Unexpected material was found in a Bronze Age arrowhead that was excavated from Switzerland in the nineteenth century.
This tiny artifact was made of iron that came from a fallen object. There’s an interesting twist. The meteorite wasn’t the nearest to the settlement. Scientists believe it could have been as far as Estonia.
The arrowhead records not only the use of iron ore in the days before smelting but also the extensive trading networks that existed thousands of year ago.
The object was discovered during a coordinated search by geologist for ancient meteoritic-iron artifacts. Beda HofmannThe Natural History Museum of Bern, Switzerland and the University of Bern are a part of this project. In prehistoric times pure iron was rare, so our ancestors used the easiest resource available: Iron that fell out of the skyMeteorites are a form of.
Iron meteorites are the Most common types of atypical, as they are better able withstand the stress caused by atmospheric entry. They are mainly made of iron with traces of nickel. It is believed that most Bronze Age weapons and iron tools were made from iron. Meteoric iron was used to make these products.
The majority of these artifacts were found in the Middle East, Egypt and Asia, but there are relatively few that have been discovered across Europe.
The settlement of Mörigen in what is now Switzerland represented an excellent place to look. The settlement of Morigen flourished around 800-900 BCE and was located just 8 km (5 miles) away from Twannberg, a field littered by meteoritic fragments that were thrown from the skies thousands of year ago. Before the last Ice Age.
Hofmann and his team found an iron arrowhead amongst the other objects they had previously removed from the site. It is 39.3 millimeters long (1.5 inches) and weighs only 2.904 gram (0.102 ounces). Researchers believe that the residue is likely birch tar, used to attach the arrowhead. Its composition is also out of this universe.
The object displays the characteristic iron and nickel composition expected of meteoritic iron, as well as the smoking gun – a radioactive isotope of aluminum, aluminum-26, that Only stars and forms are visible..
The real interesting part is here. The mix of metals that are found in this arrowhead does not match meteoritic iron from the Twannberg area. The arrowhead appears to belong to an iron meteorite class known as IAB meteorites.
Fortunately, this helps to pinpoint its origin. Three of the IAB large meteorites that have been found in Europe have the same composition as the arrowhead. BohumilitzFrom Czechia Retuerte de BullaqueThe Spanish language is spoken in this country. KaalijarvEstonians, you are welcome!
The researchers concluded that Kaalijarv was the most likely match. Around 1500 BCE it fell to Earth and left many fragments that were suitable for reshaping as small, sharp things such as arrowheads. But its distance lay around 1,600 kilometers (994 miles) from Mörigen. This indicates that it may have traveled via the Baltic amber trade routes.
If you are interested in identifying the parent meteorite, look for similar items to the arrowhead.
The arrowhead is likely not the only one. There are other fragments of meteoritic Iron, some of which may be of smaller size. These can also be found in archeological collections throughout Europe, and even further away. Researchers write.
The discovery has appeared in the Journal of Archaeological Science.
