Thursday 12 February 2015

Clevelands Prehistoric Amulet or Talisman found in Stainton Beck ?


1 I found this piece covered in a thick concretion, it has been like all of my finds been reported to  http://www.teesarchaeology.com/   who have after a long inspection of the artefact, decided it is either the end of a light bulb - a spark plug - or meat Fork !  who am I to disagree ! ?




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The grey blue piece I believe to be Basalt


5 The artifact

6  The shroud I believe to be worked and polished magnetite .


7 These 2 images show 2600 year old gold from Germany, that look very similar to the worked band on this artefact , so do we have worked Magnetite of Scandinavian origin and Celtic gold ?
   

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 10 - If this piece is not ancient I would find it just as fascinating ie why ?


 11 - The components ive removed and cleaned so far.

 12 - In my mind so far we have a bone handle, a very thin gold clasp, and a shaped magnetite piece ?


 13 - What I believe to be shaped magnetite.

 14 - This piece is highly magnetic !

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 I have now cleaned most of the concretion residue from the artefact, and if ime honest I no longer believe the piece to be a knife handle , I think ive been looking at it upside down !  I now believe it could have been an Amulet or Talisman , I took the very thin corrugated none ferrous  band to a local jewellers today, and they agree with me that the piece could not be copper bronze or aluminium, and although the piece is too thin to get a reaction with there standard acid test, everything points towards the piece being gold  


I have gone as far as I am willing to go on the cleaning of this artefact !


 1 - All components now free of the thick concretion . 

 2 - Close up of the carved bone where the gold band would fit .


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 4 - Both the bulbous and straight piece are ime sure shaped Basalt, it shows no signs of oxidisation, and looks and reacts like no metal ive seen before ? .  


 6 - The Artefact  

  I  Believe this artefact hung from the neck via a chain or lace, ie I think it was believed to protect or give good luck, ie a Talisman or Amulet ? But maybe http://www.teesarchaeology.com/ are correct and its a spark plug etc ?