Novice Metal Detecting Enthusiast Discovers 2,500-Year-Old Ritual Artifacts, Featuring Bended Sword
It's not common to succeed on your first attempt, but Claus Falsby's successful debut in metal detecting was far from typical - it was downright extraordinary.
The newbie metal detectorist unearthed 2,500-year-old Late Bronze Age relics in a Danish bog, specifically in Egedal municipality. The uncovered treasures included a ritualistically bent sword and a scarce necklace. These remarkable finds, as reported in a press release by the Danish museum ROMU, showcase North Europe's significant transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age.
Falsby informed ROMU as soon as he recognized his significant find, as stated in the press release. The museum promptly dispatched archaeologists to examine the site, who confirmed that the items belonged to a 'depot' - a divine or sacrificial offering. The archaeologists dug up a ritualistically bent sword, two small bronze axes, some 'ankle rings,' and a possible clothing pin fragment, among other items.
Surprisingly, Falsby's subsequent outing continued to bring him luck. A couple of days later, he uncovered another remarkable sacrificial artifact approximately 70 meters (231 feet) away from the initial discovery: a large decorated bronze necklace, only the second of its kind found in Denmark. The ROMU archaeologists dated all the artifacts, collectively referred to as the Egedal find, to approximately 500 BCE, marking the region's transition between the Late Bronze Age and the Early Iron Age.
A photograph of the bronze necklace's decorative details. © Palle Østergaard Sørensen, ROMU.
"This is a very rare discovery. During the early and middle parts of the Bronze Age, we often encounter such 'depot' finds with bronze objects found in bogs. But we don't have many from the latter part of the Bronze Age," said Emil Winther Struve, an archaeologist at ROMU, in the press release. "The sacrificial tradition that was so prevalent during the Bronze Age is fading away at the end of the Bronze Age."
The bent sword, made of bronze with iron rivets, stands out as a particularly significant representation of this transition. Remarkably, the archaeologists suggested that these rivets might be the earliest discovered iron in Denmark. It was bent into an S-shape prior to its ritualistic offering, as the researchers speculated. The sword's design hinted at its foreign origin, originating from the militant Hallstatt culture that existed just beyond the Alps.
"Earlier swords were fragile and perhaps only used for stabbing. But now they're becoming stronger, more sturdy, and have a different weight, making them suitable for more aggressive uses like chopping," Struve explained. "The Hallstatt culture, known for its warrior ideal and aggressive structural principles demanding conquest, war, and conflict, had an influence on the sword. It probably symbolizes this." Struve and his colleagues hypothesized that the bronze necklace also originated from Poland's coast.
The artifacts, in conjunction with previous discoveries, offer scholars a more comprehensive understanding of the sacrificial traditions of the Bronze Age in present-day Denmark. Although Falsby's discoveries highlight an era of external influence in the region along with broader changes in Europe, they also reveal that the elite maintained their Bronze Age traditions until the start of the Iron Age, according to the archaeologists. And talk about newcomer's luck!
The discovery of these ancient artifacts has sparked interest in the potential future developments in archaeological research, where technological advancements in science could help reveal more about the past. With advancements in technology and scientific analysis, we may uncover new insights about the cultural shifts during the transition from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age.
The extraordinary finds of Falsby serve as a testament to how unexplored areas hold the potential for revolutionizing our understanding of history, highlighting the importance of further investing in science and technology in archaeological research.
