Original scientific paper
Early Carolingian Bronze Spur from the Cetina River Bed in the Sinjsko Polje Valley
Ante Milošević
Abstract
The paper aims at defi ning the time and cultural setting for the newly found bronze spur from theCetina riverbed in the Sinjsko polje valley. Its absolute typological analogies with the spurs fromVrbljani (present-day Bosnia and Herzegovina) and Sundremda (in Tiringia in Germany), support itsbelonging to the early Carolingian items of the second half of the 8th century.Considering the fact that it is typologically unique among the fi nds of this type in Croatia so far,an assumption should be made that it was imported at that time, but not from the central armoriesof the Franconian state, but from its eastern border or, more likely from the Nordic countries. Thedispersion of the completely analogous fi nds leads to this conclusion, as well as the fact that someother examples of the early Carolingian weapons found in Croatia can be similarly defi ned, as far asthe workshop is concerned. Namely, we have already noted the typological similarities between theearly Carolingian sword from Žeževica (Poletnica) and fi nds from Haithabua (site not far from presentdayborder between Germany and Denmark), as well as between the spear with wings from Cetinariverbed near Trilj and fi nds from the Alps region and from far Brika in Sweden. It is also interestingthat all these weapons can roughly be dated in the second half of the 8th century. The newly foundspur from Cetina riverbed in Sinjsko polje valley should be dated similarly according to the existinganalogies, and therefore should be acknowledged as one of the rare early Carolingian fi nds of thatage in Croatia.
Keywords
bronze spur; Early Carolingian age; Cetina River
Hrčak ID:
8322
URI
Publication date:
1.12.2006.
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