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Flint and metal daggers in Scandinavia and other parts of Europe. A re-interpretation of their function in the Late Neolithic and Early Copper and Bronze Age

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  02 January 2015

Niels V. Skak-Nielsen
Niels V. Skak-Nielsen*
Affiliation:
*Gentoftegade 42, 2 tv, DK 2820 Gentofte, Denmark (Email: [email protected]) Translated from the Danish by Martin Rundkvist
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Abstract

We are honoured to present this pivotal paper by a senior Danish scholar (born in 1922) that promises to revise many views of Late Neolithic and Bronze Age Europe. Prehistoric daggers found in graves in Scandinavia and beyond have long been interpreted as weapons wielded by warriors, giving the whole period a rather belligerent flavour. In a radical re-interpretation, the author demonstrates that their use was most probably for the despatch of cattle or other livestock, and the dagger is thus the implement of sacrifice and the symbol of its office.

Keywords

EuropeScandinaviaLate NeolithicBronze Agefunctiondaggerhalberdsacrifice
Type
Research
Information
Antiquity , Volume 83 , Issue 320 , June 2009 , pp. 349 - 358
Copyright
Copyright © Antiquity Publications Ltd 2009

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