Tracking dog
Some dogs go fetch the ball. Others understand the word ‘sit.’ Some just do as they please. But Monty, he finds treasures. This dog from a Czech family recently got his paws on an unusual find, an incredible archaeological treasure dating back to the Bronze Age.
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While Monty was walking with his owners in the Orlické hory mountains (or eagle mountains) in northern Bohemia, his nose suddenly seemed to have been attracted by a particular smell. The Frankota family then rushed to get the object the animal was trying to dig up by frantically pawing at the ground. Or rather objects, he found an incredible collection of bronze artefacts.
The treasure included 13 sickle blades, 2 iron spears, 3 axe heads and several bracelets, all made out of bronze. This discovery indicates, according to archaeologists, a ritual deposit.
The fact that there are so many objects in one place is likely linked to a form of worship, probably a kind of sacrifice,
says archaeologist Martina Beková.
An unusual discovery
Beková and her colleagues analysed the objects in detail, setting their date of manufacture at 3,000 years ago. They would have been used by Indo-Europeans of the Bronze Age, belonging to the Urnfield culture civilisation. This name comes from their practice of placing the cremated remains of their dead in urns, which were then buried in the fields.
What really surprised us was that the objects were whole, the culture that lived here before was used to burying fragments, often melted. These objects are beautiful, but the fact that they are complete and in good condition gives them more value,
she claimed.
The artefacts have been handed over to the relevant authorities since for the most part they belong to the government. The Frankota family received a little over £250 for Monty’s discovery.
More research will be needed to understand how these objects could have ended up there. The area of discovery has since greatly aroused the interest of archaeologists.
The terrain has undergone considerable changes over the centuries, so it is possible that the deepest layers are still hiding secrets.
