About the Book
First discovered by sport divers in the 1970s, the two remarkable seabed finds of prehistoric bronze metalwork described here quickly became a testing ground for the new discipline of underwater archaeology, initially under the leadership of the pioneering maritime archaeologist Keith Muckelroy. A haul of 361 bronzes from Langdon Bay, Kent, represents one of the largest deposits from Bronze Age Europe. Dating to the thirteenth century BC, the collection is diverse in character and originates in various parts of western Europe and the British Isles. The assemblage from Salcombe, Devon covered here is of similar date with a unique combination of types and materials; further finds have since been made at this site.
Neither site having yielded any ship’s remains, all possible mechanisms for deposition are reviewed, including erosion of coastal deposits and ritual deposition at sea. Extensive comparative analysis favours the conclusion that the unparalleled Langdon Bay and Salcombe assemblages represent material spilled or jettisoned from boats in trouble.
For the first time, maritime archaeologists, period specialists, scientists and coastal geomorphologists, bring together research on these two exceptional sites: history of discovery, evaluation of context and character, detailed scientific analyses and a fully illustrated catalogue. Nineteen further marine finds of Bronze Age metalwork are also documented, models for seaborne exchange are reconsidered and cultural attitudes to the terre/mare interface are discussed.
Table of Contents:
List of figures List of plates List of tables Abbreviations Acknowledgements Summary, with foreign language translations Foreword: Dover and Salcombe by Colin Burgess 1 Moor Sand and Salcombe Site B, Devon Moor Sand: discovery and exploration by Dave Parham Environment and background Initial discoveries and project mobilisation Archaeological survey The 1982 season Salcombe Site B by Dave Parham, Neville Oldham, and Mick Palmer Sea level history and coastal geomorphology by Roland Gehrels Relative sea level changes Coastal geomorphology Conclusion Terrestrial hinterland of Salcombe by Stuart Needham and Dave Parham 2 Langdon Bay, Dover, Kent Langdon Bay: discovery and exploration by Dave Parham and Martin Dean Environment and background Project mobilisation and initial archaeological survey Archaeological work after Muckelroy Coastal erosion and landscape change by Martin Bates Background Bedrock geology, geomorphology, and coastal erosion Bedrock geology Local geomorphology Coastal processes Summary Humans, landscape change, and geomorphological evolution at the mouth of the Dour Valley Summary Discussion Terrestrial hinterland of Langdon Bay by Stuart Needham and Keith Parfitt 3 The metalwork assemblages: identification, connections, and metal composition Defining the metalwork types by Stuart Needham and Brendan O'Connor Classification of condition Completeness Cutting edge profile(s) Surface feature retention - fine morphology and decoration Condition of breaks Bending, twisting, and other features Langdon Bay Median-winged axes Unattributed axe blade fragments Palstaves Socketed axes and chisels Socketed hammers Socketed hooked knife Tanged-and-collared chisels Awls, rods, and shanks Flesh-hook Spurred ring Pins Bracelets Loop fasteners/fittings Separate rivets Swords, rapiers, dirks, knives Spearheads Ferrules Casting jets, lumps, and small fragments Salcombe (Moor Sand and Salcombe Site B) Palstaves Palstave-adze Strumento con immanicatura a cannone Gold bracelet Gold twisted torc Cauldron handle Swords Unclassified blades - sword or rapier Rectangular block - possible weight Tin lump Iron awl in bone handle? Insular and Continental affinities by Brendan O'Connor and Stuart Needham Median-winged axes Palstaves Palstave-adze Socketed axes and chisels Socketed hammers Socketed hooked knife Tanged-and-collared chisels Strumento Awls, rods, and bars Flesh-hook Spurred ring Pins Bronze bracelets Gold bracelets Gold twisted torc Loop fasteners/fittings Cauldron Swords Rapiers and dirks Notched butt knives Spearheads Ferrules Rectangular block (weight) Metal waste and raw metal Metal analyses by J P Northover Analysis of copper-alloy metalwork from Langdon Bay History and introduction Alloys Impurity patterns Lead isotope analysis Metallography Summary Analysis of copper-alloy and tin metalwork from Moor Sand and Salcombe Site B Alloys Impurity patterns Lead isotope analysis Summary Conclusions on the date of the assemblages by Stuart Needham and Brendan O'Connor 4 Other marine finds of Bronze Age metalwork from Britain and the near Continent by Stuart Needham 1. Off Llanrhian, Dyfed (Pembrokeshire) 2. Off Sennen Cove, Cornwall 3. Off Moor Sand, Salcombe, Devon 4. Off Chesil Beach, Dorset 5. Poole Harbour entrance, Dorset Winged axe Ferrule 6. Off Southbourne ('Hengistbury Head'), Hampshire 7. Solent Water, Hampshire 8. Off Bembridge, Isle of Wight 9. Possibly the seas around the Isle of Wight 10. Hayling Beach, Hampshire, or Owrs Bank, off the Sussex coast Palstave 1 Palstave 2 Palstave 3 Palstave 4 Palstave 5 Palstave 6 11. Off Seaford, East Sussex Palstave 1 Palstave 2 Ingot fragment Needle-like object 12. Off Hastings, East Sussex 13. Off Sandgate, near Folkestone, Kent 14. East Wear Bay, off Folkestone, Kent 15. Off Langdon Bay, Dover, Kent 16. Off Whitstable, Kent Socketed axe 1 Socketed axe 2 Socketed axe 3 Socketed axe 4 17. Off Southend, Essex Rapier Flanged axe 18. Off Sotteville-Sur-Mer, Seine-Maritime Torc 1 Torc 2 19. Sandettie Bank, the Channel/North Sea 20. Off Westkapelle, Zeeland, Holland 21. Possibly the seas around Vlieland and Terschelling, Friesland Summation 5 Bronze Age metalwork from the sea - taphonomy and significance by Stuart Needham, with Martin Dean, Catherine J Frieman, Brendan O'Connor, and Dave Parham Mode of recovery and recovery biases Object condition and implications for representation Object categories and representation The nature of the multiple-object sites Chronological distribution Origins, foreign-ness, and the problem of 'hidden circulation' Between land and sea: deposition across the interface Langdon Bay and Salcombe: material in transit? Langdon Bay Topographic reconstruction Fragmentation patterns and assemblage function Comparative land assemblages Comparative river mouth assemblages Salcombe and Moor Sand The catchment of the assemblages and the conduct of maritime interactions during the later Bronze Age Keith Muckelroy's two-tier circulation model for Bronze Age metalwork Present perspectives Conclusion on the nature of the seabed assemblages Appendices 1 Dimension and conditions of artefacts from the Langdon Bay and Salcombe assemblages and lead isotope data for the Langdon Bay assemblage 2 Results of metal analyses carried out on the Langdon Bay material 3 Results of metal analyses carried out on the Moor Sand material 4 Metal sampling and analysis Bibliography Index
