The Lake-Dwellings of Europe: Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888Munro, Robert
History
The Lake-Dwellings of Europe: Being the Rhind Lectures in Archæology for 1888
Munro, Robert
Lake-dwellers and lake-dwellings -- Bibliography; Lake-dwellers and lake-dwellings -- Europe
The relics collected on both these occasions are now deposited in
the Museo Civico at Verona, and at last this town shares with Rome,
Vienna, and Zürich, the honour of possessing a collection of these
remarkable remains. (B. 342, 358, 370, 424, and "Notizie degli Scavi,
1880 and 1884.")
From these general remarks it will be seen that there are only three
lake-dwellings in Lake Garda that have yielded remains sufficiently
comprehensive in quantity and variety to enable us to form some idea
of the period to which they belonged, viz. the station close to the
fortress of Peschiera, that in the Mincio, and that known as Il Bor on
the south-east shore of the lake.
PESCHIERA.--Since the report of Baron v. Sacken the various
researches conducted here have not thrown additional light on the
general condition and distribution of the piles. De Stefani bears
testimony to the accuracy of the facts as to the archæological stratum
in which the relics were found, and observes that the overlying bed of
sand and gravel sometimes attained a depth of over 4 feet. (B. 424,
p. 9.) In it were found decomposed organic matter, bits of charcoal,
fragments of pottery, and bronze objects. In the previous discoveries
only one stone implement was recorded, so that the station was
considered to be exclusively of the Bronze Age. Nor was its character
in this respect much altered by the recent researches, as only a few
implements of stone were found, viz. two knives or scrapers, one
arrow-point and a few chips of flint, a round sling-stone of granite,
and another of an oval form with marks of having been used. Nothing of
importance was added as regards its _flora_ and _fauna_. De Stefani
describes a curious object like a biscuit, picked out of the dredged
stuff, which he considered might have been a cake of bread. It was
made of viscous matter and measured 4 inches in diameter and ¾ of an
inch thick, and contained bruised cereals; but, as he was examining
it, it slipped through his fingers and again fell into the water. (B.
424, p. 10.)
This settlement appears to have flourished exclusively in the Bronze
Age, as may be seen from a glance at the accompanying illustrations
(=Figs. 63=, =64=, and =65=).
_Pottery._--The fragments of earthenware indicate a great variety of
vessels made of two kinds of paste--a coarse and a fine quality. Of
the latter, Nos. 26 to 30, =Fig. 65=, are sufficient to show that the
ceramic art of the lake-dwellers was identical at one period of their
existence with that of the terramaricoli in which the _anse lunate_
(No. 26) are so characteristic.
_Bronze._--Weapons, implements, and ornaments of this material are
extremely numerous, numbering upwards of 300 objects. Among the
weapons we find socketed lance-heads (=Fig. 64=, No. 10), daggers (No.
1 to 7), single-edged knives (No. 11), and a remarkable series of
double-edged dagger-knives with riveted tangs or sword-like handles
(=Fig. 65=, Nos. 10, and 12 to 14).
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