Archaeology & History

Bronze Age 'village elder' found at dig site

By T.K. Randall
August 8, 2021 ·  3 comments

A reconstruction of a Bronze Age dwelling. Image Credit: Viv Hamilton Unearthed beneath a Bronze Age funerary mound, the skeletal remains of a "relatively muscular" 40-year-old man are believed to be those of a "village elder", according to reports.

A timber post atop the mound indicated that "someone of importance was buried here."

Archaeologists have dated the burial to between 2500-2000BC.

"He must have been someone of importance to have a monument like that, some sort of village elder, who was strong and had worked the land for years," said archaeologist Louise Moan.The excavation itself is being undertaken ahead of a new housing development at the site of a Bronze Age village that was once home to around 50 people.

Evidence suggests that the village was quite prosperous and endured for over 300 years.

Various artefacts, including a mold for a bronze axe head and a fragment of shale bracelet, were also found at the site.

This settlement respects a funerary monument built earlier in the Bronze Age, about 2,500-2,000 BC. At the centre was a complete male adult skeleton and a large post hole marking the site of his burial. pic.twitter.com/Z2970KXxZy

— Oxford Archaeology (@oatweet) August 5, 2021

Source: BBC News | Comments (3)

Tags: Bronze Age