A spiral bracelet

The spiral, bronze bracelet was a part of a rich hoard found in 1878 in a peat bog. The deposit, dated to the early Bronze Age (ca. 1600–1500 BC), contained various bronze items, such as another spiral bracelet, three spearheads, two axes, two cast plates, a dagger blade, and two anklets. At the end of World War II, all these items were moved deep into German territory. Since 2009 they are again a part of the National Museum in Szczecin’s collection, thanks to the establishment of Polish-German collaboration on archaeological objects exchange.

The term “hoard” refers to objects, or collections of objects, intentionally hidden from any potential threat or given as offerings to deities. Such “deposits” most commonly consisted of ornaments, tools, weaponry, or pieces of precious materials. Hoard deposits, especially those of symbolic and religious meaning, were common during the Bronze Age. An intriguing, still unexplained archaeological phenomenon is the lack of hoards from the early Bronze Age on the eastern side of Poland, while the western side has plenty. Probably, some new ideas spreading throughout Europe along with the bronze metallurgy did not reach this area. The question of why this happened remains without an answer.

Monika Witek