1,500-year-old riches and more than 100 weapons found under Iron Age chieftain's house

[Still Waters]

Archaeologists in Denmark have discovered a cache of more than 100 weapons buried under the house of an Iron Age chieftain. The 1,500-year-old collection — which is big enough to equip a small army — may have been a "sacrifice" or offering.

"The sheer number of weapons is astonishing, but what fascinates me most is the glimpse they provide into the societal structure and daily life of the Iron Age," Elias Witte Thomasen, an archaeologist at Vejle Museums who led the excavation, said Nov. 22 in a statement."We suddenly feel very close to the people who lived here 1,500 years ago."

Archaeologists found the cache during a highway expansion project in August at a site called Løsning Søndermark. Because the weapons were purposefully buried during a house demolition, researchers think that they were sacrificed after success in war. The cache of metal objects included 119 lances and spears, eight swords, five knives, one ax and a rare set of chainmail.

https://www.livescience.com/archaeology/1-500-year-old-riches-and-more-than-100-weapons-found-under-iron-age-chieftains-house