File:Early Iron Age hoard (FindID 512333-472221).jpg
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Summary
[edit]Early Iron Age hoard | |||
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Photographer |
The Portable Antiquities Scheme, Dot Boughton, 2014-06-11 10:55:50 |
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Title |
Early Iron Age hoard |
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Description |
English: Small piece of cast copper alloy casting waste, probably dating from the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age; found with socketed axes LANCUM-3F84C4; LANCUM-3F83A0; LANCUM-3F7550.
Measurements: Length: 59mm; Width: 32.1mm; Thickness: 28.9mm; Weight: 44g Description: Large piece of casting residue, possibly overflow from a mould. Only one part seems to include a recognisable shape: a semicircle which would have been created by the metal coming through the gaps of the mould near the valve. Discussion The Ulverston hoard consists of three socketed axes (two decorated, one plain) and a small piece of casting waste. Two of the objects were found in close association (axes no. 2 and 3), whilst the two other objects come from the same field, but a little bit further away (axe no. 1 and casting waste no. 4). However, there is no doubt that the axes were deposited together and there is a very strong probability that the piece of casting waste was also part of the same deposition. The three new axes from Ulverston are all of Type Sompting and these axes (unassociated (single finds) and associated finds (hoards)) are conventionally dated to the British Earliest Iron Age (c. 800-600BC). They are part of the Llyn Fawr metalwork assemblage, named after the hoard of cast copper-alloy and wrought iron object from a small mountain lake near Rhigos, Vale of Glamorgan (Crawford and Wheeler 1921; Fox 1939; Fox and Hyde 1939). The hoard from Llyn Fawr did not contain elaborately decorated axes (only rib-and-pellet decorated axes) but there are a few examples of Early Iron Age axe hoards containing more elaborately decorated axes from the Thames Valley (Kingston-on-Thames), Sussex (Eastbourne, Sompting and Ferring), Scotland (Tillicoultry) and, most importantly, from Cumbria (Skelmore Heads, nr Ulverston) (Evans 1881; Budgen 1934; Curwen 1948; Curwen 1954, Grinsell 1931, Huth 1997; O'Connor 2007) The Early Iron Age group of decorated copper-alloy socketed axes were initially discussed by Colin Burgess in 1971. The examples of socketed axes discussed in his paper include three single finds from Yorkshire (Seamer Carr, Cayton Carr and Broughton, near Malton) and the fifteen heavier axes from the Sompting hoard, East Sussex, thus excluding the two linear-facetted axes that were also part of the hoard (Curwen 1948, plate XX, 5+6). Following Burgess' definition, Sompting axes have fairly straight sides and a moderately expanded blade. Their profile is heavy and pronounced and the loops tend to be of moderate size with some having a distinctive spurred base. The sockets are usually of sub-rectangular or 'back-to-front' shape rather than aligned with the blade (Burgess 1971, 268), a typological characteristic that we can also find on the axes from Ulverston. Sub-rectangular sockets are more common in the Early Iron Age while rectangular sockets, aligned with the blade, can be found on the large majority of Late Bronze Age socketed axes. Furthermore, Burgess suggested that one of the main characteristics of Sompting axes is their elaborate decoration, but even he admitted that there does not seem to be a clear-cut definition of the various decorative styles and sub-styles (Burgess 1971, 267). The wealth of patterns, both simple and more and less elaborate, is striking indeed and cannot be matched on axes of the Ewart Park metalwork assemblage of the preceding Late Bronze Age (c. 900-800BC). Apart from plain and simple ribbed axes (with three, four or five ribs), there are rib-and-pellet decorated axes (one, two, three or more ribs), rib-and-circlet, triple-rib-and-circlet, rib-and-circlets connected with ribs forming M's and Ω's, empty boxes, or boxes with a central X, etc. Most of the patterns are unique, making it difficult to group them with others. The hoard from Ulverston contains three axes and only one (the smallest and most reshaped/used one) seems to be undecorated. However, undecorated axes of Type Sompting are known from single finds (e.g. R. Thames at Kew, London (British Museum: WG1744)) and also from one larger hoard (Tower Hill, Oxon. (Coombs 2003)). This means that even though Sompting axes are usually high decorated, plain examples are known and can be identified according to their weight, size and shape of mouth and blade. The two other axes from Ulverston (axes nos. 1 and 2) are decorated on each face with a central rib terminating in a pellet-in-circlet with a hanging triangle to the left and right. The points of the triangles are also terminating in a pellet-in-circlet. This decoration is not unique. It can be found on one other socketed axe only. This axe was found in 1902 with five other socketed axes of the same type but different decoration in a lime stone fissure near Skelmore Heads, Great Urswick, Ulverston, Cumbria (Cowper 1905; Collingwood 1926). The hoard from Skelmore Heads is lost, unfortunately, and only two axes survive in museum collections today: one in the Dock Museum, Barrow-in-Furness, and the other is in Lancaster City Museum's H.S. Swanson-Cowper collection, currently on display at the Ruskin Museum, Coniston. It is very noteworthy that the axe from Skelmore Heads which is currently at the Dock Museum has exactly the same dimensions as axe no. 1 and is only slightly smaller than axe no. 2. The decoration on all three axes is exactly the same and after comparing casting flaws and the slight curvature of the ribs and the sides of the triangles it is suggested here that the three axes were made in the same mould or cast using the same mould template. Local casting of Early Iron Age decorated socketed axes is supported by the discovery of the small piece of casting waste. However, this connection must remain tentative for the time being because only a metallurgical analysis will prove if the alloy of the casting waste can be dated to the Late Bronze Age or Early Iron Age. It can be argued, however, that different copper-alloys were used. When comparing the surfaces and details of decoration of the three axes, one of the three new axes from near Ulverston stands out: it has a rough surface and silvery patina and is also slightly heavier and chunkier than the other two. It has neither been finished or nor used for wood-work. It is thus possible that this axe was not meant for use as a wood-working tool but a tool for display, ritual or ritual deposition only. It is the first find of one of these silvery-looking axes (that is a copper-alloy with a tin content of c. 20%) in the North West. Similar (albeit much smaller and lighter) socketed axes with a silvery surface and a high tin-content were found in hoards from Dorset (Langton Matravers: 2007T640), Wiltshire (Hindon: 2012T46) and Norfolk (East Rudham: found pre-2002 amendment and returned to finder). With its rare high-tin socketed axe and its undeniably extremely close connection (both typologically and geographically) to the existing hoard from Skelmore Heads (Ulverston, Cumbria) this new hoard from the Ulverston area greatly adds to our knowledge of Cumbria's prehistory. Conclusion Thus, in light of these parallels and the hoard's strong connection to the already existing hoard from Skelmore Heads, Ulverston, the new Ulverston hoard qualifies as Treasure under the Amendment to the Treasure Act of 1996 (Category 2) which stipulates that any group of two or more metallic objects of any composition of any prehistoric date that come from the same find and found after 1 January 2003, qualify as Treasure under the Treasure Act. Dot Boughton MPhil MSt; FLO (Lancashire and Cumbria) Bibliography: British Museum Bronze Age Guide 1920. A guide to the Antiquities of the Bronze Age. London. Budgen, W. 1920. 'Bronze Celts found at Eastbourne'. Sussex Archaeological Collections 61, 143f. Burgess, C. 1971. 'Some decorated socketed axes in Canon Greenwell's Collection'. Yorkshire Archaeological Journal 42, 267-272. Coombs, D. et al. 2003. 'Tower Hill Axe Hoard'. In: Miles, D. et al. 2003. Uffington White Horse and its landscape. Oxford Archaeological Unit, 203-225. Collingwood, W.G. 1926. 'An Inventory of the Ancient Monuments of Westmorland and Lancashire North-of-the-Sands'. Trans. Cumberland and Westmorland Ant. and Arch. Soc. XXVI, 1-58. Cowper, H.S. 1905. 'Some Miscellaneous Finds'. Trans. Cumberland and Westmorland Ant. and Arch. Soc. V, 182-188. Crawford, O.G.S. and Wheeler, R.E.M. 1921. 'The Llyn Fawr and other Hoards of the Bronze Age'. Archaeologia 71, 133-140 Curwen, E. C. 1948 'A Bronze Cauldron from Sompting, Sussex'. Antiquaries Journal 28, 157-163. Curwen, E.C. 1954. The Archaeology of Sussex. London (2nd revised edition). Evans, J. 1881. The Ancient Bronze Implements and Ornaments of Great Britain and Ireland. London. Fox, C. 1939b. 'A Second Cauldron and an Iron Sword from the Llyn Fawr Hoard, Rhigos, Glamorganshire'. Ant. Journal XIX, 369ff. Fox, C. and Hyde, H.A. 1939. 'A Second Cauldron and an Iron Sword from the Llyn Fawr Hoard, Rhigos, Glamorganshire'. Ant. Journal XIX, 369-404. Grinsell, L. V. 1931. 'Sussex in the Bronze Age', Sussex Archaeological Collections LXXI, 30-69. Huth, C. 1997. Westeuropäische Horte der Spätbronzezeit. Regensburg. O'Connor, B. 2007b. 'Two Late Bronze Age socketed axes from Tillicoultry, Clackmannanshire, and similar lost axes from northern Britain'. Tayside and Fife Archaeological Journal 13, Savory, H.N. 1976. Guide Catalogue of the Early Iron Age Collection (National Museum of Wales). Cardiff. Savory, H.N. 1980. Guide Catalogue of the Bronze Age Collection (National Museum of Wales). Cardiff. Schmidt, P.K. and Burgess, C. 1981. The axes of Scotland and Northern England. München. Stead, I.M. 2006. British Iron Age Swords and Scabbards. London: British Museum. Trustees of the British Museum 1953. Later Prehistoric Antiquities of the British Isles. London. |
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Depicted place | (County of findspot) Cumbria | ||
Date | between 800 and 600 | ||
Accession number |
FindID: 512333 Old ref: LANCUM-335E04 Filename: DSCN8411.JPG |
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Credit line |
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Source |
https://finds.org.uk/database/ajax/download/id/472222 Catalog: https://finds.org.uk/database/images/image/id/472222/recordtype/artefacts archive copy at the Wayback Machine Artefact: https://finds.org.uk/database/artefacts/record/id/512333 |
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Permission (Reusing this file) |
Attribution-ShareAlike License | ||
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Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
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current | 09:59, 28 January 2017 | 2,592 × 1,944 (2.36 MB) | Fæ (talk | contribs) | Portable Antiquities Scheme, create missing image based on cross-ref check. FindID 512333, ImageID 472221. |
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Camera manufacturer | NIKON |
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Camera model | E5400 |
Exposure time | 10/601 sec (0.016638935108153) |
F-number | f/2.8 |
ISO speed rating | 50 |
Date and time of data generation | 14:40, 3 August 2012 |
Lens focal length | 5.8 mm |
Orientation | Normal |
Horizontal resolution | 300 dpi |
Vertical resolution | 300 dpi |
Software used | E5400v1.3 |
File change date and time | 14:40, 3 August 2012 |
Y and C positioning | Co-sited |
Exposure Program | Normal program |
Exif version | 2.2 |
Date and time of digitizing | 14:40, 3 August 2012 |
Meaning of each component |
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APEX exposure bias | 0 |
Maximum land aperture | 3 APEX (f/2.83) |
Metering mode | Pattern |
Light source | Unknown |
Flash | Flash fired, auto mode, red-eye reduction mode |
Supported Flashpix version | 1 |
Color space | sRGB |
File source | Digital still camera |
Scene type | A directly photographed image |
Custom image processing | Normal process |
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Digital zoom ratio | 0 |
Focal length in 35 mm film | 28 mm |
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