Sword (piece)

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This piece of a bronze sword was found at Ardintoul on Loch Alsh in Ross and Cromarty. It is part of a prestigious possession, used sometime between 950 and 750 BC.

Two pieces of the leaf-shaped blade survive. The hilt and point are broken off.

Prestigious weapons such as swords are sometimes found broken or placed in special places such as water where they were unlikely to have been placed for safekeeping. Such deposits may be offerings to the gods, ritually destroyed as part of a ceremony we can only guess at.

Record details

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• Online ID: 000-100-034-419-C
• Image Rights Holder: National Museums Scotland
• Project: National Museums Scotland
  Project description   View all records in project
• Ref: National Museums Scotland  X.DL 60
• Date: Between 950 and 750 BC
  
• Material: Bronze; leaf-shaped; broken off below the hilt; point missing
  Sword blade / portion
  
• Dimensions: 11.00" L
  
• What: Sword blade / portion
  
• Subject:
• Who:
• Where: Scotland, Ross and Cromarty, Loch Alsh
  
• Event:
• Description: Two pieces of blade of a bronze leaf-shaped sword, from Loch Alsh, Ross and Cromarty
  
• References:
  • Coles, John M. Scottish late Bronze Age metalwork: typology, distributions and chronology. Proceedings of the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland, 93 (1959-1960), pp 16-134, esp. 85. 
• Translations:
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