Hornhausen stones

The Hornhausen stones are a set of fragmentary, 7th-century carved stones found in the village of Hornhausen (now part of Oschersleben) in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany. The carved stones feature interlaced animal figures, deer, riders and their steeds, and a Christian flag.

The most famous and best preserved of the stones is the Hornhausen rider stone (German: Reiterstein), which depicts a Frankish horseman on his steed with a braided serpent-like animal underfoot. The rider stone was uncovered during farmwork in 1874 and used to pave a cowshed until it was purchased, along with two other fragments, by the Halle State Museum of Prehistory in 1912. Later excavations where the rider stone was found revealed more fragments and a large early medieval graveyard.

Once thought to have formed a pagan grave monument, the stones are now believed to be fragments of a stone chancel screen used in a nearby Christian chapel. Stylistically related are the Morsleben stones, found in the church of nearby Morsleben. These stones are also believed to be fragments of a chancel screen, perhaps from the same workshop.