The Art of War during the Bronze Epoch--Swords, Spears, and
Daggers--The Bronze Epoch in Scandinavia, in the British Isles,
France, Switzerland, and Italy--Did the Man of the Bronze Epoch
entertain any religious or superstitious Belief?
The Swiss lakes have furnished us with elements which afford us some
knowledge of the state of man's industrial skill during the bronze
epoch, and also enable us to form a due estimation of the manners and
customs of the people of these remote ages. But if we wish to become
acquainted with all the details which concern the art of war at the same
date, we must direct our attention to the north of Europe, that is to
say, to the Scandinavian peoples.
Nevertheless, before we touch upon the important pre-historic relics
found in Denmark, we must say a few words concerning the traces of the
art of war which have been furnished by the investigations made in the
Swiss lakes.
The warlike accoutrements of the bronze epoch are, like those of the
Stone Age, composed of spear-heads and arrow-heads, poniards and, in
addition, swords. Swords are, however, but rarely met with in the Swiss
lakes. The few which have been found are straight, short, double-edged,
and without hilts. In the Museum of Neuchâtel there is a sword (fig.
209) which was discovered forty years ago at Concise, at a time when no
one suspected the existence of any such thing as lacustrine settlements;
M. Desor has supplied a sketch of it in his 'Mémoire sur les
Palafittes.' This sword measures 16 inches in length, and has on its
surface four grooves which join together on the middle ridge of the
blade. The handle, which is terminated by a double volute, is remarkably
small, being only 3 inches in length.
Daggers (fig. 210), too, like the swords, are but rarely found in the
Swiss lakes. From a specimen found in the lake of Bienne, we see that
the blade was fixed to the handle by means of a series of rivets
arranged in a single line. This dagger is, like the sword found at
Concise, ornamented with grooves symmetrically placed on each side of
the projecting ridge which divides the blade into two equal portions.
[Illustration: Fig. 209.--Bronze Sword, in the Museum of Neuchâtel.]
[Illustration: Fig. 210.--Bronze Dagger, found in one of the Swiss
Lakes.]
In the collection of Colonel Schwab, there are two daggers of an
extraordinary character, having hilts enriched with silver.
The spear-heads (fig. 211) are not inferior either to the swords or the
daggers in the skill and finish of their workmanship. They are formed of
a nearly oval blade, strongly consolidated in the middle by a rounded
ridge, which is prolonged so as to form a socket intended to hold a
thick wooden handle. The length of the daggers varies from 4 to 7
inches.
[Illustration: Fig. 211.--Bronze Spear-head, found in one of the Swiss
Lakes.]
The arrow-heads (fig. 212) are, except in their material, identical with
those of the preceding age. They are triangular, with more or less
pointed barbs, and provided with a stem, by which they were fastened to
the stick. A few have, however, been found which are made with sockets.
They do not exceed 1 to 2 inches in length.
[Illustration: Fig. 212.--Bronze Arrow-heads, found in a Lacustrine
Settlement of Switzerland.]
We shall now pass on to the consideration of the relics found in the
tombs of Scandinavia, Great Britain, Ireland and France; which remains
will throw some light on the subject of the weapons and warlike
instruments belonging to the bronze epoch.
The Scandinavian States (Denmark, Sweden, and Norway) are very rich in
instruments belonging to the bronze epoch. The workmanship of the swords
and other weapons of war is much more elaborate here than anywhere else,
on account of the tardy introduction of metal into these countries.
These weapons are nearly always adorned with somewhat complicated
designs, among which curved lines and spiral scrolls are the most
prevalent.
The Danish swords of the bronze epoch (figs. 213, 214) are of quite a
peculiar shape. The hilt is firmly fixed to the blade by means of two or
more rivets. The daggers and poniards only differ from the swords in the
smallness of their dimensions.
[Illustration: Fig. 213.--Scandinavian Sword.]
[Illustration: Fig. 214.--Hilt of a Scandinavian Sword.]
Some of the hatchets seem to have been copied from models belonging to
the Stone Age; these are probably the most ancient, and their
ornamentation is of a very scanty character. Others are winged or with
sockets, and a few have been found perforated with a transverse hole,
like those which have long been used by civilised nations. In this hole
a wooden handle was inserted, which was fixed by means of a strap, or
merely forcibly driven in. The rarely-found specimens of this kind are
sharply defined in shape and splendidly ornamented.
Figs. 215 and 216, taken from Sir J. Lubbock's work, represent the
probable way in which handles were fitted to the various kinds of
hatchets used in the North.
[Illustration: Fig. 215.--Mode of fixing the Handle to a Scandinavian
Hatchet.]
[Illustration: Fig. 216.--Another mode of fixing the Handle to a
Scandinavian Hatchet.]
The blades of the bronze knives found in Scandinavia are, like those of
Switzerland, somewhat curved in their shape, but the handles are much
more richly ornamented. Two of these knives have furnished us with the
only examples known of any representation of living beings during the
bronze epoch. We may notice that on one of these knives, which is
represented in fig. 217, taken from Sir J. Lubbock's work, a swan is
roughly carved at the offset of the blade.
[Illustration: Fig. 217.--Danish Bronze Knife, of the Bronze Epoch.]
In another knife, which is represented in fig. 218, taken from the same
work, the handle is formed by a human figure, executed with some degree
of fidelity. The figure is in a standing position, and holds in front of
it a nearly cylindrical-shaped vessel; the individual is represented as
wearing large earrings. There is every reason to believe that this
last-mentioned article belongs to the end of the bronze epoch, or else
to a transitionary epoch between this and the following, for the blade
is straight, like those of all the knives belonging to the iron age.
[Illustration: Fig. 218.--Danish Bronze Knife of the Bronze Epoch.]
The same thing may, doubtless, be said of several razors (fig. 219) with
straight blades, which appear even overloaded with ornaments; among
these embellishments is an attempt to represent a sort of vessel.
[Illustration: Fig. 219.--Blade of a Danish Razor of the Bronze Epoch.]
These designs evidently point to some very advanced period in the bronze
epoch; and perhaps these objects may belong to the commencement of the
iron age.
What, we may ask, was the wearing apparel of man during the period we
are describing?
A very important discovery, made in 1861, in a _tumulus_ in Jutland
(Denmark), has lately supplied us with the most accurate _data_
respecting the way in which the inhabitants of the north of Europe were
clothed during the bronze epoch. In this _tumulus_ MM. Worsaae, and
Herbst found three wooden coffins, one of which was smaller than the two
others, and was no doubt that of a child. One of the two larger coffins
was minutely examined by these _savants_, and measured inside 7 feet in
length and 20 inches in width. It was closed up by means of a movable
lid. By an extremely rare chance the soft parts of the body had been to
some extent preserved, and had become converted into a black greasy
substance. The bones were decomposed, and had decayed into a kind of
blue powder. The brain had preserved its normal conformation. They found
it at one end of the coffin (where the head had lain); it was still
covered with a woollen cap, about 6 inches high, to which several black
hairs were adhering.
Several woollen garments, in which the body had been buried, were also
found in different parts of the coffin. We add a description of these
garments.
There was in the first place a coarse cloak (fig. 220) which appeared
shaggy in the inside, and was scalloped out round the neck. This cloak
was 3 feet 4 inches long, and wide in proportion. Next there were two
shawls nearly square in shape (fig. 221), ornamented with a long fringe,
and measuring 4-1/2 feet in length, and 3-1/2 feet in width. Afterwards
came a shirt (fig. 222), also scalloped out round the neck, and drawn in
at the waist by means of a long narrow band. Lastly, at the feet of the
body, two pieces of woollen material were found, which were 14 inches
long, by 4 inches wide, and bore the appearance of having been the
remains of gaiters. Close to the latter were also found vestiges of
leather, evidently belonging to feet-coverings of some kind.
[Illustration: Fig. 220.--Woollen Cloak of the Bronze Epoch, found in
1861, in a Tomb In Denmark.]
[Illustration: Fig. 221.--Woollen Shawl found in the same Tomb.]
[Illustration: Fig. 222.--Woollen Shirt, taken from the same Tomb.]
The whole body had been wrapped up in the skin of an ox.
The coffin also contained a box, tied up with strips of osier or bark,
and in this box was a smaller one, in which were found two woven woollen
caps (fig. 223, 224), a comb (fig. 225), and a bronze razor.
[Illustration: Fig. 223.--First Woollen Cap found in the same Tomb.]
[Illustration: Fig. 224.--Second Woollen Cap found in the same Tomb.]
[Illustration: Fig. 225.--Bronze Comb found in the same Tomb.]
We must not forget to mention a bronze sword, placed on the left side of
the body, in a wooden sheath; this sword measured about 26 inches in
length.
There is no doubt that all these relics were those of a warrior of the
bronze epoch; there is the less reason to doubt this, owing to the fact,
that the objects taken from the two other coffins most certainly
belonged to that period. These were a sword, a knife, a bodkin, an awl,
a pair of tweezers, a double button, and a small bronze bracelet; also a
double tin button, a ball of amber and a flint spear-head.
[Illustration: Fig. 226.--Warriors during the Bronze Epoch.]
The shape of the swords and knives shows that this burial-place in
Jutland must be referred to the latter part of the bronze epoch--to a
time, perhaps, when iron was first used.
Following out the _data_ afforded by these records, and all the
discoveries which have been made in other tombs, we have given in fig.
226, a representation of _warriors of the bronze epoch_.
The accoutrements of the horseman of pre-historic ages are composed of a
bronze sword, like those found in the tombs in Denmark, and a bronze
hatchet and sword-belt. His horse is decked with round bronze discs,
which, in after times, formed among the Romans the chief ornament of
this faithful and intrepid auxiliary of man in all his combats. The
horseman's head is bare; for no helmet or metallic head-covering has
ever, at least, to our knowledge, been discovered in the tombs of the
bronze epoch. The spear and bronze hatchet are the weapons of the
foot-soldiers.
Next to the Scandinavian regions, Great Britain and Ireland occupy an
important place in the history of the civilisation of the bronze epoch.
The same type of implements are found in these countries as in Denmark
and Switzerland.
Hatchet-moulds (fig. 227) are also found there--a circumstance which
proves that the founder's art was known and practised in these
countries. The Dublin Museum contains a beautiful collection of various
objects belonging to the bronze epoch.
[Illustration: Fig. 227.--Bronze Hatchet-mould found in Ireland.]
Some of the departments of France have also furnished objects belonging
to the same period; but there is nothing peculiar among them which
deserves mention.
Did any kind of religious worship exist among the men of the bronze
epoch? Nothing would be more interesting than any discovery bearing on
this point; but up to the present time no vestiges of anything in the
shape of an idol have been found, nor anything whatever which authorizes
us unhesitatingly to answer this question in the affirmative. The only
thing which might prove the existence of any religious feeling, is the
discovery, in various lacustrine settlements, of a certain number of
crescent-shaped objects, most of them made of very coarse baked earth
and some of stone.
The dimensions of these crescents vary considerably; there are some
which measure as much as 16 inches from one point to the other. They are
ornamented with perfectly primitive designs, as shown in fig. 228, drawn
at the Museum of Saint-Germain from one of the numerous specimens of
this class of objects.
[Illustration: Fig. 228.--Stone Crescent found in one of the Swiss
Lakes.]
Several archæologists consider these crescents to have been religious
emblems or talismans which were suspended either outside or inside the
habitations. Dr. Keller is of opinion that they bear some relation to
the worship of the moon--an hypothesis which is not at all an impossible
one; for all nations who have not attained to a certain degree of moral
and intellectual culture adore the heavenly bodies as the sources of
light and heat.
M. Carl Vogt, in considering the crescents which have been discovered in
such large quantities in the lacustrine habitations, cannot admit that
they indicate that any religious belief existed among these ancient
nations. He attributes to these objects a very different kind of use,
and, as we shall presently show, rather an odd one.
In the lectures on _pre-historic man_ which were delivered by Prof. Carl
Vogt at Antwerp, in 1868, and have been reported by the Belgian
journals,[37] when speaking on the subject of the crescents belonging to
the bronze epoch, he expresses himself as follows:--
"My opinion is that these crescents were used as resting-places for the
head during the night. Among many savage tribes we find the attention
paid to the dressing of the hair carried to a high pitch, especially
among the men; it was not until a later period that woman also devoted
her cares to the culture of her _coiffure_. Now this care is, by many
nations, carried out to a really curious extent. They inflict the most
severe tortures on themselves in order to satisfy their vanity. Everyone
has seen, in the 'Magasin Pittoresque' and other illustrated journals,
the strange head-dresses of the Abyssinian soldiers. They really seem to
form a kind of fleece, and it may be noticed that each soldier carries
in this hairy construction a large pin.
"Well, all this tends to explain the use of these crescents. In
Abyssinia, as soon as a young girl is married it becomes her duty to
devote herself to her husband's head of hair. This head of hair is made
to assume a certain shape, which it has to retain during his whole
lifetime. The labour which this process necessitates lasts for three
years. Each hair is twisted round a stem of straw, and remains so until
the straw perishes. The man's head is thus covered with a whole system
of spirals, the top of which is a foot from the surface of his head.
During the whole remainder of his life this _coiffure_ must never be
again disturbed. When asleep, the Abyssinian rests the nape of his neck
on a triangle which he carries about everywhere with him. He has also a
long pin, as it would be impossible for him to reach the skin of his
head with the end of his finger.
"The same custom exists among the New Zealanders, who also have an
apparatus upon which they rest their necks, in order, when asleep, to
save their _coiffures_. They wear an enormous chignon, two feet high
and ornamented with ribbons, of which they are very proud. The only
difference between this chignon and certain others which I need not
mention is, that the former cannot be removed at will. This object,
thus adorned, rests, during the sleep of its owner, on a sort of
framework.
"The Chinese and Japanese sleep, in the same way, on a bedstead bevelled
off at the head; and in the Egyptian hieroglyphical drawings we find
instruments evidently meant for the same use.
"It is very probable that during the bronze epoch great attention was
devoted to the hair, and this is the more probable as in every tomb
belonging to this period we find pins from 2 feet to 2-1/2 feet in
length, furnished with large knobs, and of the same shape as the pins
used by the Abyssinian soldiers; and also, because during the Stone Age,
as well as the Bronze Age, a kind of comb is found which is similar to
that which is now used by the New Zealanders to scratch, rather than to
comb, their heads. The heads of the pins are often very richly
ornamented; they are of the most varied shapes, and are extremely common
both in the tombs and also in the lacustrine dwellings.
"We have the less right to be astonished at our ancestors sleeping with
their heads resting on such a machine as we have just described,
knowing, as we do, that the hussars of Frederick the Great used to spend
the whole night in arranging their _coiffures_!"
Thus, while Dr. Keller and many other archæologists ascribe the
_crescents_ found in the Swiss lakes to some kind of religious worship,
M. Vogt, whose idea is of a much more prosaic character, does not
attribute them to any other worship but that of _self_ as represented by
the hair! The reader can take his choice between these two explanations.
We shall only remark, in corroboration of Dr. Keller's opinion, that
certain Gallic tribes used for a religious symbol this very crescent
which M. Vogt would make out to be a pillow--a stone pillow which, as it
seems to us, must have been very hard, even for primitive man.
Various objects found in the dwellings of man belonging to the bronze
epoch appear to have been religious symbols. Such, for instance, are the
designs so often met with on swords, vases, &c. These drawings never
represent objects in nature; they seem rather to be cabalistic signs or
talismans. Most of them bear some relation to a circle; sometimes they
are single circles, and sometimes combinations of circles. Many authors
have had the idea of attributing them to the worship of the sun.
Another sign was still more often used, and it was known even as early
as the Stone Age--we speak of the cross. It is one of the most ancient
symbols that ever existed. M. G. de Mortillet, in a work entitled 'La
Croix avant le Christianisme,' has endeavoured to establish the fact,
that the cross has always been the symbol of a sect which contended
against fetishism. This much is at least certain, that it is one of the
most ancient symbolical signs; for it is found depicted on objects
belonging to the Stone Age, and on some of the earliest relics of the
Bronze Age. At the time of the Etruscans the cross was generally
prevalent as a sign. But at a later period Christianity exclusively
monopolized this religious symbol.
A third figure is sometimes found on various objects belonging to the
bronze epoch; this figure is the triangle.
It is, on the whole, very probable that all these signs which are not
connected with any known object, bear some relation to certain religious
or superstitious ideas entertained by the men of the bronze epoch; and,
as a consequence of this, that their hearts must have been inspired with
some degree of religious feeling.
FOOTNOTE:
[37] _Indépendance Belge_, November and December, 1868.