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FESTSCHRIFT
FR
ALBRECHT JOCKENHVEL
ZUM 65. GEBURTSTAG

INTERNATIONALE ARCHOLOGIE
Studia honoraria - Band 28

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Claus Dobiat und Klaus Leidorf

Herausgegeben von
Claus Dobiat, Peter Ettel und Friederike Fless

Durch die Zeiten ...

FESTSCHRIFT
FR
ALBRECHT JOCKENHVEL
ZUM 65. GEBURTSTAG
herausgegeben von
Frank Verse und Benedikt Knoche
Jan Graefe, Martin Hohlbein, Kerstin Schierhold
Claudia Siemann, Marion Uckelmann, Gisela Woltermann

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INHALTSVERZEICHNIS
Frank Verse / Benedikt Knoche / Jan Graefe / Martin Hohlbein / Kerstin Schierhold / Claudia Siemann /
Marion Uckelmann / Gisela Woltermann
Vorwort der Herausgeber . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XI
Hermann Mller-Karpe
Geleitwort . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XIII
Torsten Capelle / Wolf Kubach
Albrecht Jockenhvel Ein Portrait . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XV
Gisela Woltermann / Maris Bus
Schriftenverzeichnis von Albrecht Jockenhvel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XIX
Jan Graefe / Maris Bus
Verzeichnis der von Albrecht Jockenhvel betreuten Examensarbeiten . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . XXVII
Steinzeit
Dieter Dirksen / Lena Loerper / Guido Bischoff / Zoltan Brcz / Gert von Bally
Dokumentation des sptneolithischen Galeriegrabes Fritzlar-Lohne Zschen I mit Verfahren
der optischen 3D-Koordinatenmetechnik . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
Jan Graefe
Bandkeramische und spthallstattzeitliche Mahlsteine aus der Siedlung Rosdorf Mhlengrund,
Ldkr. Gttingen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 15
Andreas Hnel
Archologie und Astronomie. Die Orientierung von Megalithgrbern in Deutschland . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 29
Benedikt Knoche
Chorologie Michelsberger Pfeilbewehrungen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 45
Bernhard Pinsker
Neues zum ltesten Darmstdter? Eine quellenkritische Betrachtung . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 67
Claudia Siemann
Ein Hgelgrab mit Spandolch aus Marl, Kr. Recklinghausen. Zu den Grabfunden mit
Spandolchen in Westfalen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 81
Gisela Woltermann
Frheste doppelaxtfrmige Bernsteinperlen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 97
Bronzezeit
Daniel Brenger
Mit Metalldetektoren in die Bronzezeit Ostwestfalens . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 115
Wojciech Blajer
Einige Bemerkungen zur Anwendung prozentualer Angaben in Studien ber bronzezeitliche Hortfunde . . .125
Dirk Brandherm / Colin Burgess
Carps-tongue problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 133

VIII

Inhaltsverzeichnis

T. Capelle
Nah- und Ferntransporte im bronzezeitlichen Nord- und Nordwesteuropa. Ein Wagen aus Steinen . . . . . 169
G. Eogan
Decorated thick penannular rings of the Irish Late Bronze Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 177
M. Gedl
Der Bronzehortfund von Dankw, Kr. Kobuck . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 185
A. Harding
Razors and male identity in the Bronze Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 191
F.-R. Herrmann
Zur urnenfelderzeitlichen Befestigung des Glaubergs in der Wetterau . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 197
M. Hohlbein
Urnenfelderzeitliche Vollgriffmesser der Griffschemata Aub/Mirebeau-sur-Bze und
Ehingen/Bruchkbel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 201
H. Matthus
Die Levante, Kreta und Sardinien Kulturkontakte des spten 2. und frhen 1. Jahrtausends v. Chr. . . . 211
K. Schierhold
Die Arme zu den Gttern erhoben? Groformatige anthropomorphe Terrakotten der gischen
Bronzezeit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 221
G. Schumacher-Matthus
Varia zum Grab von Gevelinghausen. Mit Beitrgen von Manfred Kunter und Wolfhard Schlosser . . . . 233
B. Sicherl
Gedanken zur Schwertproduktion und -distribution in der spten Urnenfelderzeit am Beispiel
der Tachlovice Schwerter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 241
M. Uckelmann
Irland oder Iberien berlegungen zum Ursprung einer Ornamentform der Bronzezeit . . . . . . . . . . . . . 259
A. Vulpe
Zu den Grabsitten der lteren Hallstattzeit in Rumnien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 269
U. Wels-Weyrauch
Stachelscheibencolliers: Nur zur Zierde? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 275
C. Willms
Ein Bronzebecken der Urnenfelderkultur aus dem Bad Nauheimer Elitegrab von 1878
2003 entdeckt im Archologischen Museum Frankfurt . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 291
Eisenzeit/Rmische Kaiserzeit
W. G. J. Bunk / H.-P. Kuhnen
Roman Time Copper Ingots Found at Trier: Original and Experiment. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 303
S. Deiters
Haevernick Gruppe 3B berlegungen zu einem Glasarmringtyp der ausgehenden Eisenzeit . . . . . . . . 315
U. L. Dietz
Hohe Schule in der Situlenkunst? . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 339

Inhaltsverzeichnis

IX

M. Lenerz-de Wilde
Wirbel verwirbeln, Greifen begreifen eine Ornamentstudie . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 349
F. Nikulka
Bestattungsvarianten, Zeichensprache und Kommunikationslinien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 373
H. Popov
Archometallurgische Prospektionen im Bereich der Drfer Vle Pole und Kamilski Dol,
Sdostbulgarien . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 383
F. Verse
Zur Siedlungsentwicklung im hessisch-westflischen Bergland whrend der Eisenzeit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 395
S. Wefers
Petrographische Analysen an latnezeitlichen Drehmhlen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 417
Mittelalter
G. Eggenstein
Eiserne Bestandteile karolingischer Schwertgurte aus Balhorn . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 425
M. Overbeck
Eine schmiedeeiserne Windform des 13./14. Jh. aus dem Genoeserbusch bei Peppange, Luxemburg . . . 435
Miscellanea
M. Bhme
Primr, Sekundr, Tertir ... Umlagerung von Funden am Beispiel Lehm . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 449
M. Bus
Fr die Ewigkeit? Betrachtungen zur Flchtigkeit von Informationen im digitalen Zeitalter . . . . . . . . . . 455
M. Janda
Ein indogermanisches Wort fr Axt: *PELH2 AKU- . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 457
J. Ostoja-Zagrski
Archologie und politische Vernderungen in Mitteleuropa . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 465
B. Rschoff-Thale
Archologie im Untergrund das neue Landesmuseum fr westflische Archologie in Herne . . . . . . . 469

RAZORS AND MALE IDENTITY IN THE BRONZE AGE

Anthony Harding
Why do men shave? The question must be as old as the
practice of shaving itself, and has no simple answer.
True, it may be more hygienic not to wear facial hair,
but hygiene is something whose importance was less
appreciated in the past than it is today. If a beard gets
to be very long it may well be more comfortable and
practical to shorten it, but a reduction in length is a different matter from its complete removal. Our presentday reasons for shaving relate in part to hygiene and
comfort but in part to the creation of an image of ourselves. Shaving for us is easy and painless, given our
access to high-quality, very sharp, steel razor blades or
efcient electric machines; but it was not always so.
The traditional razor, the cut-throat (single-bladed
steel knife), requires considerably more skill and constant sharpening, but is also very effective. Wherever
such efcient shaving aids exist, anyone can choose to
go clean-shaven rather than bearded.1 But what about
those situations where razors were less effective, as
was the case prior to the invention of steel? Did people
make a conscious choice to remove the beard? Was
this too part of the persona that they wished to project?
Of course, wearing a beard can for us be as important
as removing it; it can indicate special status in its owner, as is the case with Orthodox priests; or it can be for
religious reasons, as Sikhs, for instance, are obliged to
wear their hair long and folded in a turban.
In his younger days, Albrecht Jockenhvel devoted much of his energies to the recording of Bronze
Age razors and razor-knives, in central and western
Europe.2 These volumes were remarkable for the geographical span that they encompassed, from the west
of Ireland right across to the Middle Danube. Taken
with the PBF volumes for Italy and Poland,3 they have
remained a crucial source of reference for material
across Europe; and with the subsequent publication
of C. Webers catalogue for eastern and south-eastern
Europe,4 the PBF coverage of razors is unrivalled by
any other category of bronze artefact. There is still a
gap for Iberia, while for the Nordic areas, where razors
are prolic, one has to go to other catalogues5 to obtain
an understanding of what is involved. But in general
one can be satised that students of the Bronze Age

1
I restrict my discussion here to the removal of facial hair,
and to men, though other bodily hair could also be involved and
women might also have used razors for hair removal. Head hair,
in other words hair styles, are also important, but head hair can
be cut off with implements other than razors.
2
Jockenhvel 1971; idem 1980.
3
Bianco Peroni 1979; Gedl 1981.
4
Weber 1996.

have an excellent idea of the types and distributions of

razors (razor-knives) across Europe. This is conrmed
by a recent contribution that our honorand made by
way of summary of the present situation; these few
remarks can add but little to what he wrote then.6
In considering these objects, a number of preliminary observations may be made as they have in the
past both by A. Jockenhvel,7 by H. Drescher before
him,8 and indeed by S. Mller.9 Bronze Age razors,
which were either single- or double-edged, were in
many instances much resharpened; it would clearly be
necessary to have as sharp a blade as possible if anything like a close shave were to be achieved. Drescher
examined a number of razors to determine their hardness, and thus the possibility that they could have
taken a sharp edge. Even so, his experiments (implied
though not specically described) showed that shaving a beard growth of two to three days was tiresome
and difcult; a weeks growth was much easier to deal
with, as the blade had better grip on the beard (instead of sliding over it), allowing more successful removal of the hair. Straight blades were also easier to
use than curved or rounded ones, where it was hard
to deal with the areas round the mouth, nose and ears,
though they were satisfactory for the cheeks, throat
and neck (Jockenhvel, on the other hand, believes
that careful use of a rounded blade could still achieve
good results). This led Drescher to suppose that men
did not shave (or were not shaved) on a daily basis;
sometimes the practice may have been connected with
ceremonial or special events. He reiterated what H.
C. Broholm had observed previously, that in Danish
male cofn graves of Period II where the skin and hair
survived, men were clean-shaven or had only a day
or twos growth.10 In the absence of mirrors north of
the Mediterranean, it is possible, even likely, that a
specialist craftsman the barber did the shaving of
both living and dead, though Jockenhvel discounts
this possibility in view of the frequency with which
razors occur.11
A number of other people have conducted experiments with Bronze Age razors to see how effective
they were.12 These go back to S. Mller, and include

e. g. Broholm 1943-49; Aner/Kersten 1973-2003; Kaul 1998.

Jockenhvel 2003.
7
idem 1971, 245 ff.
8
Drescher 1963.
9
Mller 1897, 257 ff.
10
Broholm 1944, II, 58; 108; 285.
11
Jockenhvel 2003, 138.
12
Reviewed by Kaul 1998, 149 ff.
6

Anthony Harding

192

T. Ramskou and F. Kaul,13 both of whom reported that

shaving with a Nordic razor was possible, if not a totally pleasant experience. A shaving and haircutting
experiment was also conducted by German experimental archaeologists.14 Hair was successfully cut with a
razor-knife without problem, though it took twice as
long as with modern implements; but shaving a beard
of several days growth, either with the grain or against
it, was unsuccessful. In view of the other experiments
cited, this must be put down to lack of experience with
the implement though clearly achieving a close shave
was a skill that had to be acquired, and related both to
the sharpening or hardening of the edge, and the way
in which it was deployed. R. M. Kavanagh reports a
similar experiment by a Dublin student which was successful;15 while Ruoff showed how the sharpening of a
Bronze Age razor might have been done.16
It has been pointed out that many razors have worn
or damaged edges, suggesting that they were used
throughout a mans life and not replaced. This would
suggest that men became progressively more bearded (unkempt?) as they got older. Equally, a number
of authors have pointed out that razors could be very
sharp.17
Some men were clearly clean-shaven in the Bronze
Age; the technology, albeit imperfect by our standards,
was satisfactory for the purpose. But if the technology existed, why do we nd razors so unevenly distributed across the Bronze Age world? Was this merely a
matter of chance, i.e. availability, or did some people
choose not to shave? Or was shaving a mark of something else? If so, what did they have in common apart
from beards? As Jockenhvel remarked, in the Middle
and Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, razors appear both in poorly furnished graves, and in rich ones,
some of which can be seen as the burials of nobles;
so it was not just a matter of observable status in terms
of grave-goods that determined whether men possessed razors.18
Kaul suggests that there is a hierarchy of razors
(most of the examples he was concerned with belonged
to Periods IV and V), with tiny pieces of sheet bronze,
roughly shaped, forming the lowest rung of the ladder; undecorated but fully formed razors the next rung;
and elaborately decorated pieces the top of the tree.19
Around 10% of men were buried with razors and of
those, only 10% had special symbols drawn on them.
For him, there seems to be hardly any doubt that the

13

Ramskou 1976, 24; Kaul 1998.

Vorlauf 1996.
15
Kavanagh 1991, 85.
16
Ruoff 1983.
17
Kavanagh 1991, 85.
18
Jockenhvel 1971, 248.
19
Kaul 1998, 151.
20
Thrane 1984, 160 ff.
14

Nordic razors indicated status, admitting however

that determining what that status was is much more difcult. Given the way in which some razors were decorated with elaborate designs (based mainly on ships),
Kaul sees them as connected with cult practices, and
not merely or even principally as items for maintaining hygiene. H. Thrane too, in his publication of the
Lusehj mound, draws attention to the way that razors (of which two were found at Lusehj, of different
types) appear with different objects and form different
nd groups according to their accompaniment.20
THE RAZOR AS PART OF AN ELITE SET
As well as razors, other implements served as toilet items, notably tweezers, which were presumably
used for depilatory purposes. Sometimes spoon-like
objects are found, which may have been for the application of make-up; while objects usually called
awls have convincingly been interpreted as tattooing
needles. This interpretation goes back to Mller,21 and
while other authors have proposed different interpretations this remains the most plausible explanation.22
Broholm pointed to a number of Period II examples in
Denmark.23 Although certain examples of Bronze Age
tattoos seem not to be known, it is highly likely that
people did in fact wear them (one recalls that tzi the
Iceman was tattooed).
The razor, tweezers, make-up spoon and tattooing
needle are all part of a toilet set that occurs, in part or in
whole, at various times and places in the Bronze Age,
sometimes provided with a case, of leather, wood or
metal. Such sets were evidently intended for the care
and beautication of the body, especially the face and
hair. An obvious case in point is the Kings Grave from
Seddin, containing not only a razor but also tweezers,
a leaf-shaped blade that looks like a make-up implement, a comb, rings, pins and beads.24 Many graves of
Period II and III in the Nordic area would show similar characteristics: if one takes the well-known grave
from Trindhj as an example, Grave A contained a
sword with wooden and horn scabbard, two wooden
vessels, a horn comb, and a bronze two-edged razor
with spiral end; Grave B a sword, an amber-inlaid
bronze button, a bula, an awl (i. e. tattooing needle),
a pair of tweezers, a int strike-a-light, and a bronze
knife with riveted butt. One can repeat these nd patterns many times over.25

21

Mller 1897, 261 ff.

A. Fleming, for instance, saw them as leather-working
tools, which he considered typical for pastoral communities:
Fleming 1971, 160 f.
23
Broholm 1944, II, 109; 289 pl. 18-19.
24
Kiekebusch 1928.
25
Aner/Kersten 1986, VIII, 24 ff. Taf. 12-14.
22

Razors and male identity in the Bronze Age

Thrane suggests that a decorated razor might have
been given to a high-status youth on the occasion of his
rst shave, after which it accompanied him through his
life, thus representing a mark of manhood.26 Moreover,
since in Periods IV and V the razors are plausibly seen
as shaped like ships, and ships were the commonest
motif drawn on them, there is a double symbolism
in the possession of such a razor: they encapsulated
special knowledge, which was imparted only to those
worthy of knowing it.27 In this connection, it is interesting to speculate on the signicance of the decoration of some of the central and western European
razors, notably the two-edged razors with long-oval
leaf blade and tang, Variant II, of Jockenhvel, with
their elaborate hatched diamond design,28 or certain
other highly decorated pieces in central Europe.29
All this relates to the marking of the identity of
specic people, those for whom it was an important
matter that their appearance presented them in particular ways. Of the people whose identity we can study in
the Bronze Age, it is the category of warriors who are
most evident (indeed, this is perhaps the only recognisable Bronze Age identity other than that of particular
craftsmen). Warriors are recognised primarily by the
arms they are buried with, or, on occasion, by representations as with Nordic or Sardinian gurines. The
frequency with which razor graves also contain swords
or spears has been remarked on in both central and
northern Europe. Though there are many more cases
where weapon graves do not contain razors, particularly in Italy there is a striking correlation with male
graves, i. e. those containing male items.30
VARIABLE DISTRIBUTION OF RAZORS
Archaeological distribution maps can be misleading,
but it is often possible to discern general patterns that
seem signicant. In looking at the distribution of razors, a number of striking things emerge. I have previously pointed to the way in which certain razor types
appear to be limited geographically for instance
M. Gedls types Bdargowo and Biernatki ,31 where
a closely knit distribution centres on western Poland,
with occasional outliers that may indicate the movement of men in their lifetime from one area to another.32 Jockenhvels types show similar patterning, for
instance the restricted distributions of the Etienne and
Magny-Lambert types in France.33

26

Thrane 1987, 26; quoted by Kaul 1998, 154.

cf. too Bbel 2000.
28
Jockenhvel 1980, nos. 85A-94.
29
idem 1971, nos. 482. 486. 529. 562 etc.
30
Bianco Peroni 1979, 178 ff.
31
Gedl 1981, Taf. 21-22.
32
Harding 1997.
27

193

Razors are not particularly numerous in the British

Isles C. M. Piggott listed 97, which A. Jockenhvel
increased to around 200, partly through new or previously overlooked nds, partly through an enlarged list
for Ireland, and partly through the inclusion of earlier
and later nds, following the redating of certain razor
graves by J. J. Butler and I. F. Smith.34 Mrs Piggott
described this as representing a large number of
bronze razors, but even the extended list we now have
is hardly overwhelming in its quantity especially
when compared with, say, axes or swords; and around
half these pieces are of very simple lozenge-shaped,
spatulate or oval form, often unassociated or poorly
contexted some, indeed, may not even be razors but
knives or daggers. A relatively high proportion of the
more numerous two-edged razors (Piggotts Class I)
occur in cremation graves with urns which suggests
a long life for the type, since urns themselves lasted
for several centuries. Kavanagh has charted the nd
associations of the Irish examples, which is largely
with burials, and where pottery is present mainly
with Cordoned Urns.35 By contrast, rather few, almost
all late in the Bronze Age, come from hoards; the latter include pieces in hoards such as Minnis Bay and
Watford. Interestingly, several razors, including some
that were clearly continental imports, were found in
the Thames in west London, suggesting that they were
incorporated into whatever deposition practices were
in action in Late Bronze Age southern England.
It would be hard to maintain that razors in the
British Isles were associated with a particular class of
person (e. g. warriors), or that the practice of shaving
was widespread. In comparison with central Europe,
the material is scrappy and inconsistent; particularly
so in that the most obvious and high-quality razor
types are found only rarely, and then not in graves. The
oft-cited case of the razor from Winterslow, allegedly
with the hair of several persons eyebrows adhering to
it,36 does not advance matters very much, suggesting
as it does that rather specic cosmetic activities took
place, probably for ritual reasons.37 In relation to the
many thousands of burials known from Bronze Age
Britain and Ireland, the number of razors is tiny. Even
allowing for the possibility that some people used int
knives for the purpose, it is much more likely that
most men wore beards most of the time.
This situation is remarkably different from that
in central Europe, where a large number of the razor
nds come from graves, and relatively few from other

33

Jockenhvel 1980, 181 ff. Taf. 57,B.

Piggott 1946; Jockenhvel 1980; Butler/Smith 1956.
35
Kavanagh 1991.
36
Jockenhvel 1980, 198 no. 78.
37
Kavanagh (1991, 86) reported a new investigation of this
hair, which showed that it was not eyebrow hair but most likely
facial hair, but cut off so that neither roots nor tips were present.
34

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Anthony Harding

contexts such as hoards.38 Razors seem to have started

relatively late in the Bronze Age, during the Tumulus
period, when they existed but were not particularly
common; they were, by contrast, common in Period II
of the Nordic area and remained so.
One can pursue these matters further east and
south-east. The distribution maps provided by Weber
show a completely different situation in Greece and
the Middle Danube, on the one hand, and the central
Balkans on the other.39 Large numbers of razor-knives
are found in Crete and the Peloponnese on the one hand,
and in Hungary, northern Croatia and Slovenia on the
other (along the great river valleys of the Danube and
Sava). In between, and to the east in Romania, there is
a dearth. Even in Transylvania, where large numbers
of bronze hoards are found, only a scatter of razors
occurs, mostly in hoards (such as Uioara de Sus and
plnaca). Webers studies have shown the contexts
from which the razors come: the one-edged razors of
Oblekovice, Herrnbaumgarten and Italian types, which
belong to the late Urneld period, come mostly from
graves, but the much larger number of two-edged razors (Grossmugl and related types) comes much more
commonly from hoards, especially the large hoards
lying along the Sava. Those from graves are mainly
from cemeteries in Hungary, such as Nagybtony. In
fact, for much of Croatia, and for Romania, the situation prior to the late Urneld period was the same
as for the rest of the central Balkans: there were no
razors at all. In Bulgaria, for instance, the only nd is
that of an atypical stone mould for a two-edged razor
from Furen, district Vraca.40 In this vast area, the likelihood is that men went bearded; the appearance of a
razor must have been as unusual as the appearance of
a beardless man.
It is possible to exaggerate these effects, however.
The distribution of swords in the Balkan peninsula is
not dissimilar, with the largest number occurring in
the hoards along the middle Danube and Sava, and
only a small number coming from graves and from
the more mountainous areas. Nevertheless, the pattern
is striking, and can reasonably be taken as conrming
the view that men wore beards east and south of the
middle and lower Danube.
MALE IDENTITY IN THE BRONZE AGE
Identity was expressed in the Bronze Age in various
ways, including how people chose to appear, what they
wore, and what they carried with them. Depictions, for
instance on gurines or on Scandinavian rock art, may
tell us something about these matters, as may the preserved remains of the dead in Nordic cofn graves, but
38
e. g. Torbrgge 1959, 66 f. Taf. 23,10-15 (Labersricht);
Koschik 1981, 81 Taf. 55 (Obermenzing).
39
Weber 1996 Taf. 56.

it would be dangerous to assume that what pertained

in Scandinavia applied also to areas further south. On
the other hand, a persuasive case has been made for
discerning warrior identity,41 which was expressed not
only through the presence of weapons but also through
the means of beautifying and presenting the body. One
is reminded that the Spartans are said by Herodotus
to have prepared for battle at Thermopylae by combing their long hair, to the astonishment of the Persian
scouts (Histories, VII. 208); a number of passages in
Homer speak of the careful treatment of the body in
preparation for warlike activities.
Razors, tweezers, tattooing needles and other items
are clearly part of the paraphernalia needed for the creation of this identity, as expressed though the treatment
of the hair on face and scalp. The Amesbury Archer,
for instance, possessed a number of basket earrings,
plausibly interpreted as tress ornaments,42 and found
in a number of other Beaker graves; Scandinavian gurines sometimes show elaborate coiffures. Presenting
oneself to the world around is a crucial part of what
it means to be a human being; and the more that specic roles were created for people, the more important
it became to present their persona in particular ways,
sanctioned through custom and practice, and identifying to the world what a persons role in society was.
Men naturally have facial hair, once puberty has been
reached; the decision whether to keep or to remove it,
and if so, in what manner, is part of the presentation of
that persona. Razors and razor-knives are the archaeological expression of how men presented themselves
to the Bronze Age world. In this, they assume an importance out of all proportion to their size and number;
we have our honorand to thank for so much of our
present knowledge of their role and existence.
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ibidem, 206 no. 436.

Treherne 1995.
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Prof. Dr. Anthony Harding
Department of Archaeology
University of Exeter
Laver Building
North Park Road
Exeter
GB-EX4 4QE