219 



BRONZE-AGE WEAPONS 

 IN THE DONCASTER MUSEUM. 



(With Plates IV.-Vl.i 



T. SHEPPARD, M.Sc, F.G.S. 



The Museum at Doncaster contains twenty weapons of the 

 Bronze Age, most of which were purchased many years ago 

 by the Doncaster Corporation, in order to keep in the district 

 the collection of antiquities formed by the late Cotterill Clark, 

 and this formed an excellent beginning for the town's Museum 

 which was subsequently formed. Through the kindness of the 

 Doncaster Corporation, and Dr. Corbett, who has charge of the 

 collections during the Curator's absence in the army, I am able 

 to illustrate and describe this small but representative series. 

 The specimens include a rapier-shaped blade, 6 spears, one flat 

 axe, 8 palstaves, 3 socketed axes, and a chisel. It is worthy 

 of note that with the exception of Dane's Hill, a place of 

 doubtful localization, the implements are nearly all from the 

 eastern side of Doncaster, e.p., Hatfield, Bawtry, Scrooby, 

 Finningley, Misson, Rossington, Tickhill. Possibly this is due 

 to the former prevalence of fen bogs on this side, where such 

 objects would be more likely to get lost. 



Fig. I. — Is a broad rapier-like blade, in excellent condition, 

 to the base of which two massive bronze rivets are still attached. 

 It is 14 ins. in length. 3 ins. across at the widest part, and 2 ins. 

 at the base. It is decorated at each side by a sloping ridge, 

 I in. from the edge, and from the junction of these, at a distance 

 of ^ in. from the point, a medial ridge commences and remains 

 sharply defined for 4 inches, and then gradually disappears 

 into a curved lidge. The two rivets are cylindrical, f ins. in 

 length and J in. in diameter. The specimen is similar in shape 

 to Fig. 311 in Evans's ' Ancient Bronze Implements of Great 

 Britain,' but is shaped at the base more after the pattern of 

 his No. 313. It was dug up between Misson and Finningley in 

 1826. Weight, 13 oz. 



No. 2 is a typical Irish flat axe, the cutting edge of which 

 has been roughly used, and the opposite end is slightly flattened 

 and protrudes over the sides of the axe, through having been 

 hammered when used as a wedge. It measures 5! in.-, in 

 length, is if ins. at the top, 3+ ins. at the widest part, the cutting 

 edge being 4 ins. in length. The axe is of unequal thickness, 

 measuring h in. on one side, and only ^- in. on the other. In 

 type it is somewhat similar to Evans's No. ig, from Drumlanrig, 

 and from its primitive form and resemblance to the early 

 stone celts it is evidently a very early type of Bronze-Age 

 weapon. There are a number of marks on the face of the 

 axe, which seem to be the result of blows with some sharp 

 instrument, and are not for decoration. It was found at 

 Killarney in 1838. Weight i lb., 3 oz. 



1918 July 1. 



