A Roman Period weapon hoard from Hrádečná in the Erzgebirge Mts., northwest Bohemia

Abstract

An amateur metal detector survey conducted in 2003 in the cadastre of the town of Hrádečná (Chomutov district, Ústí nad Labem Region) uncovered a mass find of arms and gear from the Roman Period with a total of 21 iron artefacts weighing 2.3 kg. The weapons include a sword and 11 lances/spears; gear is made up of parts of several shield (4 bosses, 5 grips). Based on a typological-chronological analysis, the artefacts can be dated in general to the interval between phases B1–C1. A characteristic trait of the assemblage is its intentional destruction. Made outside settlement and burial areas, the find is an extraordinary document of human activity in the Roman Period in central Erzgebirge Mts. Despite the uncertain find circumstances, the assemblage can be connected with ritual behaviour and interpreted as an irreversible hoard buried for votive reasons roughly between the Early and Late Roman Period.