Details |
A bronze hoard, consisting of four swords, a spearhead and a chape and possibly another two swords and another chape, discovered circa 1853 'on the lands of Cauldhame, the property of Lord Panmure, near Brechin'. Caldhame is listed by the OS as the name given to the east district of Brechin in the Ordnance Name Book (1860), reflected in the modern street name Caldhame Place at NO 606 597. However, according to Jervise, Magdalene's Chapel (see NO65NW0008) was also known as Caldhame Chapel. Coles ascribed this hoard to the Late Bronze Age. The hoard appears to have been broken up after discovery, as the donation to the Society of Antiquaries of Scotland in 1853 by the Lord Commissioners of HM Treasury was of a spearhead, a chape and two swords. Coles noted that Canon Greenwell exhibited a sword from 'Brechin' at the Society of Antiquaries of London, circa 1873, which became part of the Greenwell Collection at the British Museum. This, and another bronze sword in the collection, are described as found at 'Leuchland'. Leuchland farm lies to the east of Brechin at NO 621 599. This attribution is attractive, but not proven. Burgess and Colquhoun note that the swords in the British Museum are of Iron Age Hallstatt type, and not, like the Cauldhame swords, of the Bronze Age Ewart Park type. Coles further ascribes a second chape, exhibited at Edinburgh in 1856, but held at Marischal Museum, Aberdeen, described as being from 'Aberdeenshire', to this hoard, probably because of their similarity and rarity. What became of the spearhead which was described by Wilson as 'one of the largest examples hitherto discovered in Scotland' is not clear. Coles, possibly erroneously, described it as being leaf-shaped with rivet-holes and assigned it to his Class V. The swords in the NMAS: the first sword (DL 8) is of Ewart Park type (Burgess and Colquhoun's Northern step 1). It has a broken hilt, and is 55.4 cm long, 4.8 cm wide at the shoulder, with a maximum blade width of 4.15 cm. Its surface is corroded, but with a dark shiny green patina showing through. The rivets are in the arrangement 2:2 (+2 bl), but none are in situ. The second sword (DL 10) is also of Ewart Park type (Burgess and Colquhoun's Northern step 2) and is 60.15 cm long, 5.15 cm wide at the shoulder, and has a maximum blade width of 4.5 cm. It is corroded with a dark khaki patina and appears to have been well cast. The rivet pattern is 3:4, with one in situ. The Greenwell Collection swords in the British Museum: one (WG 1237, Greenwell Collection), is a Hallstatt type sword (Burgess and Colquhoun's Gundlingen type, unclassified) is described as being found 'on peat moss on Leuchlands Farm'. Burgess and Colquhoun argue that although both the swords in the collection are described as coming from the same farm, there is no evidence for the two weapons being found in association and they may be single finds. This sword has the top of the hilt missing and a damaged shoulder. It is 66 cm long, 5.2 cm wide at the shoulder, with a maximum blade width of 3.65 cm. It has a khaki patina. The rivet pattern is ?:6, with five in situ. The other sword (WG 1238, Greenwell Collection) is also a Hallstatt type sword (Burgess and Colquhoun's Gundlingen type, variant d). It is a complete sword, 66.8 cm long, 3.75 cm wide at the terminal, 5.85 cm wide at the shoulder, with a maximum blade width of 3.25 cm. The rivet pattern is 2+1 (notch):4, with six in situ. It has a messy black patina and has a hooked butt. The chapes: the chape in the NMAS (DL 9) is tongue-shaped, perforated and 14.92 cm long. The chape held at Marischal Museum (AM 254) is also tongue-shaped and perforated and is 20.1 cm long, 4.6 cm wide and 1.8 cm thick.
|