New dacian items discovered

[Cassius Tullius]

These coils meshed together; are you certain that they are interpreted correctly as armor? what was the context of the find? (ex: gravegoods, workshop,hearth&home)

If you hang such an arrangement so that the coils are straight up and down you have a metalic curtain. Metalic curtains of this design are used in/on some modern fireplaces.

[MeinPanzer]

The article will be almost sure in romanian and english since one of the archeologists interested in publishing this, is a canadian studying in Romania.

That is excellent news. Although I am fluent in Spanish, and therefore am able to figure out more or less the general contents of a study written in Rumanian, I am quite sure I would get stuck trying to understand the whole.

Romulus, you mentioned two other findings of mail armour. Do you by any chance know where I can find more information on these (internet or published)?

Regards,

Martijn

I've recently done some research on the Dacian warrior burials of the 2nd-1st C. BC period and I came across some information on mail finds. It turns out quite a bit of mail has been found in Dacian territory. Here are the main finds I have been able to find info on (all of which predate the 1980s). Apologies for not being able to type out all the accents:

Popesti, 2nd C. BC - early 1st C. AD: Outside of this major Dacian settlement, 12 large tumuli were found. As of 2005, only four tumuli had been excavated. Each of them seems to have been for an important chieftain or noble.

Tumulus 1 contained only limited traces of artefacts, with the only piece of armament being a spear socket.

Tumulus 2 contained 12 fragments of a mail coat, fragments of a long Celtic sword, a fragment of a spearhead, fragments of the iron rim of a shield, and what are most likely small fragments of a bronze helmet.

Tumulus 3 contained two fragments of a mail coat, one of which was oxidised onto a fragment of the iron rim of a shield.

Tumulus 4 contained an iron knife, an arrowhead, several pieces of a bit, a lancehead, a fragmentary but largely preserved bronze helmet, an almost whole folded Celtic long sword, a sica with its iron scabbard, the boss of a shield, and fragments of a coat of mail (including one very large folded chunk) including a central button with two outer button appliques with one fastener.

Piscu-Crasani, 2nd-1st C. BC: Fragments of a bronze helmet, like that of Tumulus 4 above.

Radovanu, 2nd-1st C. BC: An entire coat of mail was discovered with some sort of applique, apparently unfolded, along with a bit, and a curved knife, two lanceheads.

Poiana, 2nd C. BC-1st C. AD: A folded coat of mail was discovered alongside fragments of a bronze helmet.

Cetateni: Two tumuli were excavated.

Tumulus 1, 2nd C. BC, contained fragments of a coat of mail.

Tumulus 2, c. 100 BC, also contained fragments of a coat of mail.

Racatau, 100 BC-100 AD: In an excavated tumulus, fragments of a coat of mail found.

In an isolated burial of a Bastarnae noble or chieftain, dating to the time of Augustus, fragments of a coat of mail were found.

It's interesting to note that of the 10 discovered coats of mail in the Balkans that I could find information on, seven seem to have been worn by Geto-Dacian nobles, while only one was worn by a warrior of the Bastarnae, one by a Thracian, and only one by a Celt. Unfortunately, I haven't been able to find information on scale armour yet, but I hope that is forthcoming.

[martijn.wijnhoven]

Thanks Ruben, this is very interesting. Are these finds published?

The remains of Popesti are frequently mentioned in mail studies, but references are almost always very meager.

Best wishes,

Martijn

[MeinPanzer]

Thanks Ruben, this is very interesting. Are these finds published?

The remains of Popesti are frequently mentioned in mail studies, but references are almost always very meager.

Best wishes,

Martijn

Yes, they are published. The main information for the Popesti finds is in:

Alexandru Vulpe, "La nécropole tumulaire gète de Popesti," in Thraco-Dacica I, Recueil d'études a l'occasion du IIe Congrè International de Thracologie Bucarest, 4-10 septembre 1976, Eds. Constantin Preda, Alexandru Vulpe, Cicerone Poghirc, Editura Academiei Republicii Socialiste Romania, Bucharest.

However, it also includes some mentions and a few small images of other finds of mail armour.

I forgot to mention that almost all of the mail from Popesti was unriveted except for the coat from Tumulus 4, which was riveted. In the mail from Radovanu and Racatau, every second ring is riveted.

[Berbescu]

are there any females on this dig? Maybe it was someone else?

Perhaps it was Angelica Balos. She is the director of the Magura Uroiului project. She is a specialist of Dacians. But she is romanian, not canadian. There are also some foreigners on the research team.


Ioan