Prehistoric Arrowhead from Lake Biel Made from Meteorite
Published: Wednesday, Aug 2nd 2023, 14:00
Aktualisiert am: Freitag, 13. Oktober 2023, 14:12
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Researchers have discovered that a prehistoric arrowhead excavated in Mörigen, Switzerland in the 19th century was made from a meteorite. This artefact, measuring only four centimetres, is very rare as iron was a scarce and valuable material before 800 BC, when it was first used to make tools. In Eurasia and Africa, only 55 such objects have been found, 19 of which were in the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun in Egypt. The Mörigen arrowhead was made from a different meteorite than the one that fell near the Bielersee in the Twannberg area over 170,000 years ago. The most likely source of the material is the Kaalijarv meteorite, which fell in Estonia during the Bronze Age (around 1500 BC). Further analysis of archaeological collections in Europe may provide evidence of the arrowhead's journey from Mörigen to Estonia. The results of the study were published in the Journal of Archaeological Science. The arrowhead will be on display in the special exhibition "And Then Came Bronze" from early 2024.nnnn
©Keystone/SDA
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