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Beschreibung
The destruction and deposition of metalwork is a widely recognized phenomenon across Bronze Age Europe. Weapons were decommissioned and thrown into rivers; axes were fragmented and piled in hoards; and ornaments were crushed, contorted and placed in certain landscapes. Interpretation of this material is often considered in terms of whether such acts should be considered ritual offerings, or functional acts for storing, scrapping and recycling the metal. This book approaches this debate from a fresh perspective, by focusing on how the metalwork was destroyed and deposited as a means to understand the reasons behind the process.

To achieve this, this study draws on experimental archaeology, as well as developing a framework for assessing what can be considered deliberate destruction. Understanding these processes not only helps us to recognize how destruction happened, but also gives us insights into the individuals involved in these practices. Through an examination of metalwork from south-west Britain, it is possible to observe the complexities involved at a localized level in the acts of destruction and deposition, as well as how they were linked to people and places. This case study is used to consider the social role of destruction and deposition more broadly in the Bronze Age, highlighting how it transformed over time and space.
The destruction and deposition of metalwork is a widely recognized phenomenon across Bronze Age Europe. Weapons were decommissioned and thrown into rivers; axes were fragmented and piled in hoards; and ornaments were crushed, contorted and placed in certain landscapes. Interpretation of this material is often considered in terms of whether such acts should be considered ritual offerings, or functional acts for storing, scrapping and recycling the metal. This book approaches this debate from a fresh perspective, by focusing on how the metalwork was destroyed and deposited as a means to understand the reasons behind the process.

To achieve this, this study draws on experimental archaeology, as well as developing a framework for assessing what can be considered deliberate destruction. Understanding these processes not only helps us to recognize how destruction happened, but also gives us insights into the individuals involved in these practices. Through an examination of metalwork from south-west Britain, it is possible to observe the complexities involved at a localized level in the acts of destruction and deposition, as well as how they were linked to people and places. This case study is used to consider the social role of destruction and deposition more broadly in the Bronze Age, highlighting how it transformed over time and space.
Über den Autor
Matthew G. Knight is the curator of the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age collections at National Museums Scotland and Chair of the Later Prehistoric Finds Group. He specialises in the production, use and deposition of Bronze Age metalwork and completed his PhD on the deliberate destruction of metalwork in south-west England in 2018. He continues to be fascinated by destructive practices across Europe and is currently preparing a monograph on the subject. Matt's MA thesis concerned out-of-time Bronze Age metalwork and he is frequently distracted by the relationship people in the past held with their own pasts and their treatment of already old material culture in the Bronze Age, or indeed any other time period.
Details
Erscheinungsjahr: 2022
Fachbereich: Allgemeines
Genre: Geschichte, Importe
Rubrik: Geisteswissenschaften
Thema: Lexika
Medium: Buch
Inhalt: Gebunden
ISBN-13: 9781789256970
ISBN-10: 1789256976
Sprache: Englisch
Einband: Gebunden
Autor: Knight, Matthew G
Hersteller: Oxbow Books Limited
Verantwortliche Person für die EU: Libri GmbH, Europaallee 1, D-36244 Bad Hersfeld, gpsr@libri.de
Maße: 282 x 219 x 18 mm
Von/Mit: Matthew G Knight
Erscheinungsdatum: 03.02.2022
Gewicht: 0,964 kg
Artikel-ID: 119739198