Rare finds of the paleometal age from the Dniester-Prut interfluve
Rare finds of the paleometal age from the Dniester-Prut interfluve

Summary/Abstract: The article examines several rare finds from the territory of the Republic of Moldova, which date back to the Early Eneolithic and Early Bronze Age. The finds from the Early Eneolithic are represented by three flat flint axes with an arched and thinned butt. Axes of this type were widespread in the steppe zone in the second half of the 5th millennium BC from the Northern Caucasus to the Lower Danube. They are often found in the ritual sphere – in the form of hoards and burial offerings. According to their morphological features, size and carefulness of manufacture, these items correspond to jadeite axes of the Varna type, which were widespread in the territory of South-Eastern Europe in the Eneolithic era and were part of the most prestigious items of burial inventory. Jadeite axes of this type could have served as a prototype for the original flint axes of the steppe Eneolithic. The find from the Early Bronze Age (first half of the 3rd millennium BC) is apparently a bronze knife with a curved blade. Knives of this type are widespread mainly in the steppe Ciscaucasia and in the Lower Don and Seversky Donets basins. They are mainly found in burials of the Maikop, Yamnaya, Novotitorovskaya and Catacomb cultures. In the western part of the steppe zone, this is the first find of this kind. Some researchers consider these items to be ritual knives. However, it seems preferable to classify these tools as razors or razor knives. This type of toilet accessories was well known in Europe in the Bronze and Early Iron Ages and was encountered until the Late Middle Ages.

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