4.2.2012 Bronze treasure from Carmarthenshire

The jewellery and weapons are contained in a depot found by a metal detectorist near County Kidwelly. This was announced by the National Museum of Wales. The find was declared a treasure nine years ago.

The bronze depot found in Carmarthenshire near County Kidwelly was in a small pit. It includes weapons and various pieces of jewellery worn three thousand years ago. The treasure was found by a prospector with a metal detector in June 2011.

Specifically, it contains thirteen bronze objects such as a bracelet, a spear and an axe. The artefacts are believed to have been buried in the ground sometime around 1000 to 800 BC and were declared treasure by the relevant Carmarthenshire coroner. The local museum immediately showed interest in the collection of objects found.

The treasure was found with a metal detector by Kevin Sawyer on June 7, 2011, the National Museum of Wales reported. It also carried out a subsequent archaeological survey and found that the artefacts had been buried together in a small pit.

The beginning of the Bronze Age in Britain can be considered to be 2000 BC and is indeed a key period that bridged the Stone Age and the Iron Age. Adam Gwilt, Curator of Bronze Age Collections at the National Museum of Wales, said: "Through this and other recent finds we are learning information about the places where Bronze Age objects were carefully buried.“

The spear and bracelet show what kind of weapons and jewellery were used in Wales. "The raw materials and by-products also contribute to the wider picture of how, for example, bronze was cast in the Bronze Age. Every discovery like this is very valuable to us," Gwilt added.

Gavin Evans, curator of the local museum, also commented on the Carmarthenshire hoard and was also very pleased with the treasure. "We are delighted to have the opportunity to add something new to the prehistoric collections once again," Evans rejoiced. "The Bronze Age lasted hundreds of years, but we have very little information from Carmarthenshire about how people lived then," he added.

He would like to see the collection of artefacts on display for the public. "We are thrilled that our museum can be the home of the treasure, so that it can be properly enjoyed by myand perhaps learn something too," concluded the Carmarthenshire City Museum expert.

Sources: www.bbc.com, www.walesonline.co.uk