Session: #1172

Content:

Although the hoards are unanimously considered as emblematic of the Metal Ages, the interpretation of these assemblages is still widely debated. The analysis of hoards in situ provides essential information, which we are deprived of for ancient finds and for assemblages removed from the ground without archaeological excavation. When investigations can be carried out, we can see that these depositions are rarely isolated and are part of a complex of archaeological structures. It is then more appropriate to speak of "sites with hoards". This contextual data concerns the containers of the objects, the type of structure in which they were deposited, and their relations to any other associated structures and immediate surroundings of the hoard. While methodological advances in hoard excavation techniques and documentation (photogrammetry method and computed tomography) are major contributions to the reassessment of these assemblages, large-scale field research at the sites is also necessary for their understanding.
Several examples of recently excavated hoards have renewed our interpretations by suggesting that they were sometimes deposits made as part of community gatherings (Prat, France), bronze workshops (Saint-Avé, France), part of the settlement’s internalritual landscape (Várvölgy-Nagy-Lázhegy, Hungary), sets of households (Zsáka I-II, Hungary) etc. These examples show that it is above all the context, together with the choice and condition of the artefacts, that provides the basic clues for understanding the possible motives for the depositions.
The aim of this session is to bring together case studies of hoards excavated in situ or with the knowledge of the wider context in order to contribute to a more detailed characterisation of the diversity of depositional processes and practices, while contributing to the debate on their function.

Session: #1172

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