An Early Iron Age Miniature Cup with Script-like Signs from Nijmegen-Lent (prov. Gelderland / NL)

Abstract

A thoroughly finished miniature cup, found in a waste pit at Nijmegen-Lent, is a special find because of the character-like signs all around it. Despite the fact that far-reaching southern contacts with the Lower Rhine area existed in the Hallstatt C period (Oss, Wijchen), and although some of the signs match those in early southern European scripts, the early date of the cup (c. 750-675 BC) hampers any sound identification. The enigmatic character of the cup is augmented further by its apparent local origin.