Fragmentation of Metal in Italian Bronze Age Hoards: New Insights from a Quantitative Analysis

Bronze Age metal hoards have been widely investigated over the past 150 years throughout Europe. A considerable number of fragments were deposited, mostly stemming from the LBA. Fragmentation has been mainly mentioned in supporting both the ritual or non-ritual deposition purposes. Despite the well-known phenomenon, studies are still lacking that focus on the fragmentation per se. The research presented here takes into account 5700 metal objects from Italian hoards, systematically collected and analised. The main patterns of hoards are ecognisable. In the transition between the Middle and Recent Bronze Age, the quantity of bronzes deposited increases and the fragmentation practice definitely begins. The fragmentation was apparently not performed for the deposition purposes only. Most of the fragments probably wandered around for a time before being deposited. Raw materials, which were replaced with fragments of objects through time, have become the main medium of exchange.