Amidst a cache of glittering golden treasures from the Iberian Bronze Age, researchers made a remarkable discovery: a peculiar metal seemingly from another world, concealed within an ancient hoard. This find may be the most valuable ever. The researchers explained that a faded bracelet and a hollow, rusted half-sphere, adorned with gold, were not crafted from metals found underground but rather from iron originating from meteorites that fell from the sky.
This discovery, led by Salvador Rovira Llorens, head of the conservation department at the National Archaeological Museum in Spain, suggests that metalworking technology and techniques were far more advanced in Iberia over 3,000 years ago than previously believed. The “Villena Treasure”, as it is known, consists of 66 pieces, mostly made of gold, and was discovered over 60 years ago in 1963 in what is now known as Alicante, Spain. Since then, it has become one of the most significant examples of the Bronze Age.
However, determining the age of this collection posed some challenges due to two items: a small, hollow half-sphere believed to be part of a bowl or sword hilt, and a bracelet resembling a flame. Both pieces exhibited what archaeologists described as an “iron” appearance, indicating that they were made from iron.
In the Iberian Peninsula, the Iron Age did not begin until around 850 BCE. The problem lies in the fact that the gold materials date back to between 1500 and 1200 BCE. Therefore, pinpointing the presence of these iron-like artifacts within the context of the Villena Treasure remained a perplexing puzzle.
Researchers carefully sampled both archaeological pieces and subjected the material to mass spectrometry to determine its composition. Despite significant corrosion altering the original structure of the artifacts, the results strongly indicate that the half-sphere and bracelet are made of meteoric iron. The researchers confirmed that this precisely resolves the enigma of how these two artifacts align with the rest of the collection. They were likely crafted during the same approximate period, dating back to around 1400 to 1200 BCE1.
Based on the information that is currently available, the hat and bracelet from the Vilena Treasure would be the first two items in the Iberian Peninsula to be identified as meteoric iron. “The results are inconclusive now because the objects are heavily eroded, but there are newer, non-invasive techniques that can be applied to the objects to obtain a more detailed set of data that would help strengthen the results,” the researchers said in their conclusion.
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