La Tène Wagon Models: Where did they come from and where did they go?

Abstract

The miniature or model wagons made of iron, bronze or even clay represent a rare category of objects with special significance and symbolism present in different periods. During the La Tène period, this artefact is missing from archaeological contexts throughout Central Europe and the Carpathian Basin, despite a well-attested tradition during the Hallstatt period and the Bronze Age. Furthermore, in the Balkans, especially in ancient Macedonia, this type of artefact ceased to be deposited in archaeological contexts from the beginning of the 4th century BC, despite a notable presence in several necropolises, such as Archontiko, Sindos, Vergina or Pydna. However, an exception to this rule appears to occur in the Dacian milieu, where a wagon model, an axle with a wheel attached and another three wheel fragments were discovered. The majority of the model-wagons belonging to earlier periods were discovered in funerary contexts but, for the ones discovered in pre-Roman Dacia, the funerary context is difficult to prove for some, while for others the context seems to be a votive one. The presence of this kind of artefact in Dacian contexts is related to certain beliefs and religious practices that have similar patterns and roots found in different cultural spheres and which resulted from several encounters and cultural exchanges. Religious ideas circulated from one population to another preserving certain symbolism, even though the original idea was sometimes altered. Thus, an issue discussed here and one related to the origin of such manifestations, the cultural encounters and connections with other populations, represents the roots of this phenomenon and the type of interaction of ideas from one period to another in various regions.