A Hoard from Grabionna

New Information to Metalwork Production and Use in the Baltic Region

Abstract

A Hoard from Grabionna. New Information to Metalwork Production and Use in the Baltic Region

In 2016, a metal hoard was unearthed during agrarian works in the village of Grabionna in north-western Poland. The hoard consists of over 100 bronze and iron artefacts dating back to the Early Iron Age, including body ornaments, a weapon, tools, horse gear items and other metal objects, which were wrapped in textile packing that had decayed, and represents an important archaeological heritage of the region. This paper presents and discusses the results of archaeological, metallographic and chemical investigations of the bronze and iron artefacts, aided by evidence of conservation issues and textile imprints on the metalwork, in order to add more details to the biography of the Grabionna hoard and to broaden our knowledge of the metallurgical activities and metal hoarding during the Early Iron Age in the Baltic region.