Pub Date : 2022-05-02DOI: 10.1111/16000390-09001009
Kamal Aldin Niknami, Mohammad Amin Mirghaderi
The highland plains of western Iran have been investigated with varying intensity. The Sarfirouzabad Plain located in the south of Kermanshah province, although visited perfunctorily, has not previously been studied systematically, despite attractive ecological and environmental conditions. In 2009, a team from Tehran University conducted a systematic and intensive field survey in the region to identify Bronze Age settlements and to assess their location in relation to ecological, environmental and cultural factors that may have impacted their distribution on the plain. The surveyed area was walked in transects at 20-metre intervals and resulted in the identification of 332 archaeological sites from different cultural periods, which added much to the limited knowledge about the history of this region. Twenty-four of these settlement sites belong to the Middle and Late Bronze Age horizons. This study uses GIS to map the distribution of archaeological materials and construct spatial models to determine the significance of the distribution patterns of the Bronze Age sites.
{"title":"Farmers, Herders or Tradesmen?","authors":"Kamal Aldin Niknami, Mohammad Amin Mirghaderi","doi":"10.1111/16000390-09001009","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/16000390-09001009","url":null,"abstract":"The highland plains of western Iran have been investigated with varying intensity. The Sarfirouzabad Plain located in the south of Kermanshah province, although visited perfunctorily, has not previously been studied systematically, despite attractive ecological and environmental conditions. In 2009, a team from Tehran University conducted a systematic and intensive field survey in the region to identify Bronze Age settlements and to assess their location in relation to ecological, environmental and cultural factors that may have impacted their distribution on the plain. The surveyed area was walked in transects at 20-metre intervals and resulted in the identification of 332 archaeological sites from different cultural periods, which added much to the limited knowledge about the history of this region. Twenty-four of these settlement sites belong to the Middle and Late Bronze Age horizons. This study uses GIS to map the distribution of archaeological materials and construct spatial models to determine the significance of the distribution patterns of the Bronze Age sites.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"13 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138537745","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-02DOI: 10.1111/16000390-09001007
Paul J.J. Sinclair
In 1987 archaeologists from nine African countries and colleagues from Sweden began a co-operation programme to study urbanism in eastern and southern Africa under the auspices of The Urban Origins programme. The programme involved 22 parallel field projects throughout the West Indian Ocean region and the southern Africa interior. The article presents a compilation of diverse material on Great Zimbabwe that has been scattered in different fora. The research was directed by an overall approach that investigations in urban archaeology in Africa must be at the same scale that people lived in the past. The results briefly presented here show the potential of multivariate assessments of the spatial distributions of large-scale urban sites in Africa.
{"title":"Towards an Understanding of Spatiotemporal Dynamics at Great Zimbabwe","authors":"Paul J.J. Sinclair","doi":"10.1111/16000390-09001007","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/16000390-09001007","url":null,"abstract":"In 1987 archaeologists from nine African countries and colleagues from Sweden began a co-operation programme to study urbanism in eastern and southern Africa under the auspices of The Urban Origins programme. The programme involved 22 parallel field projects throughout the West Indian Ocean region and the southern Africa interior. The article presents a compilation of diverse material on Great Zimbabwe that has been scattered in different fora. The research was directed by an overall approach that investigations in urban archaeology in Africa must be at the same scale that people lived in the past. The results briefly presented here show the potential of multivariate assessments of the spatial distributions of large-scale urban sites in Africa.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"21 1","pages":"123-134"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138537714","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-02DOI: 10.1111/16000390-09001004
Harald Meller
The Circum-Harz group of the Central German Únětice Culture (2200-1600 BC) was a highly stratified society, which arose from the merging of the Corded Ware and Bell Beaker Cultures. This process was advanced by princes who established their legitimacy as rulers on symbolic references to both cultures as well as on newly created traditions and historical references. Their power was based on armed troops, which appear to have been accommodated in large houses or longhouses. The hierarchical structure of the troops can be determined by both their distinctive weapons and the colours thereof. The prince of the Dieskau territory commanded the largest army and occupied a dominant position, expressed through the large Bornhöck burial mound and by the gold find of Dieskau, which itself most likely originated in the Bornhöck barrow. The article concludes with a discussion whether the Dieskau ruler was an actual head of a genuine state, according to the criteria put forth by Max Weber and Stefan Breuer. There is some indication that these criteria of statehood were fulfilled by the period associated with the Nebra Sky Disk at the latest, since this disk allowed the prince to act as ‘a representative of the gods before the community’ (Breuer 1998, 39).
{"title":"Princes, Armies, Sanctuaries","authors":"Harald Meller","doi":"10.1111/16000390-09001004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/16000390-09001004","url":null,"abstract":"The Circum-Harz group of the Central German Únětice Culture (2200-1600 BC) was a highly stratified society, which arose from the merging of the Corded Ware and Bell Beaker Cultures. This process was advanced by princes who established their legitimacy as rulers on symbolic references to both cultures as well as on newly created traditions and historical references. Their power was based on armed troops, which appear to have been accommodated in large houses or longhouses. The hierarchical structure of the troops can be determined by both their distinctive weapons and the colours thereof. The prince of the Dieskau territory commanded the largest army and occupied a dominant position, expressed through the large Bornhöck burial mound and by the gold find of Dieskau, which itself most likely originated in the Bornhöck barrow. The article concludes with a discussion whether the Dieskau ruler was an actual head of a genuine state, according to the criteria put forth by Max Weber and Stefan Breuer. There is some indication that these criteria of statehood were fulfilled by the period associated with the Nebra Sky Disk at the latest, since this disk allowed the prince to act as ‘a representative of the gods before the community’ (Breuer 1998, 39).","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"4 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138537740","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-02DOI: 10.1111/16000390-09001003
Silje E. Fretheim
This article is based on a study of site formation processes of dwellings, site contexts, and terms relating to dwelling types and attributes. Archaeological evidence discovered during the Ormen Lange project and dated to the Late Mesolithic provides the backdrop for discussion. The project was conducted by the NTNU University Museum in 2003-2004 on the Island of Gossen in Central Norway. Remains of at least 14 dwellings and a large number of dwelling-related features dated to between 6000 and 4000 cal BC were recorded. Based on analyses of several dwelling attributes, the Ormen Lange dwellings are divided into 1) houses for long term or regularly repeated stays (for double and single family units); 2) houses for repeated short-time stays (for task groups); 3) non-permanent dwellings for short time occupation and 4) special-purpose, non-residential shelters.
{"title":"Discovering Dwellings","authors":"Silje E. Fretheim","doi":"10.1111/16000390-09001003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/16000390-09001003","url":null,"abstract":"This article is based on a study of site formation processes of dwellings, site contexts, and terms relating to dwelling types and attributes. Archaeological evidence discovered during the Ormen Lange project and dated to the Late Mesolithic provides the backdrop for discussion. The project was conducted by the NTNU University Museum in 2003-2004 on the Island of Gossen in Central Norway. Remains of at least 14 dwellings and a large number of dwelling-related features dated to between 6000 and 4000 cal BC were recorded. Based on analyses of several dwelling attributes, the Ormen Lange dwellings are divided into 1) houses for long term or regularly repeated stays (for double and single family units); 2) houses for repeated short-time stays (for task groups); 3) non-permanent dwellings for short time occupation and 4) special-purpose, non-residential shelters.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"10 1","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138537738","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-02DOI: 10.1111/16000390-09001006
Richard Hodges
In the early to mid-1990s in a pre-GIS era, Klavs Randsborg with a team from the University of Copenhagen directed a wide-ranging survey of the Ionian (Greek) island of Kephallénia. Randsborg punctiliously published the multi-period sites he discovered, and analysed the results, paying special attention to the island’s archaic Greek sites but also later medieval afterlife of certain of these sites, including the castles re-occupying Paleókastro (Sami) and Pronnoi (2002). Since the Kephallénia survey was made, new research in the early 2000s on castles and Byzantine urbanism in the western Balkans has significantly expanded the base of knowledge. With this new evidence, it is now possible to provide new interpretations of the Paleókastro, Sami and Paleókastro, Pronnoi castles that in turn shed new light on the management of Kephallénia in the Mid-Byzantine period.
{"title":"Re-Thinking Two Mid-Byzantine Castles on Kephallénia","authors":"Richard Hodges","doi":"10.1111/16000390-09001006","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/16000390-09001006","url":null,"abstract":"In the early to mid-1990s in a pre-GIS era, Klavs Randsborg with a team from the University of Copenhagen directed a wide-ranging survey of the Ionian (Greek) island of Kephallénia. Randsborg punctiliously published the multi-period sites he discovered, and analysed the results, paying special attention to the island’s archaic Greek sites but also later medieval afterlife of certain of these sites, including the castles re-occupying Paleókastro (Sami) and Pronnoi (2002). Since the Kephallénia survey was made, new research in the early 2000s on castles and Byzantine urbanism in the western Balkans has significantly expanded the base of knowledge. With this new evidence, it is now possible to provide new interpretations of the Paleókastro, Sami and Paleókastro, Pronnoi castles that in turn shed new light on the management of Kephallénia in the Mid-Byzantine period.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"2013 1","pages":"111-121"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138537737","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2022-05-02DOI: 10.1111/16000390-09001008
Inge Schjellerup
Starting from around AD 800, the Chachapoya developed their own culture with monumental architecture. It came to an end in 1470 after the conquest by the Incas. At that time, a different architecture was introduced in the region followed by changes in the landscape. The article summarises the available evidence on architectural and archaeological remains dated to the period following the Inca conquest.
{"title":"1470 Inca Expansion into the Land of the Chachapoya","authors":"Inge Schjellerup","doi":"10.1111/16000390-09001008","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1111/16000390-09001008","url":null,"abstract":"Starting from around AD 800, the Chachapoya developed their own culture with monumental architecture. It came to an end in 1470 after the conquest by the Incas. At that time, a different architecture was introduced in the region followed by changes in the landscape. The article summarises the available evidence on architectural and archaeological remains dated to the period following the Inca conquest.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"30 1","pages":"135-154"},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2022-05-02","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"138537739","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-29DOI: 10.1163/16000390-12340002
Leszek Gardeła
Viking Age Scandinavians manufactured an impressive array of miniature objects that could be worn on the body as pendants, clothing appliques or pins. Many of these items resembled full-sized weapons commonly used by warriors in Northern Europe and beyond. This article sets out to investigate the complete corpus of so-called miniature swords from the ninth and tenth centuries typically made of copper alloy and silver. The majority of miniature swords have been discovered in the course of amateur metal detecting, but some examples come from more ‘secure’ contexts, such as graves and settlement sites, which allow linking them with particular people, places and social practices. The article discusses the history of research on miniature swords, situates them in the context of other small-sized militaria (axes, spearheads and shields) and examines their different forms, function and symbolic content.
{"title":"Miniature Swords in the Viking Age","authors":"Leszek Gardeła","doi":"10.1163/16000390-12340002","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/16000390-12340002","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Viking Age Scandinavians manufactured an impressive array of miniature objects that could be worn on the body as pendants, clothing appliques or pins. Many of these items resembled full-sized weapons commonly used by warriors in Northern Europe and beyond. This article sets out to investigate the complete corpus of so-called miniature swords from the ninth and tenth centuries typically made of copper alloy and silver. The majority of miniature swords have been discovered in the course of amateur metal detecting, but some examples come from more ‘secure’ contexts, such as graves and settlement sites, which allow linking them with particular people, places and social practices. The article discusses the history of research on miniature swords, situates them in the context of other small-sized militaria (axes, spearheads and shields) and examines their different forms, function and symbolic content.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":"31 14","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-12-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"41270418","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-29DOI: 10.1163/16000390-12340004
V. Zavyalov, N. Terekhova
An archaeometallographic analysis of the iron tools from Ancient Russian sites enabled the authors to conclude that the manufacturing of high-quality items from black metal in Ancient Rus’ was based on the technological welding of the iron base and steel blade. The analysis allowed for changes in the production technology to be traced over time. Thus, it was typical for 10th–11th-century blacksmiths primarily to use three-fold technology, while welding-on was more typical during the 12th–15th centuries. Such technologies reflect different production traditions. One of these technologies, the Scandinavian (three-fold welding technology), brought the most remarkable results in the evolving urban craft. Its implementation was explosive, indeed, but had no essential impact on the further development of Russian iron processing. The other technology – the Slavic – was distinguished by the application of welding-on technology and spread gradually, but turned out to be more sustainable and kept its importance until the beginning of the industrial production of ironware. The interaction of these two traditions determined the character of the Ancient Russian model of blacksmithing.
{"title":"Technological Traditions of Blacksmithing in Ancient Rus’","authors":"V. Zavyalov, N. Terekhova","doi":"10.1163/16000390-12340004","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/16000390-12340004","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000An archaeometallographic analysis of the iron tools from Ancient Russian sites enabled the authors to conclude that the manufacturing of high-quality items from black metal in Ancient Rus’ was based on the technological welding of the iron base and steel blade. The analysis allowed for changes in the production technology to be traced over time. Thus, it was typical for 10th–11th-century blacksmiths primarily to use three-fold technology, while welding-on was more typical during the 12th–15th centuries. Such technologies reflect different production traditions. One of these technologies, the Scandinavian (three-fold welding technology), brought the most remarkable results in the evolving urban craft. Its implementation was explosive, indeed, but had no essential impact on the further development of Russian iron processing. The other technology – the Slavic – was distinguished by the application of welding-on technology and spread gradually, but turned out to be more sustainable and kept its importance until the beginning of the industrial production of ironware. The interaction of these two traditions determined the character of the Ancient Russian model of blacksmithing.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-12-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"47429785","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-29DOI: 10.1163/16000390-12340003
Laurynas Kurila, Giedrė Piličiauskienė, Ž. Ežerinskis, J. Šapolaitė, A. Garbaras
Until presently, over 60 trilobate arrowheads characteristic of Asian nomads have been found in Lithuanian hillforts or their adjacent settlements, some of them in destruction layers. These finds encouraged Lithuanian archaeologists to create a narrative about the Huns severely raiding into the region in the 5th century AD. However, it is accepted as an axiom rather than a topic for research due to the lack of precise chronology. From the Plinkaigalis cemetery, extremely rare finds are known; two trilobate arrowheads were found embedded in human bones (both were from group burials, where other signs of violent trauma were encountered). These finds offered the unique possibility of radiocarbon dating skeletal material directly related to trilobate arrowheads, providing new insights into the narrative of the Huns’ attack. The results of a set of AMS 14C dates are presented and discussed in the article.
{"title":"Vestiges of the Huns? The Radiocarbon-Based Chronology of the Trilobate Arrowheads from Plinkaigalis Cemetery, Central Lithuania","authors":"Laurynas Kurila, Giedrė Piličiauskienė, Ž. Ežerinskis, J. Šapolaitė, A. Garbaras","doi":"10.1163/16000390-12340003","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/16000390-12340003","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000Until presently, over 60 trilobate arrowheads characteristic of Asian nomads have been found in Lithuanian hillforts or their adjacent settlements, some of them in destruction layers. These finds encouraged Lithuanian archaeologists to create a narrative about the Huns severely raiding into the region in the 5th century AD. However, it is accepted as an axiom rather than a topic for research due to the lack of precise chronology. From the Plinkaigalis cemetery, extremely rare finds are known; two trilobate arrowheads were found embedded in human bones (both were from group burials, where other signs of violent trauma were encountered). These finds offered the unique possibility of radiocarbon dating skeletal material directly related to trilobate arrowheads, providing new insights into the narrative of the Huns’ attack. The results of a set of AMS 14C dates are presented and discussed in the article.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-12-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"44877924","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Pub Date : 2021-12-29DOI: 10.1163/16000390-12340001
Léonard Dumont, S. Wirth, M. Boone, I. Josipovic, S. Lycke, P. Tack, P. Vandenabeele, Guy de Mulder
In the 1960s, a solid-hilted sword dating to the second half of the Middle Bronze Age (1450–1300 BC) was dredged up in a gravel quarry in the Rhône river at the village of Champagneux (Savoie, France). The sword belongs to the octagonal-hilted swords (German: Achtkantschwerter). This type, mainly found in the northern Alpine region and southern Scandinavia, was until then unknown in France. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses and high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (μCT) of the hilt were carried out to understand how the hilt was cast and fixed to the blade. Thanks to the opportunities offered by these techniques, we were able to reconstruct the chaîne opératoire of this sword with a close inspection of the internal structure of the hilt. Furthermore, we visualised the surface of the sword’s tang located inside the hilt, which shows a series of five vertically arranged marks. Until now, similar symbols were only known on Late Bronze Age bracelets and tools, predominantly in the eastern part of the Alpine region. Although their exact function remains enigmatic, these marks are believed to be markers left by craftsmen on the object during their manufacture. On the solid-hilted sword from Champagneux, these marks could be linked to a way for the craftsman to remember which blade and hilt were supposed to be joined together, shedding light on the organisation of the production process behind this kind of weapon. Dans les années 1960, une épée à poignée métallique datant de la seconde moitié du Bronze moyen (1450–1300 av. J.-C.) fut draguée dans une gravière du Rhône à Champagneux (Savoie). Il s’agit d’une épée à fusée octogonale (en allemand : Achtkantschwert). Ce type, caractéristique de la région nord-Alpine et du sud de la Scandinavie, était jusqu’alors inconnu en France. Des analyses par spectroscopie de fluorescence X (XRF) et tomographie haute résolution par rayons X (μCT) ont été réalisées afin de comprendre comment la poignée a été coulée puis fixée à la lame. Ces méthodes nous ont ainsi permis de reconstituer la chaîne opératoire de cette épée en réalisant une inspection minutieuse de la structure interne de sa poignée. Nous avons par ailleurs été en mesure de visualiser la surface de la languette de la lame, insérée à l’intérieur du manche, qui présente une série de cinq marques disposées verticalement. Des éléments similaires n’étaient jusqu’à présent connus uniquement sur des outils et parures de du Bronze final, essentiellement dans la partie orientale de l’arc alpin. Bien que leur fonction exacte demeure inconnue, ces marques pourraient être des marqueurs laissés sur les objets au moment de leur fabrication. Dans le cas de l’épée de Champagneux, il pourrait s’agir d’un moyen pour l’artisan d’identifier rapidement dans son atelier la lame et la poignée devant être assemblées. Ces marques nous permettent ainsi d’obtenir de nouvelles informations l’organisation de la production de ce type d’arme.
{"title":"A Unique Case of ‘Counting Marks’ Revealed by Tomography on a Middle Bronze Age Sword from Champagneux (France, Savoie)","authors":"Léonard Dumont, S. Wirth, M. Boone, I. Josipovic, S. Lycke, P. Tack, P. Vandenabeele, Guy de Mulder","doi":"10.1163/16000390-12340001","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.1163/16000390-12340001","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000In the 1960s, a solid-hilted sword dating to the second half of the Middle Bronze Age (1450–1300 BC) was dredged up in a gravel quarry in the Rhône river at the village of Champagneux (Savoie, France). The sword belongs to the octagonal-hilted swords (German: Achtkantschwerter). This type, mainly found in the northern Alpine region and southern Scandinavia, was until then unknown in France. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyses and high-resolution X-ray computed tomography (μCT) of the hilt were carried out to understand how the hilt was cast and fixed to the blade. Thanks to the opportunities offered by these techniques, we were able to reconstruct the chaîne opératoire of this sword with a close inspection of the internal structure of the hilt. Furthermore, we visualised the surface of the sword’s tang located inside the hilt, which shows a series of five vertically arranged marks. Until now, similar symbols were only known on Late Bronze Age bracelets and tools, predominantly in the eastern part of the Alpine region. Although their exact function remains enigmatic, these marks are believed to be markers left by craftsmen on the object during their manufacture. On the solid-hilted sword from Champagneux, these marks could be linked to a way for the craftsman to remember which blade and hilt were supposed to be joined together, shedding light on the organisation of the production process behind this kind of weapon.\u0000Dans les années 1960, une épée à poignée métallique datant de la seconde moitié du Bronze moyen (1450–1300 av. J.-C.) fut draguée dans une gravière du Rhône à Champagneux (Savoie). Il s’agit d’une épée à fusée octogonale (en allemand : Achtkantschwert). Ce type, caractéristique de la région nord-Alpine et du sud de la Scandinavie, était jusqu’alors inconnu en France. Des analyses par spectroscopie de fluorescence X (XRF) et tomographie haute résolution par rayons X (μCT) ont été réalisées afin de comprendre comment la poignée a été coulée puis fixée à la lame. Ces méthodes nous ont ainsi permis de reconstituer la chaîne opératoire de cette épée en réalisant une inspection minutieuse de la structure interne de sa poignée. Nous avons par ailleurs été en mesure de visualiser la surface de la languette de la lame, insérée à l’intérieur du manche, qui présente une série de cinq marques disposées verticalement. Des éléments similaires n’étaient jusqu’à présent connus uniquement sur des outils et parures de du Bronze final, essentiellement dans la partie orientale de l’arc alpin. Bien que leur fonction exacte demeure inconnue, ces marques pourraient être des marqueurs laissés sur les objets au moment de leur fabrication. Dans le cas de l’épée de Champagneux, il pourrait s’agir d’un moyen pour l’artisan d’identifier rapidement dans son atelier la lame et la poignée devant être assemblées. Ces marques nous permettent ainsi d’obtenir de nouvelles informations l’organisation de la production de ce type d’arme.","PeriodicalId":44857,"journal":{"name":"ACTA ARCHAEOLOGICA","volume":" ","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.8,"publicationDate":"2021-12-29","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"45250235","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":4,"RegionCategory":"文学","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
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