
Dolmen D17 and D18
Rolde
Dolmen D27
Dolmen D27
Borger
Dolmen D43
Dolmen D43
Emmen
Dolmen D49
Dolmen D49
Schoonoord

Hunebeds are tombstones for mass graves. The dead were buried with gifts such as jewellery, axes, spearheads and ceramic pots.
People used to think hunebeds were built by giants.
They were actually built by the Funnelbeaker people, who were very short (1.65 m). They could stand upright inside the hunebeds.
The boulders along the side used to be hidden from view by sand and sods. Hunebeds used to look like elongated hills, with only the top of the capstones in view.

Dolmen D10

Dolmen D17 and D18

Dolmen D27

Dolmen D43

Dolmen D49