Irish Archaeological Finds & Theories

[skinny]

Beaker people?
Neolithic or very early farming. Too early for Beaker culture. Wow.

 

[maximus otter]

Research finds mysterious structure in Cork Harbour is prehistoric tomb​

New research looks set to answer a long-standing question about the status of a mysterious tomb-like structure uncovered in Cork Harbour many years ago.

Archaeologists have been split as to whether it was prehistoric or a more recent 19th-century “folly”.

However, Connemara-based archaeologist Michael Gibbons now says there is conclusive evidence the Carraig á Mhaistin stone structure at Rostellan on the eastern shore of Cork Harbour is a megalithic dolmen.

Mr Gibbons has also discovered a previously unrecognised cairn close to the dolmen.

He says doubt about Carraig á Mhaistin’s age meant it was not included in the State’s survey of megalithic tombs of Ireland conducted by Professor Ruaidhrí de Valera and Seán Ó Nualláin over 40 years ago.

“At that time, it was suggested that it could have a folly or type of ornamental structure commissioned by local gentry at the nearby Rostellan Castle estate, and dating from the 19th century,” Mr Gibbons says.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster/arid-40986065.html

maximus otter

 

[ramonmercado]

Research finds mysterious structure in Cork Harbour is prehistoric tomb​

New research looks set to answer a long-standing question about the status of a mysterious tomb-like structure uncovered in Cork Harbour many years ago.

Archaeologists have been split as to whether it was prehistoric or a more recent 19th-century “folly”.

However, Connemara-based archaeologist Michael Gibbons now says there is conclusive evidence the Carraig á Mhaistin stone structure at Rostellan on the eastern shore of Cork Harbour is a megalithic dolmen.

Mr Gibbons has also discovered a previously unrecognised cairn close to the dolmen.

He says doubt about Carraig á Mhaistin’s age meant it was not included in the State’s survey of megalithic tombs of Ireland conducted by Professor Ruaidhrí de Valera and Seán Ó Nualláin over 40 years ago.

“At that time, it was suggested that it could have a folly or type of ornamental structure commissioned by local gentry at the nearby Rostellan Castle estate, and dating from the 19th century,” Mr Gibbons says.

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/munster/arid-40986065.html

maximus otter

A folly to think that it was a folly.

 

[staticgirl]

I wish my grandad was still here so I could tell him about this. He'd have been so interested. He loved reading about the history of his home city. That's a great find/identification.

 

[maximus otter]

Tree planting in North Sligo unearthed 6,000 year old tools​

Two Sligo archaeologists who were doing some gardening on a mountain side unearthed 6,000 year old stone tools.

Archaeologists Marion Dowd and James Bonsall were planting trees in a garden on Cope’s Mountain in north Sligo during one of the Covid lockdowns of 2021 when they began discovering prehistoric artefacts in the topsoil.

These items were in a disturbed context and had originated from an archaeological site presumably in the wider environs.

Overall, Marion and James recovered 22 stone (lithic) tools made from a rock type known as chert. They were sent for analysis to lithic specialist Cian Hogan.

Cian identified in the assemblage two Late Mesolithic forms, which date to 5500-4000 BC.

Several convex scrapers, flakes and retouched pieces were also recovered. These could date to any time from the Late Mesolithic through to the Neolithic and Bronze Age (5500-700 BC).

https://www.independent.ie/regional...o-unearthed-6000-year-old-tools-42195996.html

maximus otter

 

[ramonmercado]

I wonder if there were disagreements regarding the name for the settlement back then?

The discovery of a Neolithic era settlement is helping shed new light on how people lived on the shores of Lough Foyle some 5,000 years ago.

Archaeologists uncovered evidence of two large rectangular houses dating back to around 3,800BC during a 2021 dig at Clooney Road, Londonderry. Neolithic tools, pottery and cooking utensils have also been unearthed.

Experts say that dwellings like those found in Derry have rarely been excavated before. Archaeologist Katy McMonagle was the site director on the Clooney Road dig. The finds feature in the latest series of BBC Two's Digging for Britain.

Rectangular homes from the period are seldom found outside of Scotland and Ireland, Ms McMonagle said.

"Around Lough Foyle specifically there are quite a few - it has a high density of settlement dated to the early Neolithic - that shows around Lough Foyle there are lots and lots of Neolithic people living," she told BBC Radio Foyle's Mark Patterson Show.

Archaeologists seldom have an opportunity to excavate houses of the type found in Derry, she added.

"They were a short-lived phenomenon, that means it is even more exciting," she said. ...

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-64505669

 

[ramonmercado]

A Famine grave and far older finds. Vid at link.

Ground-breaking archaeological discoveries have been made during a dig at the site of a new school in County Down.

Formerly a workhouse, excavation of the land in Downpatrick initially uncovered an Irish famine graveyard.

But as archaeologists dug deeper, they discovered one of the largest prehistoric settlements ever discovered on the island of Ireland.

After years of delay, the site has now been excavated and work has begun on the construction of the new Down High School.

There are plans for a memorial at the school, while the famine-era bodies will be reburied in an adjoining piece of land.

Video journalist: Niall McCracken

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-northern-ireland-64577046

 

[staticgirl]

A Famine grave and far older finds. Vid at link.

Ground-breaking archaeological discoveries have been made during a dig at the site of a new school in County Down.

Formerly a workhouse, excavation of the land in Downpatrick initially uncovered an Irish famine graveyard.

But as archaeologists dug deeper, they discovered one of the largest prehistoric settlements ever discovered on the island of Ireland.

After years of delay, the site has now been excavated and work has begun on the construction of the new Down High School.

There are plans for a memorial at the school, while the famine-era bodies will be reburied in an adjoining piece of land.

Video journalist: Niall McCracken

https://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-northern-ireland-64577046

A busy site. I wonder if it attracted people to it. I'm glad the famine era folks are going to be reburied rather than kept in a warehouse somewhere.

 

[maximus otter]

A Vast Viking Massacre May Have Spilt Blood In This Irish Cave​

Dunmore Cave can be found in Ballyfoyle, just a short drive from the city of Kilkenny. The cavern features numerous chambers and burrows some 310 meters (1,030 feet) into the surrounding limestone geology.

The Annals of the Four Masters, which chronicles thousands of years of Irish history up until 1616 CE, explains that the Derc Ferna, which might be an earlier name for Dunmore Cave, was the site of a Viking massacre in 930 CE.

One of the earliest reports comes from bishop George Berkeley who visited the cave in the early 1700s as a boy and remembered hearing tales of bones stacked up in the cavern’s murky depths.

“Tis likewise reported that there are great heaps of dead men's bones to be seen piled up in the remote recesses of this cavern,” reads one of his accounts.

Archaeologists in 2007 managed to document at least 351 human bones in Dunmore Cave that belonged to over a dozen different people, including many women, children, and even infants.

Importantly, a study in 2004/2005 managed to radiocarbon date the bones. This ruled out the possibility of the bones belonging to 1798 rebels or victims of the Eleven Years War, and indicated that many of the remains date to around the 10th century CE, which neatly matches up with accounts of a Viking massacre in 930 CE.

Likewise, a number of Viking silver coins, dated to around 930 CE, have been discovered at the cave, as well as a collection of jewelry and beads.

One hypothesis of the Dunmore Cave bones is that the local people hid in the cave when news of Viking invaders came, hence why there are so many children and women found among the remains. The Vikings lit fires at the entrance of the cave, hoping to smoke out the fleeing townsfolk and capture them to sell on the slave market. This would also account for the discovery of charred remains and rock in the cavern. The cave eventually filled with smoke and oxygen was depleted, killing all of the desperate people who took shelter here.

https://www.iflscience.com/a-vast-viking-massacre-may-have-spilt-blood-in-this-irish-cave-68003

maximus otter

 

[Ronnie Jersey]

Happy St. Patrick's Day to All!!

 

[ramonmercado]

Archaeology: Lurgan volunteers dig in at churchyard site

(c) BBC. News NI. '21.

More Lurgan finds.

The team behind an archaeological dig near Lurgan, County Armagh, believe they have discovered a "higher status site".

They have uncovered evidence of metal and glass working including the production of gold and silver ingots. This is the second year of excavations at the site, known as Kilmocholmóg (Church of my little Colman).

Last year's week-long exploratory dig found evidence of a medieval settlement.

David Weir of Craigavon Historical Society said the three-week effort uncovered a greater insight into life at the location in the Kilmore Road area over thousands of years.

"It is looking very exciting," he said. "After last year's excavation we were thinking it was a farmstead - which would have been great. But the finds that are turning up suggest that it is a higher status site. There is evidence of metal working, glass working and evidence that gold and silver ingots were being made here."


Archaeologist Stuart Alexander said he believed activity on the site was extensive.

"Last year we only opened up a few very small trenches," he said. But we've expanded out on that a lot more and we've found a lot more artefacts and archaeological features."

Image caption, David Weir of Craigavon Historical Society said it is an exciting development

"We are finding some prehistoric activity and early medieval activity. So in pre-history, we're looking at the Mesolithic which is about 8000BC right up to the early Christian period of about 400AD. It's not unusual on sites to find that people come back over time to the same places and use the same spots. All archaeologists want to find gold and I am no different."

https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-northern-ireland-66122863

 

[ramonmercado]

Finds dating from the 11th to 17th centuries.

Burial sites dating back more than one thousand years have been discovered during excavations for a new hotel in Dublin city centre.

Around 100 skeletal remains from the Middle Ages were found in an area around Capel Street where an abbey, St Mary’s, once stood.

At least two of the remains are believed to date back to the early 11th century.

The abbey used by the Savigniac and Cistercian orders opened in the 12th century. Carbon dating of one of the graves discovered predates that by one hundred years, indicating the presence of a Christian settlement on the site prior to St Mary’s being built.

Edmond O’Donovan, director of excavations for Courtney Deery Heritage Consultancy, standing at the ancient burial site (Brian Lawless/PA)

The excavations have been commissioned by the Beannchor hospitality group, which is developing its new Bullitt Dublin hotel on a site that once housed the old Boland’s Bakery.

The archaeological investigations also unearthed the foundations of buildings dating back to the 1600s.

The finds were discovered close to a former Presbyterian Meeting House dating from 1667.

Parts of a domestic house known as the ‘Dutch Billies’ has also been found. It was constructed around 1700 by settlers who came to Dublin after King William of Orange ascended to the English throne following the Battle of the Boyne in 1690.

https://www.breakingnews.ie/ireland...-on-site-of-planned-dublin-hotel-1498998.html

 

[ramonmercado]

Neolithic, Bronze Age and Iron Age finds.

A team of archaeologists has discovered a 6,000-year-old Neolithic home and evidence of Bronze Age cremations while working along the route of a new motorway in Cork.

The team, which consists of around 50 archaeologists, carried out the dig along a 12.5 km stretch of the new M28 route corridor between the Bloomfield Interchange and Ringaskiddy.

The team has dug more than 50,000 linear meters of archaeological trenches at 38 different sites along the route, carrying out excavations on more than 102,000 square meters of ground.

Ken Hanley, who is leading the research for Cork County Council and Transport Infrastructure Ireland, told the Irish Examiner that the earliest find during the excavations was the remains of an early Neolithic home dating back 5,700 years.

The home, which was discovered at Ballyhemiken, was probably home to the first farmers to settle in the region, Hanley told the Examiner.

He added that the team only found one Neolithic house during the dig but said there may be more in the surrounding area.

"This is the ninth such house from that era discovered in Co Cork and all have been unearthed during roads projects. The people living in this house were herding livestock and growing crops," Hanley told the Irish Examiner.

Cremation sites dating back to the Bronze Age (2,200-800BCE) were also discovered along the new motorway, Hanley said.

https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/neolithic-house-discovered-motorway-cork

 

[ramonmercado]

Reindeer bone pushes beginning of human reign in Ireland back by 20,000 years.

A reindeer bone fragment dating back 33,000 years and bearing chop marks from a flint or stone tool has upended previous assumptions that humans first came to Ireland 12,500 years ago.

The reindeer bone fragment, which was featured in Katrina Costello's "The Burren: Heart of Stone" documentary on RTÉ in 2021, was found at Castlepook Cave, near Doneraile, in North Cork. The finding could dramatically alter our perception of Irish history. The bone was found more than 100 years ago during Naturalist Richard Ussher's excavation of Castlepook Cave between 1904 and 1912. The hind rear reindeer femur contains chop marks consistent with butchering with a flint or stone tool.

Dr. Ruth Carden, one of Ireland's leading consultant zooarchaeologists, undertook a personal research project in 2008 and began examining more than 60,000 bone fragments that were found in 11 limestone caves across Ireland in the 1800s and early 1900s. Speaking during the second episode of "The Burren: Heart of Stone," Dr. Carden explained that the bones were shipped to the National Museum of Ireland when they were excavated and stored on shelves more than 100 years ago.

They were sent for analysis and underwent radiocarbon dating, leading to a seismic discovery that could completely alter the perception of Irish history.

"This bone just changed Irish human history," Dr. Carden said. "We have humans coming into Ireland 33,000 years ago, which changes everything for Ireland and changes north Western Europe as a whole. We have butchered reindeer bones which have very deep marks, almost like a chopping mark, made by a broad flat tool, a flint tool or a stone tool," Dr. Carden said during the documentary.

She said that she didn't tell her colleagues about the results for two weeks because she was so shocked by the findings.

"This research is cutting edge and very exciting as it impacts on how we view humans and animals traversing the lands at that time, and their interactions with each other and past ecosystems." ...

https://www.irishcentral.com/roots/history/reindeer-bone-humans-ireland-33k-years

 

[Kondoru]

Its often the small stuff that teaches the most.

 

[Ascalon]

That tears the arse out of it!

However, does that mean that Ireland was inhabited during the last ice age?
Very intriguing prospect.

 

[Tempest63]

However, does that mean that Ireland was inhabited during the last ice age?

Last ice age?
If you go into the church in the Kilkenny village we call home, you’ll find they haven’t turned on the heating since St Patrick cast out the snakes.
It‘s no wonder the hostelries do a roaring trade after Sunday Mass; the flock are trying to thaw out.

 

[Frideswide]

Its often the small stuff that teaches the most.

agreed!

and context context context is vital!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[ramonmercado]

Folklorist finds lost tomb.

A "lost" 4,000-year-old tomb has been rediscovered on the Dingle Peninsula in Co Kerry.

The megalithic tomb known locally as Altóir na Gréine (the sun altar) was believed to have been completely destroyed in the 1840s, with its stones broken and carried away for use as building material.

While the existence of a tomb "near" Baile an Fheirtéaraigh is documented in 19th century antiquarian literature, a record of the monument's location did not exist.

An 1838 sketch of the tomb, its reputed association with the sun and its strange disappearance has been a source of intrigue for archaeologists for decades.

However, the 180-year-old mystery has now been solved by local man Billy Mag Fhloinn.

The folklorist has not only found the prehistoric site, but he has also discovered some of the large stones, which had been believed to have been removed, still in situ.

The only known visual representation of the intact monument was captured in a sketch by Lady Chatterton in 1838

A number of orthostats (large upright stones) have survived, as well as a large capstone, while more may lie under the dense undergrowth. ...

https://www.rte.ie/news/munster/2024/0118/1427170-lost-tomb-kerry/

 

[Frideswide]

A "lost" 4,000-year-old tomb has been rediscovered on the Dingle Peninsula in Co Kerry.

excellent work! That is very good news

 

[ramonmercado]

A rare find indeed, and that's the tooth.

Tooth decay bacteria found in 4,000-year-old molars​

PA
Researchers say the dental remains are a "remarkably rare find"

Scientists have found an "unprecedented quantity" of bacteria that cause tooth decay and gum disease in 4,000-year-old human teeth. The dental remains, believed to have belonged from a man from the Bronze Age, were unearthed from a limestone cave in County Limerick in the Republic of Ireland.

Researchers from Trinity College Dublin said the conditions of the cave at Killuragh - which is cool, dry, and alkaline - may have helped in the "exceptional preservation" of bacteria.

The "remarkably rare" find helps shed insight into how the human diet evolved across centuries, particularly in relation to sugar consumption.

PA
Researchers believe the conditions of a limestone cave in County Limerick may have helped preserve the remains

The dental samples contained DNA of streptococcus mutans - a type of bacteria responsible for cavities. The team also found other types of microbes associated with gum disease, including Tannerella forsythia.

Based on their analysis, the scientists were able to reconstruct the genomes of the ancient bacteria. They said it is "exceptionally rare" to find S. mutans in ancient tooth samples as this bacteria produces acids that cause tooth decay but also degrades DNA.

Lara Cassidy, an assistant professor at Trinity College Dublin, told PA news: "We were very surprised to see such a large abundance of mutans in this 4,000-year-old tooth.

"It is a remarkably rare find and suggests this man was at high risk of developing cavities right before his death."

However, the researchers believe that the "high abundance" of S. mutans DNA in the root of one tooth could also potentially indicate an imbalance or disruption in the microbial community in the mouth.

The team said that archaeologists have observed an uptick in dental cavities in skeletal remains when humans began to adopt cereal agriculture, but tooth decay become much more common in the Early Modern period, beginning about 1500 AD. ...

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cnk532g83xpo

 

[maximus otter]

Archaeologists uncover sunken prehistoric fort in Clew Bay island


A sunken prehistoric fort which may be as significant as Inis Mór’s Dún Aengus has been discovered on a Clew Bay island off the north Mayo coast.
Archaeologist Michael Gibbons said initial surveys suggest the island — Collanmore — is effectively a fort dating from the late Bronze Age.
The first clue appeared when several large ramparts were uncovered cutting across the tidal isthmus linking the island to the shoreline outside Westport.

Walls of the sunken fort are revealed in low tide in Clew Bay

The set of double ramparts are faced with large limestone blocks and extending for 200 to 300 metres, and are “most likely to be late Bronze Age in date, dating between 1100-900 BC.”

https://www.independent.ie/irish-ne...storic-fort-in-clew-bay-island/a18656517.html

maximus otter

 

[maximus otter]

Prehistoric Irish Monuments Revealed As ‘Pathways for the Dead’​

Archaeologists using advanced LiDAR technology have unearthed a significant discovery at Baltinglass in County Wicklow, Ireland, known as the "Hillfort Capital" of the region. This cutting-edge survey has revealed hundreds of previously unrecorded monuments, including five Middle Neolithic cursus monuments—long, narrow earthwork enclosures.

The study, just published in Antiquity and led by Dr. James O’Driscoll of the University of Aberdeen, utilized LiDAR to create highly detailed three-dimensional models of the landscape.

The cursus monuments discovered are not only architecturally significant but also hold profound cultural and spiritual implications. Positioned strategically within the landscape, these monuments align with burial sites and the cyclical movements of the Sun, marking major solar events like the solstices. Dr. O'Driscoll interprets this alignment as symbolic of the journey of the dead, ascending to the heavens and marking a physical path from the world of the living to the ancestral beyond.

https://www.ancient-origins.net/news-history-archaeology/prehistoric-irish-monuments-0020701

maximus otter

 

[ramonmercado]

Some mysteries still attached to this stone.

Stone with ancient writing system unearthed in garden​

Herbert Art Gallery & Museum
The stone's Ogham script is believed to have been carved sometime between the 4th and 6th Century

The discovery of small stone carved with an early form of Celtic script has caused excitement among archaeologists after being dug up in a garden. It was found by geography teacher Graham Senior in Coventry during lockdown in 2020 while he was weeding, but its true value was only recently understood.

Dating back possibly as far as the 4th Century, the stone's Ogham script features a series of lines inscribed on three of its sides, and experts are trying to understand their full meaning.

Teresa Gilmore, finds liaison officer for Staffordshire and West Midlands said: "It's an amazing find, we're very lucky."

She added: "Most Ogham inscriptions you generally find in the more Celtic areas - Scotland, Ireland and down in Cornwall - you don't generally get them down in the Midlands."

Mr Senior told the BBC he had a "fair idea" what the stone was when he found it, but was unable to find someone to confirm his suspicions and "hit a brick wall".

But he said that changed when Katherine Forsyth from the University of Glasgow "took the trouble to come down with a researcher" a few months ago. She partially translated the script to reveal a name: Mael Dumcail.

Herbert Art Gallery & Museum
Graham Senior, here pictured (right) with Herbert curator Ali Wells, found the stone while weeding in 2020

Mr Senior said his theory was that it could have been a keepsake, possibly carried by a Roman soldier.

"It’s a very tactile thing - just feels right as if it was meant to be held," he said.

The piece of sandstone measures just 11cm (4 inches) in length and is believed to have been carved sometime between the 4th and 6th Century AD.

Ms Gilmore said another theory was that it could have been used by Irish tradesmen to make contact with each other.The team said Ogham was highly unusual among world writing systems, consisting solely of parallel lines in groups of one to five. They said it could provide an insight into the Irish language before the use of the Latin insular script. ...

https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/c14kywyk0vro

 

[Frideswide]

Nice to see a mention of the UoG there...

 

[ramonmercado]

Bronze Age Butter. Probably stomach churning if yiu ate it.

A slab of butter believed to be hundreds of years old has been uncovered by '"pure luck" on a Donegal farm.

The ancient butter was unearthed while work was ongoing at Micheál Boyle's farm at Loughfad, Portnoo. Mr Boyle estimates that the slab weighs as much as 22kg. Historians say that it could possibly date back to the Bronze Age.

“It was just by pure luck that we came across it,” Mr Boyle said. “I could see this white thing in the ground. The minute I went down to it, I could get a smell off it and it was only about a foot into the ground.
___________________________________________________________________________________

HISTORY HUB​

If you are interested in this article then no doubt you will enjoy exploring the various history collections and content in our history hub. Check it out HERE and happy reading
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

“It's a perfect rectangle and was perfectly held together. It's completely greasy, but completely preserved.

Alan Moore, Laura Harvey, and Michael Boyle with the large block of butter. Picture: NW Newspix

“I got this salty, cheesy smell immediately, there was no mistaking what it was. This is only clay ground here, but it maybe was bogland back in time.”

Butter was sometimes buried in a bog to preserve it, while some people also buried butter as an offering to the gods or spirits and was often encased in wooden containers.

Mr Boyle told how there was “one little piece of wood” at the bottom end of this butter, suggesting it was originally in a box which has since decomposed. ...

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41430775.html

 

[Steven]

I Can't Believe It's Not...A Bloody Big Stone.

 

[maximus otter]

Bronze Age Butter. Probably stomach churning if yiu ate it.

A slab of butter believed to be hundreds of years old has been uncovered by '"pure luck" on a Donegal farm.

The ancient butter was unearthed while work was ongoing at Micheál Boyle's farm at Loughfad, Portnoo. Mr Boyle estimates that the slab weighs as much as 22kg. Historians say that it could possibly date back to the Bronze Age.

“It was just by pure luck that we came across it,” Mr Boyle said. “I could see this white thing in the ground. The minute I went down to it, I could get a smell off it and it was only about a foot into the ground.
___________________________________________________________________________________

HISTORY HUB​

If you are interested in this article then no doubt you will enjoy exploring the various history collections and content in our history hub. Check it out HERE and happy reading
_______________________________________________________________________________________________________

“It's a perfect rectangle and was perfectly held together. It's completely greasy, but completely preserved.

Alan Moore, Laura Harvey, and Michael Boyle with the large block of butter. Picture: NW Newspix

“I got this salty, cheesy smell immediately, there was no mistaking what it was. This is only clay ground here, but it maybe was bogland back in time.”

Butter was sometimes buried in a bog to preserve it, while some people also buried butter as an offering to the gods or spirits and was often encased in wooden containers.

Mr Boyle told how there was “one little piece of wood” at the bottom end of this butter, suggesting it was originally in a box which has since decomposed. ...

https://www.irishexaminer.com/news/arid-41430775.html

Soon to be available in a Lidl sandwich.

maximus otter

 

[ramonmercado]

A mystery donor.

The Irish Antiquities Division of the National Museum of Ireland are reaching out to the public for information regarding two Early Bronze Age axeheads, dating from around 2150-2000 BC, which were sent anonymously to the museum at the end of June.

These fascinating artifacts were accompanied by a letter stating that they were discovered in the Westmeath area using a metal detector. The sender expressed a desire for the axeheads to be conserved by the Museum but did not provide any contact details or further specifics.

The axeheads were thoughtfully packed in foam cut-outs and cardboard, ensuring their safe arrival. Our experts at the NMI have identified these items as flat axeheads from the Early Bronze Age, a significant archaeological find that offers a glimpse into Ireland's distant past.

However, to fully understand and appreciate these artifacts, it's crucial to know the exact location where they were found. The context of such discoveries helps archaeologists piece together ancient settlement patterns and cultural practices. For instance, hoards or collections of objects were often deliberately placed in specific locations for reasons that could range from ritualistic to supernatural.

With this in mind, we are appealing to the person who sent these axeheads to reach out to us. Any information about their discovery will be treated with the utmost confidentiality and used solely to verify the find location and its circumstances. ...

https://www.museum.ie/en-IE/News/Appeal-for-information-about-Bronze-Age-Axeheads-F

 

[Frideswide]

A mystery donor.

I do hope they feel able to come forwards in confidence.