Impressive Bronze Age axe found in Switzerland

"Cast of solid bronze, it is 22cm (8.7 inches) long and unusually heavy. The level of craftsmanship is exceptional. The artifact was unearthed by Sacha Schneider, a metal detectorist working with the Archaeology Department of Basel-Landschaft on a systematic archaeological survey of a steep slope below the outcropping that overlooks the village."

"Research assumes that such hoards were deliberately buried. In most cases, they are interpreted as votive offerings to unknown deities. Individual bronze objects, often found in specific locations such as rock crevices or in water, are also interpreted in this way. The axe from Burg was also found in a rock pocket filled with earth and could therefore have been a single offering."

"The village of Burg lies on the border between Switzerland and France. Its somewhat peripheral location today shouldn't obscure the fact that we are in a very fertile region with good connections to the Rhine and Rhone valleys (Burgundy Gate). Finds in nearby Rodersdorf show that people settled here during the Middle Bronze Age."

A remarkable bronze axe dating to the Middle Bronze Age, approximately 3,500 years old, was discovered in Burg im Leimental, northwestern Switzerland. The solid bronze artifact measures 22cm long and demonstrates exceptional craftsmanship. Classified as a flanged axe of the Grenchen type, it was unearthed by metal detectorist Sacha Schneider during a systematic archaeological survey. A bronze garment pin was found nearby. Bronze Age peoples frequently deposited metal objects deliberately, often interpreting them as votive offerings to deities. The axe was found in a rock pocket, suggesting it may have been a single offering or part of a larger dispersed hoard. The region's fertile landscape and connections to major river valleys made it strategically significant during the Bronze Age.

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