Die rituelle Zerstörung von Stabdolchen

Abstract

Deliberate destruction is a phenomenon observed in various archaeological periods and it occurs frequently on halberds not just in hoards, but in graves and single finds as well. They were destroyed by a violent separation of handle and blade, which has been observed on originals as well as on photographs and drawings.
By employing psychoanalytical theory the underlying psychological structure for  this destruction will be examined. Whilst the structure for the destruction as sacrifice remains the same, immediate causes are subject to change according to the societal background. When weapons -especially in pure weaponry hoards- are destroyed in a sacrificial act it is most likely interlinked with prehistoric warfare. The destruction is just one element of the sacrifice, the deposition is another. If the latter element was not part in the ritual the whole sacrifice escapes the archaeologists’ attention. This might explain why finds are missing in some areas. It shows that this in turn does not necessarily equal the absence of this process or subsequently of prehistoric war.