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Post by Admin on Apr 29, 2020 19:51:23 GMT
Interestingly, if one breaks down mark patterns by sword chronology, one can see distinctive developments in their occurrence and concentration over time. To visualise where the main patterns are located along the cutting edges and how patterning changed over time, the dataset must first be normalised. To compare swords of different lengths, the formula y = (d/D) × 100 (d = distance of mark from the tip, D = total length of sword) is used to express each mark’s distance from the blade tip as a percentage of the entire length of each sword. The decision to calculate the distance as a percentage of the sword length, rather than of the blade, was due to the difficulty of establishing the exact limits of each sword blade. Unlike medieval swords, in which the length of the blade can be expressed as the distance from tip to crossguard, Bronze Age swords have no crossguards marking the end of the blade. Other indicators such as the length of the bevel lines from tip to ricassi (i.e. the unsharpened portions of the blade just above the shoulders) are not uniformly present in the sword sample either. In fact, many Bronze Age swords lack bevel lines, ricassi or shoulders altogether, while in others, the bevels are of different lengths, the ricassi are askew, and the midrib starts from the hilt. The whole length of the sword was therefore thought to be the only reliable variable to consider for cross-comparison. Deviations due to fractured tips or grip tongues are negligible as broken or incomplete swords were excluded from the sample (see ‘Metalwork Wear Analysis’). The swords were analysed in chronological order: for Britain, by metalworking stage (i.e. Penard, Wilburton, Ewart Park and Llyn Fawr; Needham 1996, 122; Needham et al.2015, 82; Roberts et al.2013, 19), and, for Italy, by chronological phase (i.e. Middle, Recent and Final Bronze Age, followed by Early Iron Age; Nicolis 2013, 694; Fig. 24). For each mark type, the outliers were removed and the interquartile range (IQR) was calculated to illustrate the spread of marks along the cutting edges (Fig. 25). Fig. 24 Fig. 25 In Britain, a clear trend towards mark concentration can be observed from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age, until it suddenly reverses with the emergence of the Iron Age, in the Llyn Fawr Phase. During the Penard Phase, mark patterns are predominantly evenly spread along about 70% of the sword length. This changes in the Wilburton Phase, in which marks are overall grouped within 50% of the sword. In this phase, notches and bulges are clustered within only 26% of the sword length, normally just above the leaf-swelling of the blade. The trend continues in the Ewart Park Phase, in which marks are clustered within approximately 45% of the blade, but reverses in the Llyn Fawr Phase, when marks are once again spread along the entire length of the cutting edge. Similar trends are observed on Italian swords. During the Middle Bronze Age, mark patterns are located roughly within 50% of the blade, while in the Recent Bronze Age, they are tightly clustered within only 35% of the sword length. No trends can be observed for the Final Bronze Age or Early Iron Age as the dataset solely includes one specimen each for these phases. Notably, bulges are absent from the Middle Bronze Age Italian record but become common in the Recent Bronze Age. The significance of this finding (and of the other data presented above) is discussed in the next section.
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Post by Admin on Apr 30, 2020 6:08:14 GMT
Discussion This section considers the social realities of Bronze Age sword fighting as inferred from the experiments and analytical data discussed above. It explores in-depth several problems in Bronze Age swordsmanship including how to hold a sword and to fight with it, target areas, and the evolution of fencing styles from the Middle to the Late Bronze Age. Holding a Bronze Age Sword: Grip, Handedness, and Edge Dominance Before discussing how Bronze Age swords could have been used, we should consider how they were held. The shapes, weights, points of balance, and geometries of these weapons, especially their short hilts, lack of crossguards, and frequent ricassi, enable fighters to grip them in different ways (see Molloy 2007, 2010 for discussion). Three ways of holding swords were experimented with during our controlled and actualistic tests: ‘hammer grip’, in which the four fingers of the hand form a fist around the weapon and the blade is held perpendicular to the forearm (Molloy 2010, footnote 121); ‘sabre grip’, in which the fist is stretched to an angle so that the blade is aligned with the forearm (Molloy 2010, footnote 122); and ‘thumb grip’, in which the sword is twisted by 90° so that the cutting edges lie sideways and the thumb is pressed on the flat of the blade (Gener 2018, 167; Fig. 26). Fig. 26 Hammer grips are suitable for most Bronze Age swords. Kristiansen (2002: 321) suggests that the short hilts and pommels typically found on these weapons help ‘lock’ the fighter’s hand into place, providing excellent control of the weapon. Our experiments support his suggestion. Hammer grips allow rapid changes of direction and trajectories of attack, as well as percussive strikes using a combination of force and finesse (Molloy 2010: 419). Sabre grips, on the other hand, enable users to align the cutting edge to the natural trajectory of the strike, as well as curl their index finger around the shoulder—an opportunity that was not lost to early fencers considering the frequency of ricassi on Bronze Age swords. Holding the sword in such a way limits the user’s ability to make percussive strikes but allows fine control of the weapon in cutting attacks (Molloy 2010: 418). Finally, thumb grips permit excellent command over the weapon, including the ability to make quick changes of direction and execute thrusts as well as backhand strikes (i.e. strikes executed with the back cutting edge). Our experiments suggest that there is no ‘correct’ way of holding a sword, although certain swords may favour certain grips over others due to their length, balance, and other features (e.g. ricassi). In most cases, however, all grips can be used interchangeably during a sword fight to deliver different kinds of attack, depending on the fencer’s preferred combat style and other circumstances. Bronze Age swords can afford further grips including inverted grips (enabling downward thrusts) and pommel grips (for increased reach; see Clements 1998: 77–81, for discussion; Fig. 27). These, however, were not experimented with during the project. Fig. 27 To some extent, how a sword is held and used depends on the bearer’s handedness. The functional implications of handedness, including its influence on wear formation in prehistoric tools, have long been explored in archaeology and human evolution studies (Spenneman 1987; Steele and Uomini 2005; Uomini 2009). Generally, these studies have shown that most tool users would conform to the natural 85/15 approximate ratio of right-handed vs left-handed individuals found in human populations (Steele and Uomini 2005: 217). Unless it was discouraged by cultural norms or weapon training deterring left-handedness (Gentile et al.2018), we would expect early sword bearers to conform to this ratio, as they would hold the weapon with their hand of choice. In our actualistic tests, both HEMA fighters held the sword with their right hands and had the same cutting edge always pointing forwards. They both remarked that it ‘felt natural’ to maintain edge dominance over time, even when the weapon is perfectly symmetrical. This being the case, a greater number of marks formed on the forward edge than on the back edge of the replica weapons, with those on the back edge mostly ascribed to backhand strikes. This is consistent with the wear analysis of archaeological swords, which has demonstrated unambiguous edge dominance on 31 out of 110 specimens in the sample. It is presently unclear why two/thirds of the weapons do not show clear edge dominance. Reasons may range from multiple ownership of the sword to ‘edge flipping’ as wear built up on the forward cutting edge, making it increasingly blunted and ineffective.
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Post by Admin on Apr 30, 2020 20:24:19 GMT
Prehistoric Sword Fighting: Attacks, Defences, and Blade-on-Blade Contact In popular culture, it is an enduring trope that sword fighting can be divided into attacking strikes and defending blocks, which would be exchanged with flamboyant swinging blows from some distance. This view, however, is far removed from the reality of historic sword fencing, which is often predicated upon simultaneous, interchangeable attacking, and defensive stances. This can be appreciated in most traditional and contemporary martial arts, such as Wing Chun (Cheng 1986) and Krav Maga (Ben Keren 2014). It was also remarked upon in medieval and post-medieval European fencing manuals (e.g. Liechtenauer’s MS Chart.A.558 from 1443). In the latter, certain common engagements are referred to as a Meisterhau (master strike), which is meant to attack and defend simultaneously (wiktenauer.com). Instead of offensive and defensive stances exchanged by the fighters in turn, the historic sources agree in suggesting that swordplay consists of offensive actions that simultaneously defend and prime the weapon for the next attack. This notion bears significant implications for the interpretation of our experimental and archaeological wear marks. None of the marks created during the AWTs, which better reflect actual swordplay, can exclusively be classed as offensive or defensive. This includes notches, bulges, grazes, flattenings, and striations (Table 5). Although this is partly a function of the historic fencing style adopted for the experiment, it is notable that other experiential sword tests have generated similar results using different protocols and weapon types (e.g. Gentile and van Gijn 2019). To some extent, this is also true of our controlled tests. Although we clearly separated out attacking and defending weapons in the CWTs, certain wear marks (though not all: see Table 5) were created on both swords. This provides an important behavioural interpretation for the archaeological wear marks, suggesting that notions of mutually exclusive attacking and defending actions, as well as the view that certain sections of the blade would primarily be used for either (e.g. Kristiansen 2002: 323), should be rejected. Interestingly, while popular-culture ideas of swordplay are predicated upon clearly defined weapon exchanges, students of prehistoric fencing have suggested that fighters would avoid blade contact as much as possible to limit damage to their weapons (Molloy 2017: 288). This is due to the higher ductility and (generally) lower hardness values of tin bronze compared to steel, which would cause higher rates of damage on prehistoric swords vis-à-vis historic bladed weapons (Wang et al.2016). While our experiments have demonstrated that violent clashes would likely disable bronze swords (see ‘Diagnostic Combat Marks’), they have also shown that bulges, which are found regularly on archaeological swords, are caused by low-velocity blade-on-blade impacts. As discussed above, bulges provide prima facie evidence of binding and twisting motions; they are created when a sword is intentionally connected with the opponent’s blade to stifle and control it. Marks other than bulges were also created by deliberate low-velocity impacts with the opponent’s weapons (Table 5). Overall, the evidence indicates that Bronze Age fighters would have accepted a small amount of wear to their blades in order to bind the opponent’s. Hence, most marks found on prehistoric swords should not be interpreted as accidental (Horn 2013: 40), but rather as the result of distinctive fighting styles favouring close-quarter engagement and involving deliberate blade contact. This is underscored by the HEMA swordfighters’ observation that, due to their material properties, bronze swords tend to ‘stick together’ as they meet, making blade-controlling moves easy to practise (see ‘Bulge’). Furthermore, the geometry, balance, and relative shortness of most Bronze Age swords indicate that these weapons had been designed for close-range engagements. Taken together, the archaeological, analytical, and experimental data contribute a strong case for prehistoric swordsmanship being a contact martial discipline involving a certain amount of wilful, skilfully controlled blade contact. This is not something that one could improvise. As was the case in later times, mastering sword-twisting and binding techniques would require initial guidance and regular follow-up practice—in other words, structured weapon training. Bent Swords, Straight Swords, and Target Areas The damage pattern discussed in ‘Diagnostic Combat Marks’ suggests that Bronze Age swords were not suited for hard blocks executed with the flat of the blade. This view is supported by the wear analysis of archaeological swords, revealing that only four specimens (out of 110) had sustained comparable blade damage. This ties in with the broader archaeological record (Horn 2013; Mödlinger 2011a, b; Molloy 2007, 2010, 2011, 2017, 2018; see also Burgess and Colquhoun 1988). The bending of swords has been discussed by Kristiansen (2002). He argues that prehistoric swords were often deliberately bent by fencers so that the blade tip would point towards the opponent’s heart. He grounds his proposal in an analogy with modern fencers who, he claims, would bend the tips of their swords in a similar fashion (Kristiansen 2002: 320). This reading presents several problems. Firstly, bending the blade to point at the opponent’s heart implies that early swords were primarily used as thrusting weapons—an argument disproved by a wealth of research on prehistoric swordsmanship, as well as our experiments (Anderson 2011; Knight 2019; Molloy 2007, 2008; Gentile and van Gijn 2019). Furthermore, experience shows that thrusting with a bent sword is dangerous and ineffective, as it inhibits fine control of the weapon and makes it hard to predict where the point would hit the target. Conversations with HEMA specialists support the view that double-edged swords lose functionality if the point is bent. Although he does not say, we presume that Kristiansen’s proposal is based on a conversation with a foil fencer. Modern foil blades consist of thin, wire-like steel bands which significantly bend under pressure and are exclusively used for thrusting (British Fencing 2017: 10). These blades are deliberately bent downwards to prevent the tip from sliding under the opponent’s mask. The slight bend also assists in reaching around the opponent’s arms to hit the target, which, in this fencing discipline, is limited to the upper body (Fig. 28). Contemporary foil fencing, however, provides a poor analogy for prehistoric swordsmanship as bronze swords feature radically different designs, balances, and material properties to foils. Fig. 28 A further problem with the foil fencing analogy is the implication that prehistoric sword fighters would mainly have targeted the chest. This is partially contradicted by the osteological evidence, showing that the skull and pelvis were hit more often than the chest (see Hermann 2018, 30–34; Mödlinger 2011b, 88–92, for review). Although certainly biased, as it does not account for soft-tissue injuries, the evidence is in line with what we know about sword combat cross-culturally. It is often remarked that targeting the chest in a thrusting attack carries the risk of trapping the weapon in the ribcage or sternum (Molloy 2007: 101). This area, moreover, is frequently protected by armour. Instead, sword fighters would target primarily soft body parts that (a) provide an easy entry towards major blood vessels and/or life-supporting organs and (b) are most difficult to protect with armour. These are the neck and abdomen/pelvis. Notwithstanding the instances of broken sword (and spear) points lodged in bone (Bennike 1985: 109–10; Bóna 1975: 150; Knight et al.1972), it seems likely that Bronze Age fighters would have predominantly aimed their thrusting attacks at the neck and abdomen/pelvis, plunging their weapons into the flesh at an angle in order to cause major blood loss and severe incapacitation, while minimising the risk of the sword getting stuck in a bone. Depictions of sword fights on Minoan and Mycenaean gem stones, such as the Pylos Combat Agate (Stocker and Davis 2017; see also Molloy 2010: 409–12), illustrate this point with graphic intensity (Fig. 29). Although these are idealised images reflecting the heroic symbolism of a lightly armed, near-defenceless fighter defeating a heavily armoured foe, they are likely grounded in the grisly realities of Bronze Age interpersonal violence. Fig. 29 Other combat stances would have aimed at different body parts. Molloy (2007, 2008, 2017) points out that nearly all Bronze Age swords are suitable for both stabbing and cutting attacks. However, the novel features introduced towards the end of the period, namely the full hilt and leaf-swelling of the blade, as well as the bias towards longer and heavier swords with more forward-shifted points of balance, would have made cutting strikes more effective and, therefore, more likely to be attempted. Based on comprehensive combat experiments, Molloy argues that deep cutting could be achieved by drawing the blade along the target in a smooth and controlled manner, rather than swinging it in a percussive axe-like strike. Such draw-cuts would have sliced through muscles and tendons, causing blood-letting and limb incapacitation. Osteological evidence of blade cuts to the arms and legs suggests that, indeed, Bronze Age fighters would have targeted the limbs in their slashing attacks, occasionally causing the opponent’s death through bleeding or intervening sepsis (Canci et al.2005; Mödlinger 2011b: 88–89). Even when they were not lethal, deep cuts to the limbs would have impacted significantly on the dynamics of a melee fight, as one cannot fight with a disabled arm or leg, and their screams would conceivably have had a demoralising effect on their comrades. The head was also targeted by cutting and slashing strikes. This is demonstrated by several skull injuries in the osteological record and is further underscored by experimental research showing that even relatively light and short bronze swords are capable of inflicting wide incisions to synthetic analogues of human skulls (Canci et al.2005; Downing and Fibiger 2017; Mödlinger 2011b, 89–92). Overall, injury patterns and experimental evidence show that, if held by proficient fighters, prehistoric swords were extremely effective weapons for close-range combat, and could be used for thrusting as well as cutting and slashing stances (Clements 2007; Molloy 2007). This contradicts earlier arguments that these objects would be too small and flimsy to be useful on the field of battle or that they would be primarily suited to either cutting or thrusting depending on weapon design and hilting technology (Burgess and Gerloff 1981; O’Connor et al.1995; Osgood 1998: 13).
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Post by Admin on May 1, 2020 19:06:37 GMT
The Evolution of Bronze Age Swordsmanship: Spatial and Temporal Trends As argued in ‘Patterning and Clustering of Wear Marks’, the patterning and clustering of sword combat marks over time and geography can be used to illuminate the development of fighting styles in the European Bronze Age. Arguably, mark patterns and clusters contain higher quality information about prehistoric fighting styles than individual marks. This is because they are generated by repetitive, normative actions grounded in prolonged engagement with the weapon, muscle memory, and the mental and physiological changes caused by martial training and practice (Malafouris 2008; Melheim and Horn 2014; Molloy 2008; Warnier 2011). Fighting styles, we posit, emerge from the historically contingent nexus of cultural, physical, and neurological transformations brought about by sustained weapon engagement. While this is broadly true of all weapons (and all societies), certain weapons are more conducive than others to generating contingent fighting styles, as they may require lengthy training or advanced skilled practice to be operated effectively. This, we maintain, was the case with Bronze Age swords, as their proficient handling was predicated upon fine motor skills and long-term familiarity with the weapon (Molloy 2017).
The data presented in ‘Patterning and Clustering of Wear Marks’ indicate that British swords of the Penard Phase lack distinctive mark patterning and clustering. We interpret this as the result of a yet immature martial tradition. Although Penard Phase swords would have been used skilfully to preserve the cutting edge and point, avoid undue blade damage, and strike at the opponent before being struck by them, swordsmanship at this time would not have involved repetitive moves internalised through combat routines. This seemingly changed in the Wilburton and Ewart Park Phases, when noticeable shifts in mark location, and their denser clustering, speak for the emergence of a fencing style featuring combat actions that were routinely executed, in broadly similar ways, by multiple sword fighters. In particular, the bulges frequently observed on swords from these phases suggest that the new combat style centred on the desire to control the opponent’s weapon through binding techniques akin to those carried out in the late Middle Ages. Intriguingly, a similar shift towards more frequent slashing attacks and finer blade control was observed on a sample of 304 Danish swords from periods II (c. 1500–1300 BC) and III (c. 1300–1100 BC) of the Nordic Bronze Age (Kristiansen 1984: 189–95; absolute chronology after Olsen et al.2011: 267–8). This independently validates the results discussed here.
The picture changed yet again in the Llyn Fawr Phase, marking the transition to the Iron Age. The recurring mark patterns and clusters created by the previous martial practices disappeared. These were replaced by combat marks that are evenly spread along swords blades, in a manner that is not too dissimilar to Middle Bronze Age swords. It is not clear what might have caused this apparent loss of established fighting routines. The change could perhaps be ascribed to the introduction of iron swords, which would have upended time-honoured combat practices. Another factor to consider is the growing importance of equestrian warfare in the early 1st millennium BC (Anthony and Brown 2011; Drews 2004; Howard 2011), which would have led to new developments in weaponry (e.g. longer swords) and fighting techniques. These are questions for future experimentation and research.
Interestingly, Italian swords present us with similar trends and developments. As with their British counterparts, Italian swords display a noticeable increase in mark clustering in the Recent Bronze Age. This may be due to the introduction of sophisticated fighting practices relying on sustained weapon training and the repetition of internalised gestures. On most swords, the marks are grouped around the leaf-swelling of the blade (i.e. about one-third from the blade tip), which, in itself, is a distinctive morphological development dating to this time. We maintain that this is not a chance occurrence, for advancements in sword design and fighting practices are intimately connected. Molloy (2007, 2017) argues that the leaf-shaped curvature of Late Bronze Age swords (and their growing weight, which shifted the point of balance further towards the tip) enabled blades to cut deeper into the flesh as they were drawn along exposed body parts. While draw-cuts would have been practised with earlier swords, too, the new blade geometry and balance made such strikes more effective and, therefore, more desirable and common. This ties in neatly with the wear data gathered in our research: as many attempted draw-cuts would hit amour, or be deflected before they could bite into soft tissue, marks would be left on the blade swelling in ever-growing numbers.
Another feature of Italian Recent Bronze Age swords is the appearance of bulges. As discussed above, this mark type can be ascribed to a fencing technique that seeks to bind the opponent’s blade not only to prevent injury but also to control it in such a way that their attack could be countered with a quick twist of the blade. The trend is clearer in Italian swords (as no bulges are recorded in the Middle Bronze Age record) than in British swords, where bulges are found on weapons from all periods including the Middle Bronze Age Penard Phase. The difference, however, is entirely due to the vagaries of archaeological terminology in the two regions, as the Italian Middle Bronze Age, c. 1650–1300 BC, precedes the British Penard Phase; this, in turn, is roughly contemporary to the Italian Recent Bronze Age (Fig. 23). Based on this consideration, we propose that fencing styles would have grown in sophistication and complexity in similar ways, and in a broadly contemporary fashion, in most of Europe. By about 1350/1300 BC, they would have featured blade twisting and binding moves aiming to control the opponent’s weapon. In regions where fully fledged swords made their appearance around this time, such as Britain and Ireland, the new weapon would have been used from the outset with the mature martial techniques that presumably accompanied its introduction.
It is unfortunately impossible to chart the development of fighting styles in Final Bronze Age and Early Iron Age Italy (roughly contemporary to the British Wilburton, Ewart Park, and Llyn Fawr phases; Fig. 23) due to the small number of swords examined in this study. Future research will doubtless clarify if the introduction of iron weapons and equestrian warfare brought about similar changes in this region as in Britain. We presume, however, that this should be the case, considering that British and Italian swords display similar wear marks and similar trends in trace patterning and clustering over time. The one notable exception is the tendency of Italian combat marks to be smaller than those on British swords. It is presently unclear why this should be so. Differences in alloy composition and work hardening might be a factor (Gutiérrez-Sáez and Martin-Lerma 2015), as well as—but this seems less likely—differences in the amount of force applied by the combatants while fencing. This, too, is a problem for future research.
Conclusion The article has discussed results of the experimental sword testing and wear analysis conducted by the authors from 2013 to 2018, as part of the Bronze Age Combat Project. The research has yielded original results that significantly contribute to our understanding of sanctioned violence and warfare in Middle and Late Bronze Age Europe, c. 1650–600 BC.
A first set of results concerns the approaches and methods utilised by these authors to researching prehistoric swordsmanship. Following the principles of experimental archaeology, we designed a wide array of controllable imitative experiments to generate and test hypotheses regarding the uses of swords and shields in Bronze Age combat practices (Mathieu 2002: 1). Unlike previous research on the subject, however, we grounded our experimentation in two sets of tests, which were guided by differing underlying principles and methods: controlled weapon tests (CWTs), in which we separated fluid combat actions into their most elemental components (e.g. a single strike or parry), and actualistic weapon tests (AWTs), in which HEMA fighters tested the capabilities of the weapons in experiential combat sequences grounded in historic specialist knowledge. Such a hybrid approach allowed us to break down the somewhat artificial barrier separating functional and phenomenological weapon studies (Dolfini and Collins 2018), enhanced the strengths of both types of experiment while minimising their weaknesses, and provided a reflexively generated dataset to interpret the combat marks visible on archaeological Bronze Age swords from Britain and Italy. Importantly, the replica weapons used in our experiments were built by skilled craftspeople, and their material properties and performance characteristics were assessed by scientific analysis. This has ensured consistency in the interpretation of experimental and archaeological wear marks. Overall, this interdisciplinary research strategy has allowed new knowledge to arise at the nexus between controlled experimentation, experiential weapon testing, and the validation of experimental results by metalwork wear analysis.
A second set of results concerns the new knowledge and understanding of prehistoric swordsmanship generated by the project. Firstly, the research has identified several types of diagnostic and undiagnostic combat marks on prehistoric bronze swords and has interpreted them in light of the experimental tests. This has fulfilled, if perhaps partly, one of the project’s main objectives, which was to link distinctive combat marks with specific uses of the weapons. Secondly, it has elucidated how Bronze Age swords may have been held and operated, and the degree of skill and training required in their proficient handling. Thirdly, it has overturned previous assumptions concerning the alternating attacking and defending stances that—it is often posited—would characterise prehistoric swordplay, while also disproving scholarly claims that early fencers would avoid blade-on-blade contact to preserve their weapons. On the contrary, the research has demonstrated that Bronze Age fighters would deliberately seek contact with their foes’ swords in order to stifle and control them. Not only is this a significant advance in its own right, but it also provides a convincing explanation for the plethora of wear marks found on archaeological swords, as well as much-needed analytical diagnostics for discriminating between combat and deliberate destruction marks (see also Knight 2019). Fourthly, the research has disproved suggestions that early sword fencers would intentionally bend the tips of their swords to hit their opponent’s heart and contributed new knowledge about the body parts most often targeted by sword thrusts and cuts. This ties in with previous experimental research and osteological analysis (Canci et al.2005; Downing and Fibiger 2017; Mödlinger 2011a, b; Molloy 2006, 2007, 2008). Finally, it has provided a compelling narrative regarding the evolution of fighting styles in late 2nd and early 1st millennia BC Europe, which integrates, and elevates, other authors’ insights (Molloy 2007, 2017).
Perhaps the most important result of the research is to have provided an innovative, methodologically sound blueprint for investigating early weapons and combat styles, which could be applied to other regions, periods, and weapon types in prehistoric Europe. The research has also highlighted two outstanding issues which future studies ought to address. Firstly, the extent to which the experimental and analytical results generated by different teams can be compared with one another. As the study of early weapons keeps growing in size and sophistication, this is emerging as a key issue hindering disciplinary progress. The strategy that these authors have adopted, which relies on a clearly defined wear mark terminology, explicit methods and protocols for testing replica weapons, and the complete publication of experimental and analytical results, offers a way out of the problem. A second issue concerns the relevance of early weapon and combat studies—a rather specialised research strand—for the broader field of European prehistory. Here, the answer comes from the many unexpected insights that the research has provided into burning issues in social archaeology including craftsmanship, apprenticeship, and skill (Kuijpers 2018a, 2018b). While their in-depth discussion lay outside the scope of this paper, the data and interpretations presented in these pages show clear potential for addressing these problems from a new angle. In this respect, too, the Bronze Age Combat Project has supplied a robust scaffold to which fresh research on prehistoric society could be anchored.
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Post by Admin on Sept 2, 2020 21:21:39 GMT
Bronze Age people had a tradition of retaining and curating human remains as relics, and they'd keep them for several generations, a new study has found. A team from the University of Bristol used radiocarbon dating and CT scans on Bronze Age discoveries found throughout the UK dating back 4,500 years. Among the discoveries were a range of items either carved from human bones or bones belonging to someone else buried much later - likely kept as relics. Dr Thomas Booth said in modern secular societies human remains are seen as 'particularly powerful objects' and it was the same during the Bronze Age. 'However, they treated and interacted with the dead in ways which are inconceivably macabre to us today,' explained Booth. 'After radiocarbon dating Bronze Age human remains alongside other materials, we found many of the partial remains had been buried a significant time after the person had died, suggesting a tradition of retaining and curating human remains.' 'People seem to have curated the remains of people who had lived within living or cultural memory,' he added. The 'relics' included tributes to people who likely played an important role in their life or their communities, or with whom they had a well-defined relationship. This wasn't just family that relics were kept for, according to Booth, who said it could have included a tradesperson, a friend or even an enemy. The idea was that they would have a relic - a literal piece of their remains - to remember them, tell stories about them, and pass on to future generations. In one example from Wiltshire, a human thigh bone had been crafted to make a musical instrument and included as grave goods close to Stonehenge. The carved and polished artefact was found with other items including stone and bronze axes, a bone plate, a tusk, and a ceremonial pronged object. Bruck added that they would also be buried under house floors and even placed on display - possibly for the most important relics. 'This suggests that Bronze Age people did not view human remains with the sense of horror or disgust that we might feel today.' Researchers also used microcomputed tomography (micro-CT) at the Natural History Museum to look at microscopic changes to the bone produced by bacteria, to get an indication of how the body was treated while it was decomposing. They found some had been cremated before being split up, some exhumed after burial, and some had been de-fleshed by being left to decompose on the ground. Dr Booth said: 'This study really highlights the strangeness and perhaps the unknowable nature of the distant past from a present-day perspective.
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