BZ-19 sickle

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Object
Classification:	sickle
Material:	iron
Size:	length: 21.4 cm, width: 10.7 cm, thickness: 4 mm
Condition:	complete, damaged
Site:	Tisens / Tesimo (Bozen / Bolzano, Trentino-Alto Adige, Italy)
Field name:	St. Hippolyt / Sant'Ippolito
Archaeological context:	near the cremation grave
Coordinates (approx.):	46° 34' 49.91" N, 11° 9' 41.44" E
Find date:	October 1893
Find circumstances:	excavation
Current location:	Tiroler Landesmuseum Ferdinandeum (repository)
Inventory Nr.:	17.322
Inscription:	BZ-19 ($iị)
Sources:	Franz 1959: 229, fig. 3.3 Kaltenhauser 1966: 62, pl. 15.8

Commentary

Iron sickle (leaf harvesting knife) with tang.
Curved blade, cutting edge inside; the wide tang twice perforated. Partly highly corroded, along corrosion holes. Front part and back in a moderate condition.
The above-mentioned dimensions result of the autopsy by the Thesaurus Inscriptionum Raeticarum. Kaltenhauser indicates a length of 23.5 cm (cp. Kaltenhauser 1966: 62).
Near the tang characters. In Franz 1959 only a drawing of the characters.
One of the findings made during the excavations executed by Dr. Franz von Tappeiner (1816–1902) during the 1890s. Von Tappeiner was a doctor, but moreover he was a botanist as well as interested in anthropological studies, as a result he has executed many excavations especially on the Hochbühel and St. Hippolyt / Sant'Ippolito. The focus of these excavations was on the retrieval of prehistoric skulls, the other findings were incidental for von Tappeiner. Franz von Wieser who took part in the major part of these excavations was responsible for the archeological review and recording (for detailed information cp. Von Wieser 1903: 317–320). As exact place of discovery Kaltenhauser notes "neben dem "Brandgrab"", in addition he refers to "Tapp. Okt. 1893" (cp. Kaltenhauser 1966: 62).
In the recently released study about the Raetic inscriptions by Marchesini the iron sickle is listed with "MLR 278", an autopsy was effected (cp. MLR: 245 [MLR 278]).
Autopsied by the Thesaurus Inscriptionum Raeticarum in November 2013.

S.K.

Bibliography

Franz 1959	Leonhard Franz, "Rätische Inschriften im Innsbrucker Landesmuseum", Der Schlern 33 (1959), 228–229.
Kaltenhauser 1966	Gerard Kaltenhauser, Die vor- und frühgeschichtlichen Altertümer von St. Hippolyt bei Tisens, Innsbruck: 1966. (2 volumes: text volume and volume of plates; unpublished doctoral research study)