From Duddingston Loch, near Arthur's Seat, Edinburgh
000-100-034-447-C
© National Museums Scotland |
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Hoard of bronze metalwork
This hoard of bronze metalwork was dredged from Duddingston Loch near Arthur's Seat in Edinburgh, along with human and animal bones. It was a sacrifice to the gods, made between 950 and 750 BC.
The hoard consists of almost 50 bronze items, including a large ring for a cauldron, and fragments of spearheads, swords and dagger blades. All the spearheads and swords are broken or bent, and some have been burnt.
Several large metalwork hoards dating to the Bronze Age have been found in Scotland. They are sometimes interpreted as a metalworker's or salesman's savings, but their placement in lochs, where recovery would be difficult, suggests a religious motive.
Record details
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| Online ID: |
000-100-034-447-C |
| Image Rights Holder: |
National Museums Scotland |
| Project: |
0098: National Museums Scotland
Project description | View all records in project |
| Ref: |
National Museums Scotland X.DQ 305 |
| Date: |
Between 950 and 750 BC
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| Material: |
Bronze
Bronze
Bronze; broken off under hilt; bent back at point
Bronze; contorted
Bronze; contorted; bent; broken in two; three rivet holes and a slot in hilt plate
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| Dimensions: |
10.25" x 1.75"
14.25" L
24.13" x 1.75"
3.69" x 2.06"
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| What: |
Blade, sword
Ring, cauldron / spearhead / sword / blade, dagger / fragment
Spearhead point
Sword
Sword point
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| Subject: |
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| Who: |
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| Where: |
Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh, Duddingston Loch
Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh, Duddingston Loch
Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh, Duddingston Loch
Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh, Duddingston Loch
Scotland, Midlothian, Edinburgh, Duddingston Loch
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| Event: |
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| Description: |
Forty four bronze items consisting of the ring of a large cauldron and fragments of spearheads, swords and dagger blades, from Duddingston Loch
Point of a bronze spearhead from Duddingston Loch
Contorted bronze sword, broken in two, with three rivet holes and a slot in the hilt plate, from Duddingston Loch
Contorted point of a bronze sword, from Duddingston Loch
Blade of a bronze sword broken off under the hilt and bent back at the point, from Duddingston Loch
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| References: |
- Coles, John M. Scottish late Bronze Age metalwork: typology, distributions and chronology. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 93 (1959-1960), 16-134, esp. p 117.
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