Object: Hoard (Bronze Age)
Period: Bronze Age to BRONZE AGE (-1000 to -800)
Material: Copper alloy Copper alloy
Found: Hollingbourne, Maidstone, Kent (South East)
Discovery method: Metal detector during controlled archaeological investigation
Description: 1. Socketed axe fragment



Incomplete, socketed axe; South Eastern class A. Double mouth moulding. Blade tip hollows, expanded blade. The blade tip is missing on one side. Heavy diffuse bevelling on the lower blade where the blade begins to expand. There is a fine transverse crack on both sides at this point. Many very fine transverse and oblique lines close to the blade edge. Traces of the blade edge intact, otherwise the edge is corrosion chipped. Casting flashes are visible, but they have been mostly removed close to the blade tip hollows. Two casting jet stumps. Oblique striations/scratches on one face. One blade tip chipped off. Dark green to brown patina.



L: 103 E Blade W: 49 Mouth W: 40.5 E Mouth B: 37.3



2. Socketed axe fragment



Fragment, socketed axe; South Eastern type. Only part of one side and the handle are intact. Double mouth moulding. Casting flashes visible above and below the loop. Even, dark green patina.



B loop: 8 Wt: 34.58g



3. Ingot



Ingot fragment.



Th: 27 Wt: 280.98g



4. Ingot



Ingot fragment. Plano-convex edge fragment.



Th: 25



5. Socketed axe



Complete, socketed axe; South Eastern class A1. Sub-circular mouth with double mouth moulding. Corrosion chips on small portion of mouth moulding on upper surface (casting flashes flattened on mouth mouldings). One pellet located just below the looped handle in the centre of one face only (the patina is missing from the same location on the other face). Very broad handle. The casting flashes are visible and are off-centre on each side. There are transverse lines along the casting flashes where it has been removed or reduced. A small portion of the blade edge is intact, otherwise the edge has corrosion chips. Transverse fine lines on both faces at the blade edge, from re-sharpening. A small part of the blade edge is intact to a length of 9.2mm. Dark green, even patina.



L: 125.2 Blade W: 43.5 Mouth W: 39.2 Mouth B: 39.8 B loop: 11.6



6. Ingot



Ingot fragment.



Th: 25 Wt: 539.49g



7. Socketed axe



Complete, socketed axe; South Eastern type class A. Sub-oval mouth with double mouth moulding. Prominent casting flashes along the sides. The casting flashes on the mouth moulding are largely removed. Blade tip hollows considerably, expanded blade edge. The blade edge is intact at one tip, but otherwise is corrosion chipped. There are very fine transverse lines on the blade edge from re-sharpening. Fine transverse and oblique striations on both faces of the blade. Dark green, even patina. Group of closely-set longitudinal striations along much of the length of one face.



L: 102.5 Blade W: 49 Mouth W: 42.6 Mouth B: 39.5 B loop: 7.8



8. Ingot



Ingot fragment, plano-convex.



Th: 28 Wt: 223.71g



9. Ingot



Ingot fragment. Plano-convex edge fragment.



Th: 37 Wt: 368.14g



10. Socketed axe



Complete socketed axe; South-Eastern class B. Double mouth moulding with five ribs on each face. Broad loop. Prominent casting flashes and traces of three low casting jet stumps. Many fine transverse striations on the blade edge. The blade is expanded and the tips are hollowed. The blade edge is intact at the tips, but otherwise is expanded and distorted. There is a crack extending from the mouth to just below the second moulding.



L: 102.1 Blade W: 54.5 Mouth W: 42.5 Mouth B: 42.5 B loop: 10-11.5



11. Socketed axe



Complete, socketed axe; South-Eastern type. Double mouth moulding. Faintly defined hour-glass moulding with circular pellet close to the lower mouth moulding, on both faces. There is not a transverse moulding along the bottom of the hour-glass moulding, but there are shallow mouldings extending from the lower terminals and across the sides to join the moulding on the other face. The casting flashes have been removed from the lower blade, but are visible elsewhere. The casting flashes on the mouth moulding have been unevenly removed and there is a casting jet stump. Multiple transverse striations along the blade edge, which is largely intact.



L: 122.1 Blade W: 44.6 Mouth W: 38 Mouth B: 42.2



12.. Socketed axe



Complete socketed axe; South-Eastern class B. Double mouth moulding. Nine plain ribs extending beyond the mid-way point on one face and seven on the other. The blade tip hollows on both sides. Diffuse bevelling and fine transverse, oblique and longitudinal lines near the blade edge which is well expanded. Much of the blade edge is intact, but very severe blunting, including some burring and some large chips removed from the blade edge. Dense transverse lines on the blade edge on both faces and further oblique, transverse and longitudinal striations on both faces. The casting flashes are worked into neat ridges.



L: 92.3 Blade W: 51.2 W mouth: 37.3 B mouth: 37 B loop: 5.5-6



12a. Socketed spearhead fragment



Socketed spearhead. Leaf-shaped. Round midrib. The tip and most of the blade edges are missing. Ill-defined shallow edge bevels.



L: 69 W: 33.4 Th blade: 1.9 D socket: 11.1 Wt: 50.58g



12b. Ingot



Plano-convex edge fragment.



Th: 28.7 Wt: 217.42g



12c. Ingot



Plano-convex edge fragment.



Th: 26.9 Wt: 245.53g



12d. Ingot



Edge fragment.



Th: 26.8 Wt: 311.55g



13. Sword blade fragment: Ewart type



Edge bevel well defined 4.5mm away from blade edge on one side. Blade edge intact in places, otherwise corrosion chipped. Occasional fine striations close to the blade edge. Hammer-rippled on one face.



L: 52 W: 25-28 Max Th: 7.5 Wt: 44.84g



14. Ingot



Ingot fragment.



Th: 27.3 Wt: 193.78g



15. Socketed spear-head fragment



Socketed spear-head. Small, leaf-shaped. Socket distorted and squashed. The median ridge is broad and rectangular-in-section, and the mid-rib is likely to have been round. The blade edges are mostly intact. Poorly defined edge bevels. Longitudinal striations along edge bevels.



L: 62.1 Max W: 34.5 Max Socket D: 30 Wt: 56.87g



16. Ingot



Two ingot fragments.



Larger fragment: Th: 26.5 Wt: 300.19g
Notes: Dating



A total of twenty objects are represented in this hoard; six complete or near complete socketed axes all of the South-Eastern type, one Ewart-type sword fragment, two socketed spearheads and ten fragments of standard ingots. Ingots are a well-known feature of this particular period in south-eastern England. The presence of axes, swords and spearheads which may be interpreted as scrap, mixed with ingots of raw material, suggests that this is a founders' hoard.



Although the axes are not fragmented, they do show signs of heavy wear and use and it is likely that they were collected with other surplus bronze to form a metal resource for recycling. A hoard of Bronze Age artefacts of similar types to those represented here was found in close proximity to the findspot of this group of artefacts, by David Button in January 2003 (T200310a). While it is possible that the group of artefacts reported here (T200310b), represents a separate deposit from the earlier discovery in the same field (T200310a), it is also a possibility that the two groups of artefacts originated as part of the same hoard which had been dispersed through the action of the plough.



All of these artefacts fall within the Ewart Park phase of the Late Bronze Age period and suggest a date of deposition towards the end of the period, around 1000-800 BC. The hoarding of metalwork at this period was not an uncommon phenomenon, particularly in the south-east of Britain.
Subsequent action: Acquired by museum after being declared Treasure