Archaeology

Researchers find that Żagań-Lutnia5 is an Iron Age stronghold

Image Credit : Provincial Office for the Protection of Monuments

By:Mark Milligan

Date:

February 23, 2024

Archaeology

Archaeologists have conducted a ground penetrating radar (GPR) survey of Żagań-Lutnia5, revealing that the monument is an Iron Age stronghold.

Żagań-Lutnia5 was first discovered in the 1960s near the town of Żagań in western Poland, with previous studies suggesting that the monument could be associated with the Białowieża group of the Lusatian urnfield culture.

The Lusatian culture existed in the later Bronze Age and early Iron Age (1300–500 BC) in most of what is now Poland. It formed part of the Urnfield systems found from eastern France, southern Germany and Austria to Hungary, and the Nordic Bronze Age in northwestern Germany and Scandinavia.

A recent study led by Dr. Arkadiusz Michalak on behalf of the Archaeological Museum of the Middle Oder River has revealed two parallel sequences of magnetic anomalies at Żagań-Lutnia5 that represent the remnants of earthen and wooden fortifications.

The course of the fortifications were recorded in the northern, western and southern parts of the study area, however, a study of the eastern section was limited due to a sewage collector built in the 1990’s.

Exploratory excavations found four cultural layers with remains of huts and hearths, in addition to a burnt layer from the last phase of occupation that suggests a period of conflict.

According to the researchers, the monument was likely built by the same people who constructed the stronghold in Wicin and a number of verified defensive settlements within the area of the Elbe, Nysa Łużycka and Odra.

As a result of the study, Żagań-Lutnia5 has been added to the catalogue of verified Early Iron Age strongholds located in today’s Lubusz Voivodeship.

Header Image Credit : Provincial Office for the Protection of Monuments

Sources : Provincial Office for the Protection of Monuments – Archaeological research at the site of Żagań-Lutnia5

Rare copper dagger found in Polish forest

Image Credit : Łukasz Śliwiński

By:Mark Milligan
February 23, 2024
Archaeology

A rare copper dagger from over 4,000-years-ago has been discovered in the forests near Korzenica, southeastern Poland.

Piotr Gorlach from the Historical and Exploration Association Grupa Jarosław made the discovery during a metal detector survey in Jarosław Forest.

Upon realising the significance of the find, Mr Gorlach contacted the Podkarpacie conservator of monuments in Przemyśl and the Orsetti House Museum.

The dagger dates from over 4,000 years ago, a period in which objects made from copper were extremely rare in the Central European Plain.

A preliminary study indicates that the dagger may originate from the Carpathian Basin or Ukrainian steppe, and predates the development of bronze metallurgy for the region.

This transition is traditionally known as the Copper Age and marked a gradual incorporation of copper while stone remained the primary resource utilised.

Dr. Elżbieta Sieradzka-Burghardt from the museum in Jarosław, said: “This is a period of enormous change in the main raw materials for the production of tools. Instead of flint tools commonly used in the Stone Age, more and more metal products appear heralding the transition to the next period – the Bronze Age.”

Daggers during this era were a universal attribute of warriors, however, being made from copper suggests that the owner held a high social status. This is further supported by its size measuring 10.5 cm in length, which for this period is actually very large when compared to other metal objects from the same era.

The dagger has already been added to the collection of the Orsetti House Museum in Jarosław.

Header Image Credit : Łukasz Śliwiński

Sources : PAP – A dagger from over 4,000 years ago found in the forest.

 Bronze Age Settlement Found in Switzerland

Friday, February 23, 2024

(© Archaeological Service of the Canton of Bern, Guy Jaquenod)

HEIMBERG, SWITZERLANDD—A Bronze Age settlement thought to have been inhabited between 3,200 and 3,500 years ago has been found in the Swiss Plateau, beside the Aare River, according to a Newsweek report. The ancient village likely sat along a route between the Jura Mountains and the Swiss Alps. Researchers from the Archaeological Service of the Canton of Bern (ASCB) discovered the settlement during an excavation conducted ahead of a construction project. “What is exciting about the Heimberg site is that no settlement from the Middle Bronze Age was previously known at this location,” said ASCB archaeologist Regine Stapfer. Pits filled with stones were among the structures uncovered by the project. The stones, Stapfer explained, appear to have been shattered by heat. “It is not clear what these pits with the fragmented stones were used for,” she said. Similar pits have been unearthed at other Middle Bronze Age sites, however. Researchers think they may have been used to provide warmth or to cook food. Clay may have been extracted from other pits at Heimberg, Stapfer added. The clay would have been used to plaster the wicker walls of houses or to produce the abundant ceramics found at the site. “We know of no burial ground for the settlement and therefore have no evidence of the people who inhabited the settlement,” Stapfer concluded. 

Possible Royal Ring Discovered in Denmark

Friday, February 23, 2024

(National Museum of Denmark)

EMMERLEV, DENMARK—Live Science reports that a metal detectorist discovered a gold ring set with a semiprecious red stone in the hamlet of Emmerlev, which is located in the Southern Jutland region of Denmark. Archaeologist Kirstine Pommergaard of the National Museum of Denmark said that the ring has been dated to the fifth or sixth century A.D., and may have belonged to a local royal family connected to the Frankish kings known as the Merovingians, based upon its spirals and trefoil knobs usually associated with Frankish craftsmanship. The red stone could also be a symbol of power, she added. “The gold ring is probably a woman’s ring and may have belonged to a prince’s daughter who was married to a prince in Emmerlev,” Pommergaard said. “Gold is typically [a] diplomatic gift, and we know that people have married into alliances.” She thinks the royal family in Emmerlev may have controlled an area between Ribe, a trade center in Southwest Jutland, and Hedeby, a Danish trade center in what is now Germany. Discoveries of other valuable ancient items in the surrounding area suggest that elites in Southern Jutland may have controlled important trade links and wielded greater influence than previously thought, added archaeologist Anders Hartvig of the Museum Sønderjylland. To read about Iron Age jewelry uncovered on the Danish island of Zealand, go to "Splendid Surprise."

Tool Analysis Suggests Neanderthals Mixed

 Compound Adhesives 

Friday, February 23, 2024

NEW YORK, NEW YORK—According to a statement released by New York University, stone tools recovered in France from the Neanderthal site of Le Moustier in the 1960s have been reexamined by an international team of researchers. The team, led by Patrick Schmidt of the University of Tübingen, detected traces of ocher and bitumen on several of the scrapers, flakes, and blades. “We were surprised that the ochre content was more than 50 percent,” Schmidt said. “This is because air-dried bitumen can be used unaltered as an adhesive, but loses its adhesive properties when such large proportions of ochre are added,” he explained. The researchers then tested liquid bitumen and bitumen mixed with various levels of ocher. They found that a mix made up of 55 percent ocher and 45 percent bitumen was just sticky enough to hold a stone tool and yet not stick to the hands, making it a suitable handle. Team member Radu Iovita of New York University said that microscopic examination of the ancient tools revealed wear on the sharp edges from use on other materials, and bright polish on other areas of the tools, where they may have been abraded by the movement of the tool within a grip made of ocher and bitumen. “Compound adhesives are considered to be among the first expressions of the modern cognitive processes that are still active today,” Schmidt concluded. Read the original scholarly article about this research in Science Advances. To read about the earliest known piece of cord, go to "Twisted Neanderthal Tech."

Neanderthals used surprisingly sophisticated glue 40,000 years ago

Neanderthals crafted sophisticated adhesives from ochre and bitumen.

byTibi Puiu
February 23, 2024

A stone tool glued to a handle using liquid bitumen with the addition of 55 percent ochre. It is no longer sticky and can be handled easily. Image courtesy of Patrick Schmidt, University of Tübingen.

Neanderthals, our closest extinct cousins who roamed Europe for hundreds of thousands of years before modern humans entered the picture, were more intelligent and resourceful than meets the eye. According to new findings, Neanderthals, crafted stone tools using a multifaceted adhesive that is surprisingly effective and clever.

The researchers analyzed ancient tools excavated from Le Moustier, a renowned archaeological site in France. These tools, dating back to the Middle Palaeolithic period, reveal that Neanderthals were not only skilled craftsmen but also possessed a nuanced understanding of materials.

The ancient adhesive is a mixture of ochre and bitumen on the tools — ingredients that require careful selection and preparation.

This finding challenges the long-standing narrative of Neanderthals as mere brute survivors. Instead, they were quite thoughtful innovators, not all that different from our species and their Stone Age technology. The adhesives discovered suggest a level of planning, experimentation, and environmental knowledge that aligns Neanderthals more closely with early modern humans than previously recognized.

“These astonishingly well-preserved tools showcase a technical solution broadly similar to examples of tools made by early modern humans in Africa, but the exact recipe reflects a Neanderthal ‘spin,’ which is the production of grips for handheld tools,” said Radu Iovita, an associate professor at New York University’s Center for the Study of Human Origins

A recipe from the ancient past

The research, a collaborative effort involving experts from New York University, the University of Tübingen, and the National Museums in Berlin, re-examines artifacts that had been largely overlooked since their discovery in the early 20th century. Some of the stone tools are as ancient as 120,000 years old. The tools, once unwrapped from their decades-long slumber, revealed traces of a concoction that is both simple and sophisticated.

By combining ochre, a natural pigment, with bitumen, a type of natural asphalt, Neanderthals created an adhesive that was effective yet elegant. The mixture was adept at binding stone tools to handles without sticking to the hands, a balance that even modern adhesives may struggle to achieve. This composition facilitates the crafting of durable tools while showing a deeper understanding of material properties on the part of the glue’s craftsmen.

While bitumen alone can act as glue, the addition of ochre in just the right amounts (over 50% in some cases) made the ‘product’ a lot better. The researchers recreated the recipe and performed stress tests, proving the effectiveness of the Neanderthal glue.

“It was different when we used liquid bitumen, which is not really suitable for gluing. If 55 percent ochre is added, a malleable mass is formed,” said lead researcher Patrick Schmidt from the University of Tübingen.

Liquid bitumen and the earth pigment ochre prior to mixing. 

Image courtesy of Patrick Schmidt, University of Tübingen.

Microscopic analyses further confirmed the use of these adhesives, showing wear patterns indicative of applied grips, not merely accidental smudges. Such evidence points to a deliberate design, pushing back the timeline for complex adhesive use in Europe by thousands of years.
A reflection on human evolution

The implications of this study extend beyond the adhesive itself. The effort to gather materials from distant locations, the precision in mixing, and the application of the adhesive all suggest a level of cognitive sophistication that demands a re-evaluation of Neanderthal society.

Although Neanderthals and Homo sapiens split from a common ancestor roughly half a million years ago, their technological achievements converge into a common thread, suggesting parallel paths of thought and invention.

Previously, researchers uncovered a pendant made from ancient eagle talons and cave paintings in Spain made by Neanderthal artists.

The new study appeared in the journal Science Advances.