Ancient Thracian Dagger found in Bulgaria

[TVV]

No better pictures ara available currently, but here is some information. Firs of all, the dagger is not Thracian, but a earlier. I could not find a dating, unfortunately, but as the Varna Achaeology Museum contains the oldest golden trasure in the world, this is not so surprising - there is plenty of evidence of a mysterious prehistoric civilisation in the lands of nowadays Bulgaria which had advanced gold working skills. Regardless of what BBC think, it is unlikely that it was used in sacrifices, but most probably had a symbolic purpose, such as being part of ruler's regalia.
Interestingly enough, the more than 15,000 golden objects are not parts of burials, as there are no bones and pottery dicovered around them, and it is believed that they were placed in small man made hills as an offering to deities. I will see if I can find better pictures. The dagger will be put on display in the National History Museum in Sofia on August 9th. I am looking forward to seeing it next time I go back home.

[Berkley]

A slightly different picture: http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/14235989...35772/rpage/1/ . The reference to 500 tiny golden rings suggests golden mail armor, definitely more in the nature of royal regalia.

[Emanuel]

Hello,

Not wishing to hijack this thread, but would this knife http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWA:IT&ih=007 advertised as a thracian machaira be a valid example of thracian weaponry?
Does it even look like a machaira? To me it sort of looks like the small shafra knives, and there is something middle-eastern about it...recalls the kurdish jambiya...

I will be in Romania next week, and I will see what museums there have on the Thrace.
Emanuel

[TVV]

Originally Posted by Manolo

Hello,

Not wishing to hijack this thread, but would this knife http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...MEWA:IT&ih=007 advertised as a thracian machaira be a valid example of thracian weaponry?
Does it even look like a machaira? To me it sort of looks like the small shafra knives, and there is something middle-eastern about it...recalls the kurdish jambiya...

I will be in Romania next week, and I will see what museums there have on the Thrace.
Emanuel

When it comes to ancient weapons, there are many replicas, and in many cases you need an expert to determine the authenticity of such an object. On-line pictures are deffinitely not enough, at least for me, and I prefer to stay away from anything that claims to be from the late Middle Ages or older. This particular seller's dating is off, usually by a few centuries, and I have no idea about the authenticity of his objects - the late John Piscopo acquired a romfea (a Thracian weapon similar to the Dacian falx and probably its ancestor) from him, and he seems to have an inexhaustible supply of antiques, but as a caveat just keep in mind that as far as I know all of the Balkan countries strictly prohibit the export of such objects. Where he gets his from and at such a low price (most of his auctions start at a buck with no reserve), I do not know, but he has new things every Thursday, and to me at least it seems he must be receiving a 20' container every month, at least.
I have heard that the Military Museum in Bucharest is superb, and I am sure there are plenty of interesting weapons and militaria there, from the Dacians to WW2, but I am sure our Romanian friends will be able to guide you.