Archaeologists in Wales have found archaeological treasures dating back to the Bronze Age. The finds consist of a gold hair ring and a wooden comb, which is the oldest ever found in the United Kingdom.
The items were found in a roadside grave in the Vale of Glamorgan, south Wales, next to a person whose body was cremated about 3,000 years ago.
The comb still has eight teeth present, unlike what usually occurs with wood and other organic materials, and is in an amazing state of preservation. Archaeologists believe that burning the two bodies together may have prevented them from completely disintegrating and surviving as charcoal.
Obviously, a gold ring is the most attractive thing to accompany a cremation. However, the most important artefact is what at first glance may seem more mundane: the wooden comb, a discovery unparalleled in Wales, if not in the United Kingdom.
Dave Gilbert, archaeologist, said in a statement
Even then, the oldest wooden comb found in the United Kingdom dates back to 140 to 180 AD, during the Roman era, in 1936, after it was found by an archeology student during a visit to the ruins of Barr Hill Fort, near Glasgow, in 1936. 1936. Scotland.
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Bronze Age accessories
As for the gold ring, it is only 1.1 cm in diameter and is made in a chevron, or zigzag, pattern, perhaps used to enhance hairstyles. In 2021, a similar gem was found in Germany, also dating back to the Bronze Age, and associated with people of high social status.
The gold ring is a very early, small, well-made example of its type, and provides a new insight into the development of hair rings as a form of ancient jewelery in Britain and Ireland.
Adam Gwilt, Curator of Prehistory
It is believed that the artefacts were included in the burial so that they would accompany the deceased into the afterlife, highlighting not only their importance to people but also the pride in appearance that has existed in the area for thousands of years.
Excavations were carried out at the site to carry out road construction work, and the wooden comb and ring were removed, as were the remains of cremated bodies and will be analyzed before being displayed in the Amjadva Cymru Museum.
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