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Atlantic Bronze Age facts for kids

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Atlantic Bronze Age
Atlantic Bronze Age. Map of exchanged items.jpg
Geographical range Western Europe
Period Bronze Age
Dates c. 1300 — c. 700 BC
Preceded by Bell Beaker culture, Bronze Age Britain, Armorican Tumulus culture, Wessex culture
Followed by Iron Age Britain, Iron Age Ireland, Iron Age France, Iron Age Spain
See also: Bronze Age Europe

The Atlantic Bronze Age was a special time during the Bronze Age. It lasted from about 1300 to 700 BC. This period connected different groups of people across parts of Prehistoric Europe. These areas included Britain, France, Ireland, Portugal, and Spain.

Trading Across the Seas

Main article: Bronze Age Europe

The Atlantic Bronze Age was known for lots of trading. People exchanged goods and ideas. This made coastal communities from Portugal to Scotland quite similar. They shared ways of building and living. For example, they often used stones to protect their settlements. They also built cliff castles and roundhouses.

Trade routes reached far and wide. Goods traveled from Sweden and Denmark all the way to the Mediterranean Sea. This period had several main areas that made metal goods. These areas were in southern England, Ireland, northwestern France, and western Iberia. They all traded their special products by sea.

Amazing Bronze Treasures

Many items from this time are found in hoards. A hoard is a hidden collection of valuable things. These treasures were often placed in special, watery spots. This included rivers, lakes, and bogs.

Some cool items from this period are:

  • Bronze axes with sockets and double rings. Large hoards of these are found in Brittany and Galicia.
  • War gear like spearheads and shields. Also, many types of bronze swords. These are often found in lakes or rivers.
  • Fancy feasting tools for important people. These include roasting spits, cauldrons, and flesh hooks. They have been found from central Portugal to Scotland.

Where Did Celtic Languages Come From?

Some experts, like John T. Koch and Barry Cunliffe, think the Celts might have started in this period. They believe early Celtic languages spread across the Atlantic region. People in these areas adopted new ideas and special metal items. These items came from the Urnfield culture in central Europe. This might have helped new languages spread. Other experts believe Celtic languages started later, with the Hallstatt culture in central Europe.

Gallery

  • Bronze Age bracelets and neckrings with pot from Milton Keynes (FindID 509421)

    Gold bracelets and neckrings from Milton Keynes, England

  • Museo Pontevedra, Ed. Sarmiento 02-12c

    A Bronze Age gold hoard: Tesouro de Caldas, Galicia, Spain

  • Late Bronze Age Gold Torque from Grunty Fen in the Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology

    Gold torque from Stretham, England

  • P1010042se

    Bronze weapons from Lanzahíta, Spain

  • Epee et lance BA

    Bronze Age swords, France

  • Caergwrle bowl

    The Caergwrle Bowl, Wales, c. 1300 BC

  • Museo Arqueolóxico do Castelo de San Antón, A Coruña

    Casco de Leiro, Galicia, Spain

  • Cuencos de Axtroki (M.A.N. 1973-77) 01

    Gold bowls from Axtroki, Spain

  • Pulseira da Urdiñeira, Museo de Lugo

    Gold bracelet from Urdiñeira, Galicia

  • Atlantic Bronze Age riveted cauldrons. Left Cantabria, Spain. Right Chiseldon, UK

    Bronze cauldrons. Left Cabárceno [es], Spain. Right Chiseldon, England.

  • Treasure case 04.2, Middle Bronze Age hoard from Burton, Wrexham (FindID 436588-323099)

    Gold and bronze hoard from Wrexham, Wales

  • Ceinture en or MAN

    Gold torque or belt from Guînes, France, 1300-1150 BC

  • Torque or strié

    Gold torque from Guînes, Pas-de-Calais, France.

  • Deposito da Samieira

    Deposito da Samieira, a hoard of Galician Bronze Age axes. Museo de Pontevedra

  • Museo Arqueológico Nacional - 1898-1-1 - Estela de Solana de Cabañas

    Stele of Solana de Cabañas, Spain.

  • Ornaments from the late Bronze Age Adabrock hoard, Isle of Lewis

    Ornaments from the Adabrock hoard, Scotland

  • Gold torque from the "Tesoro de Berzocana"

    Gold torque from the Treasure of Berzocana, Extremadura, Spain

  • Sword bronze age

    Ceremonial bronze dirk, France, c. 1300 BC

  • Dirks in BM

    Dirks from England and France

  • Brazalete da Urdiñeira, Museo de Lugo

    Brazalete da Urdiñeira, Spain

  • Torque - Man - Saint-Germain-en-Laye - 27 mars 2017

    Gold torc, Saint-Jean-Trolimon, France

  • Display of bronze age finds, Musée de Préhistoire, Carnac, 2019-09-05-3

    Bronze axes, France

  • Disco de oro. Bronce Final. 1000-800 a. C

    Gold disk/ring, Extremadura, Spain, c. 1000 BC

  • Dun Aengus 2017 - Inis Mor, Ireland

    Dún Aonghasa hillfort, Ireland

See also

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