Archaeology dig in Spain yields prehistoric ‘crystal weapons’

In Spain there were some beautiful weapons unearthed. They were found in megalithic tombs that held 25 dated from the 3rd millennium.

Evidence of the esteem in which crystals were held can be found in a “remarkable set” of ‘crystal weapons’ found in the megalithic tombs of southwestern Spain. At the site of Valencina de la Concepci
on, archaeologists have uncovered crystal arrowheads, an exquisite dagger blade, and cores used for creating the artifacts, that date to the 3rd millennium BCE.

earthmysterynews.com...

The Monterlirio tholos was excavated between 2007 and 2010. The really unique weapons came from great megalithic tombs. These were where 25 individuals were entombed in these structures along with the weapons.

The Montelirio tholos, excavated between 2007 and 2010, is “a great megalithic construction…which extends over 43.75 m in total”, constructed out of large slabs of slate. At least 25 individuals were interred within the structure , along with “an extraordinary set of sumptuous grave goods…

a reply to: seasonal

That's one of the most badass archaeologic finds I've seen...

A large number of crystal "arrow heads" were also found

...a large number of crystal arrowheads were found together, which be suggestive of a ritual offering at an altar. The arrowheads have the characteristic long lateral appendices of flint arrowheads from the area - but investigators remarked that "even greater skill must have been required to produce these unique features when using rock crystal

Article also has photo of these other arrow heads

Neat story

Pretty killing tools.

Cool find, Thanks for sharing.

a reply to: FamCore

Did you see the edge on the spear head in the pic? That is some very precise work.

Some of the coolest Raiders of the Lost Ark movie prop style, but for real crystal artifacts I have ever seen.

a reply to: seasonal

That would be pretty tough to make... I wonder if these were used specifically for sacrifices, etc...

a reply to: LSU0408

I wonder how long it took to make this spear head? Maybe the craftsman that made it could crank them out every 15 minutes.

I would love to have one hanging on my wall. But it seems these are rare, I would think they were ceremonial.

originally posted by: seasonal
a reply to: LSU0408

I wonder how long it took to make this spear head? Maybe the craftsman that made it could crank them out every 15 minutes.

I would love to have one hanging on my wall. But it seems these are rare, I would think they were ceremonial.

Exactly. That's what I meant by being used in sacrifices, etc. I would imagine it's very hard to make a spearhead or weapon out of crystal without it breaking in half. Its' not exactly something you could carry into battle with you.

a reply to: seasonal

Tres cool! ...But crystal tends to shatter, so not only would these 'weapons' be incredibly difficult to craft, I can't see them being useful in RL. Which may mean they were made only for the dead. ...Then for some unknown reason, the practice just stopped and the tools disappeared from the record.

A mystery worth investigating!

a reply to: soficrow

Or maybe the word on the street was, that,

-Don`t you be gett`n stabb`d with them glass arrow`s or you be d`ed, cause the glass will break inside your megalithic (SNIP), and the`rein`t no-way to geit out.

Just thinking it would be a dangerous weapon, in many ways. Very impressive chipping....

a reply to: solve

True - but a helluva lot of work for one use!

Still think there's a bigger mystery here. One worth investigating.

Not only can you use it to kill but it also balance's your chakras.

Maybe they just knew how to harness the energy in crystals far better than we can nd could use them as some sort of laser weapons?

Rainbows
Jane

a reply to: SolAquarius

Oooo....
Along that line, maybe they used them, to kill their enemies in ritual, believing they would "capture" their soul in the crystal.

Or..
Maybe they used it to help their own cross over.....

So many possibilities.

There were plenty of ancient cultures who used obsidian (black Volcanic glass) for arrowheads and other weapons, or quartz which is crystal or many other varieties, you can even buy them on eBay. The Aztecs used wooden swords with crystals as a blade. They weren't very effective because crystal shatters very easily when it knocks into something hard.

So I would presume that these were manufactured specifically as grave goods, precisely because they would have been ineffective as weapons. They are not unique either

Details details

The more technically sophisticated items, however, were deposited in the larger megalithic structures...As such, it is reasonable to assume that although the raw material was relatively available throughout the community...only the kin groups, factions or individuals who were buried in megaliths were able to afford the added value that allowed the production of sophisticated objects such as arrow heads or dagger blades.

In this respect, however, it is important to note that, paradoxically, none of the most sophisticated artefacts studied in this paper can be ascribed to any particular individual: the rock crystal dagger from Structure 10.042-10.049 was found in the upper level of the main chamber (10.049) in which no human bones were identified; in Montelirio, neither the core nor the arrowheads can be ascribed to any on 20 individuals found in the main chamber; lastly, in the case of Ontiveros, the only available publication offers no evidence that
the 16 arrow heads were associated to any particular individual.

It seems therefore reasonable to suggest that rock crystal may have had a dual significance for the Chalcolithic society of Valencina. On the one hand, it had a social significance due to the exoticism of the material and the fact that its transformation required very specific skills and probably some degree of technical specialisation. These objects would have had a “surplus value” based on the exoticism and rarity of the raw material, the techno-economic investment of their manufacture (a know-how limited to very few people) and their use linked to the world of beliefs and funerary practices. They probably represent funerary paraphernalia only accessible to the elite of this time-period.

On the other hand, rock crystal must have had a symbolic significance as a raw material invested with special meanings and connotations. The literature provides examples of societies in which rock crystal and quartz as raw materials symbolise vitality, magical powers and a connection with ancestors In her analysis of European Neolithic religion, Marija Gimbutas linked the ritual and votive use of white quartz nodules to a symbol of death and regeneration often associated with funerary spaces. Quartz and rock crystal were even portrayed as rocks with great supernatural powers in European Christian tradition. In his Lapidarium, King Alfonso X the Wise of Castile (1276-1279 CE) emphasised its power to connect human beings with the spiritual world, as well as its ability to protect them from danger.

Crystal implements are quite common in burials dating from the fourth and early third millennium, then after that they disappear from the record completely, because once the Bronze age was underway, military power increased beyond the need for pretty trinkets and required functional reusable weapons.

So this isn't a mystery (Unless you're a journalist trying to sell copy) and before anyone starts it isn't ancient advanced technology. Its arrow heads, not a blaster..
This means you Soficrow


good thread seasonal.

a reply to: Marduk

So this isn't a mystery (Unless you're a journalist trying to sell copy) and before anyone starts it isn't ancient advanced technology. Its arrow heads, not a blaster..
This means you Soficrow

hahaha

...Crystal implements are quite common in burials dating from the fourth and early third millennium, then after that they disappear from the record completely, because once the Bronze age was underway, military power increased beyond the need for pretty trinkets and required functional reusable weapons.

Yes, as I noted, they disappear from the record completely. ...But your grounds for assuming said disappearance was for military reasons?

As you agree, the crystal stuff was never very functional and could not be re-used - as weapons. So why assume they were made primarily to be weapons?

Obsidian is something I'm somewhat familiar with as a tool, and they make great, if fragile, cutting implements. Crystal, I suppose, would be similar. I'll have to try knapping crystal one of these days...

I'm not great at it, but anyone can do it, it just takes practice.



Not my video, just an interesting one.

Just be ready to bleed--a lot--at first when beginning.

originally posted by: soficrow
Yes, as I noted, they disappear from the record completely. ...But your grounds for assuming said disappearance was for military reasons?

As you agree, the crystal stuff was never very functional and could not be re-used - as weapons. So why assume they were made primarily to be weapons?

They are made primarily to imitate weapons for some spiritual purpose.
Imagine you are a soldier during the start of the Bronze age, a tough guy, who spent his life killing, what would you rather take into the grave with you, the sword that you used your whole life, cared for, sharpened, repaired and loved
Or a bit of fancy crystal which by that point was worthless and more to the point, meaningless.

Grave goods are usually the things that were used in life. So that you could continue using them in the afterlife.
Additionally, these crystal weapons are not associated with individuals, they were left in the grave area, but not in the individuals grave itself. Kind of suggests its something that was not personal, but a tribal custom, which had some other meaning apart from militarily. It does suggest that the tribe had some serious beliefs about the structure of the afterlife. They weren't just burying bodies to keep predatory animals at bay, which iirc is the reason we started burying our dead in the first place

In ancient Mesopotamia, metals were regarded as a divine element, a gift from the Gods

Some people today have decorative weapons on their walls. They would be useless in real battles, but look good. Some become antiques and heirlooms even.

Why assume our ancestors were different to us?

a reply to: AndyMayhew

Welcome back to this forum Andy, its been aaaaages