Posted on 09/28/2018 7:06:27 AM PDT by BenLurkin
The bronze hand and its thin gold cuff, along with a bronze dagger and a human rib bone, were discovered by the metal detectorists near Lake Biel in the Bernese Jura, about 28 miles (45 km) northwest of Bern, Switzerland, according to a Canton de Bern press release. The items were handed over to specialists at the Ancient History and Roman Archeology Department in the Bern Archaeological Service one day after the discovery.
The hand of Prêles, as it’s now called, is slightly smaller than an adult hand and was cast from about a pound of bronze, according to National Geographic. Radiocarbon dating of the organic, vegetable-based glue used to adhere the gold band to the hand’s wrist places the artifact to between 1,400 and 1,500 BC, back during Europe’s Middle Bronze Age. The archaeologists studying the hand, a team led by Andrea Schae, say it’s doubtful the hand was worn; a socket inside the hand suggests it was mounted on a staff of some kind.
...researchers managed to uncover more items at the site, including the bones of a middle-aged male, a long bronze pin, a bronze spiral likely worn as a hair ornament, more bits of gold foil (likely from the hand), and one of the sculpture’s missing fingers. The archaeologists say the hand was likely buried with the man, of whom we know virtually nothing.
Beneath the grave, the researchers uncovered a stone-based structure. Apparently, “the man and the bronze hand were deliberately buried over this older construction,” write the researchers in the press release.
A formal research paper to describe the findings is forthcoming, but the researchers are still trying to figure out if the items were manufactured nearby or imported from afar. They’re also struggling to understand the purpose of the sculpted bronze hand.
(Excerpt) Read more at gizmodo.com ...
You and Helen Thomas were partying in Switzerland?................
It had a date on it: 1500BC...................
“Talk to the hand”...
“Dem bones,
Dem bones,
gonna rise again,
Gonna exercise the franchise again;
gonna tax us up to our eyes again;
and all because of
Dem bones.”
—li’l Abner
prosthetic device?
That is a lot of Bronze to waste on a hand, I would think blades would be more important during that time period.
It could always be melted down for weaponry if needed, but fortunately it was buried first. Most ancient bronzes did not survive the armorers.
ROFLMAO !!!!
Thanks BenLurkin.
What was left after Jason of the Argonauts got thru with the foe sent by Medea.
My thoughts when I read the title. :)
Oh, my goodness!
What a great story! LOL!
Bronze hand just doesn’t sound quite as cool as iron hand.
Somewhere there are two arms and hands, one with a beckoning finger and the other showing two fingers (2 denarii) from the Venus de Milo.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.
