Uncommon practice of re-use of Bronze Age stone axes Cover Image

O practică mai puţin întâlnită. Reutilizarea unor topoare de piatră din epoca bronzului
Uncommon practice of re-use of Bronze Age stone axes

Author(s): Vasile Diaconu, Mariana Sîrbu
Subject(s): Archaeology
Published by: Muzeul Naţional de Istorie a Moldovei
Keywords: Bronze Age; stone axes; re-use; settlements; graves;

Summary/Abstract: This article examines the typological features of some Bronze Age stone axes with obvious signs of re-use, discovered in the area between the Carpathians and the Dniester. For these objects, two ways of re-use are known: the use of damaged axes as rubbing stones / hammer stones or re-perforation of the worn-out specimens.The authors of the article present nine artifacts discovered in settlements and cemeteries or as a result of chance finds. Most of the specimens were made of volcanic rocks; some have preserved decorative elements.The re-use of such items was determined by economic and technological reasons. Some communities of the Bronze Age were forced to re-use damaged stone axes due to a lack of high-quality raw materials.The fact that axes with traces of re-use are also found in cemeteries may indicate the symbolic significance that these objects acquired when they were put next to the dead.

  • Issue Year: XII/2018
  • Issue No: 1
  • Page Range: 141-148
  • Page Count: 8
  • Language: Romanian