Rádla z pozdní doby bronzové z Opavy / Late Bronze Age ards from Opava, Czech Silesia

Abstract

The subject of the article is the discovery of two oak ards from the Late Bronze Age in Opava belonging to the Silesian phase of the Lusatian Urnfield culture. Not only is this the first find of its kind in the Czech Republic, it is also the oldest side by side finds of ards in Europe. The find fully falls into the context of the development of prehistoric ploughs and highlights the dominance of the occurrence of crook­ards in the Bronze Age. The ards were models for the experimental production of their replicas and several subsequent experimental ploughings, which produced a range of additional information.