Not iron, so no rust, but it’s bronze so it’s copper and tin. I thought that still oxidized and corroded? I suppose the type of soil it was in could prevent that?
Copper and bronze have a useful property: when the outer layer of the metal oxidizes, it forms a protective covering called a patina that prevents corrosion from penetrating the structure of the item. That’s the source of that distinctive green color.
Yeah I’m astonished it held up this well over a 3000 year period, it would be more typical for it to look like this:
This is from southwest Greece and a similar age. I wonder if the composition of the bronze plays a big part, or if the well-preserved one was buried under unusual conditions.
Bronze can also be arsenic bronze, as it happens, and it’s probably the oldest form of bronze used because it forms naturally.
Apparently it’s why Hephaestus and other ancient smith gods are depicted as crippled or deformed, an entire mythological archetype of such in fact, ancient smiths were mostly making arsenic bronze until around 1500 BC and even afterwards when tin couldn’t be sourced.
This is almost certainly tin bronze, just a point to keep in mind.
I found the website below to try to find info on viewing it possibly and I wanted to know what they learned from further examination. I couldn’t find anything but I also only looked in your link, the Bavarian state office of the preservation of monuments website, and the one I found where I copied this bit from.
“Mathias Pfeil, head of the Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments, said: “The sword and the burial still have to be examined so that our archaeologists can classify this find more precisely. But it can already be said: the condition is exceptional! A find like this is very rare!”
Whether the sword was locally crafted or was imported is currently being investigated. There are three main distribution centres during the bronze age for octagonal swords of this type, one in Southern Germany and the others in Northern Germany and Denmark.”
What prevented it from rusting or otherwise degrading? And what’s the smaller thing to the right that looks like a pocket knife?
Edit: Here’s an article that doesn’t answer my questions but has more info.
It’s not made out of iron.
Yeah curious about the “pocket knife” too.
Not iron, so no rust, but it’s bronze so it’s copper and tin. I thought that still oxidized and corroded? I suppose the type of soil it was in could prevent that?
Copper and bronze have a useful property: when the outer layer of the metal oxidizes, it forms a protective covering called a patina that prevents corrosion from penetrating the structure of the item. That’s the source of that distinctive green color.
Gotcha, thanks. I’ve seen at least copper items degraded down, but not sure about bronze.
Yeah I’m astonished it held up this well over a 3000 year period, it would be more typical for it to look like this:
This is from southwest Greece and a similar age. I wonder if the composition of the bronze plays a big part, or if the well-preserved one was buried under unusual conditions.
Yeah, that was really my question. I’m betting something about the soil, maybe in a similar way that peat bogs can preserve organic stuff/bodies.
Bronze can also be arsenic bronze, as it happens, and it’s probably the oldest form of bronze used because it forms naturally.
Apparently it’s why Hephaestus and other ancient smith gods are depicted as crippled or deformed, an entire mythological archetype of such in fact, ancient smiths were mostly making arsenic bronze until around 1500 BC and even afterwards when tin couldn’t be sourced.
This is almost certainly tin bronze, just a point to keep in mind.
That’s a Leatherman. /s
I found the website below to try to find info on viewing it possibly and I wanted to know what they learned from further examination. I couldn’t find anything but I also only looked in your link, the Bavarian state office of the preservation of monuments website, and the one I found where I copied this bit from.
https://www.heritagedaily.com/2023/06/well-preserved-3000-year-old-sword-found-in-germany/147628
“Mathias Pfeil, head of the Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments, said: “The sword and the burial still have to be examined so that our archaeologists can classify this find more precisely. But it can already be said: the condition is exceptional! A find like this is very rare!”
Whether the sword was locally crafted or was imported is currently being investigated. There are three main distribution centres during the bronze age for octagonal swords of this type, one in Southern Germany and the others in Northern Germany and Denmark.”
some skellingtons are really anal retentive about blade care