RARE PREHISTORIC BRONZE AGE EUROPE BRONZE SICKLE

Dimensions:

Weight - 40.5 Grams

Size - 13 cm

A crescent shaped bronze sickle. One side is flat, whilst the other features a wide, shallow groove along the length of the blade. The sickle is rounded off at the point, and the other end finishes in a rounded stud. The bronze features some very attractive green patination.

European Bronze Age farmers differed from their stone-cutting predecessors – they used horses and chariots to work; kept flocks of sheep for woollen clothing; and used bronze as a standard commodity of exchange. Technological development was rapid, the manufacture of tools and weapons increased and specialised equipment emerged for shaving, woodworking, and metalworking. The sickle blade was a common tool during the Bronze Age in Europe, and served an agricultural purpose, harvesting crops or cutting forage. However, many further sickles have been found with a symbolic or religious significance attached to them.

Age: 1500-1000 B.C.

Provenance: Eastern European excavation 1990s