EARLY BRONZE AGE HOARD OF COPPER JEWELLERY FROM BOJNÁ (WESTERN SLOVAKIA)

The hoard of copper objects from Bojná, Topoľčany district in western Slovakia, on the eastern slope of the Považský Inovec Mountains fits within the chronological framework of the existence of Early Bronze Age tribes. Such items were most widespread in the late (transitional), Nitra-Únětice phase of the Nitra culture, with a gradual fading and disappearance of the tradition during the classical phase of the Únětice culture. In the absence of additional data, the find of copper objects at the Bojná settlement probably can be dated broadly on the basis of 14c data to the time interval 1930 – 1730 cal. BC. The analysis of burial materials from different archaeological cultures of Eastern Europe of the Bronze Age allows us to state the following: jewellery made of thin wire – spiral rings with open ends – are universal and multifunctional products, which in the context of funerary rites could be used just as bracelets or rings for hairstyles and headdresses. Apart from economic reasons (storage, concealment), ritual reasons for the burial of the hoard cannot be ruled out. It is possible that the items from the Bojná complex are not just a hoard of metal objects, but also the result of ritual-magical activities related to the manipulation of human hair.