To its east lies the ancient cemetery of Kerameikos and to the west was the location of Plato's olive, whose remains are exhibited inside the main building of the University.
He participated in excavations in Alzey, under the direction of Wilhelm Unverzagt, in the Kerameikos in Athens ( Dieter Oly and Gottfried Gruben ), in Persia ( Heinz Luschey ), Bithynia and in Commagene (Friedrich Karl Dörner).