Ipf (mountain)

The Ipf is a mostly treeless mountain (668 m high), near Bopfingen, Ostalbkreis, Baden-Württemberg, Germany, with a prehistoric hill fort on its top.

The fort is situated on an isolated hill, with a flattened summit surrounded by a stone wall, ditch and large counterscarp (outer bank). The overall diameter is about 180 m. Extensive ramparts traverse the slopes to protect a large enclosed area and entranceway. There is evidence of occupation from the Bronze Age (Urnfield culture) through the Iron Age to the early Celtic La Tene period, a span of almost a thousand years (1200 BC – 300 BC). The summit was already levelled, fortified and densely settled in the Urnfield period. During the early Iron Age Hallstatt period and into the early La Tène period the Ipf was an important 'princely seat' – a regional centre of power and aristocratic residence with long-distance trade connections, including with Greece and Italy.