An examination of lead isotopes similar to the one used on the silver was employed for the tin. All of the samples of tin soldering are consistent in lead-isotope composition with ingots from Cornwall in western Britain. The tin used for soldering the plates and bowl together, as well as the glass eyes, is very uniform in its high purity. [1] [2]

Cauldrons can be found from the late Bronze Age period; these include vast ones with a volume of 60–70 litres (16–18 USgal). [3] Symbolism and mythology [ edit ] A cauldron over a fire in William Blake's illustrations to his mythical Europe a Prophecy first published in 1794. This version of the print is currently held by the Fitzwilliam Museum Is it possible that the cauldron served some magic ritual or religious celebration? The Celts, like other ancient peoples, connected their daily lives to their gods, nature, and magic. Scientists discovered a substance on the inside of the cauldron. After a chemical analysis, it turned out to be beeswax ( Nielsen et al.: 5). In ancient days people often used wax as a waterproofing agent. This may indicate that some kind of liquid was put into the cauldron. What the liquid was is pure speculation.

More Halloween Recipes and Fun Party Food - Over 100 Cute & Creepy Ideas

a b c d e f g h i j k l m n Jouttijärvi, Arne (2009), "The Gundestrup Cauldron: Metallurgy and Manufacturing Techniques”, Materials and Manufacturing Processes, 24: 960–966. ISSN 1042-6914 A cauldron (or caldron) is a large pot ( kettle) for cooking or boiling over an open fire, with a lid and frequently with an arc-shaped hanger and/or integral handles or feet. There is a rich history of cauldron lore in religion, mythology, and folklore. a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o Nielsen, S; Andersen, J; Baker, J; Christensen, C; Glastrup, J; et al. (2005). "The Gundestrup cauldron: New scientific and technical investigations”, Acta Archaeologica, 76: 1–58. ISSN 0065-101X This section contains an unencyclopedic or excessive gallery of images. Please help improve the section by removing excessive or indiscriminate images or by moving relevant images beside adjacent text, in accordance with the Manual of Style on use of images. ( Learn how and when to remove this template message)

Thus, the cauldron may have been commissioned by a Celt who at one time lived or fought in the Balkan/Anatolian region. How the vessel made its way to Gundestrup, Denmark, is a mystery. Important Symbols on the Cauldron Central Bowl BullNMD" = "The Gundestrup Cauldron", National Museum of Denmark, web section, accessed on 1 February 2016 Laings", Lloyd Laing and Jennifer Laing. Art of the Celts: From 700 BC to the Celtic Revival, 1992, Thames & Hudson (World of Art), ISBN 0500202567 a b c d e f g Olmsted, Garrett S (1979), "The Gundestrup cauldron: its archaeological context, the style and iconography of its portrayed motifs and their narration of a Gaulish version of Táin Bó Cúailnge", Collection Latomus 162 [Latomus: Bruxelle 1979]. ISBN 2-87031-102-8

By tracing the movements of the Celts, we may be able to glean some information about the potential history of the Gundestrup cauldron. Trade and migrations had been taking place across vast distances between the east and west well before the creation of the cauldron. During the “great Celtic migration” in 279 BCE, the Celts from the west invaded the Balkans, which included Thrace (Bulgaria and parts of Turkey and Greece). From there they moved into Anatolia (Turkey). They established themselves in upper Anatolia, which the locals would call Galatia. Those Celts became known as the Galatians (Gauls). Celtic presence in Galatia was long-lived, and because the Galatians were adept warriors, many regional forces hired Celts to fight battles in the Thracian region and into West Asia Minor. Additionally, archaeological discoveries and the efforts of researchers like Sir James Frazer has established the practice of magical ritual by the Celts. The noted anthropologist explored this notion in his seminal work, The Golden Bough. In the book, Frazer writes, “Religion consists of two elements, a theoretical and a practical, namely, a belief in powers higher than man and an attempt to propitiate or please them.”

The cauldron is not complete, and now consists of a rounded cup-shaped bottom making up the lower part of the cauldron, usually called the base plate, above which are five interior plates and seven exterior ones; a missing eighth exterior plate would be needed to encircle the cauldron, and only two sections of a rounded rim at the top of the cauldron survive. The base plate is mostly smooth and undecorated inside and out, apart from a decorated round medallion in the centre of the interior. All the other plates are heavily decorated with repoussé work, hammered from beneath to push out the silver. Other techniques were used to add detail, and there is extensive gilding and some use of inlaid pieces of glass for the eyes of figures. Other pieces of fittings were found. Altogether the weight is just under 9 kilograms. [7]

A set of careful full-size replicas have been made. One is in the National Museum of Ireland in Dublin, [12] and several are in France, including the Musée gallo-romain de Fourvière at Lyon and the Musée d'archéologie nationale at Saint-Germain-en-Laye. Despite the fact that the vessel was found in Denmark, it was probably not made there or nearby; it includes elements of Gaulish and Thracian origin in the workmanship, metallurgy, and imagery. The techniques and elements of the style of the panels relate closely to other Thracian silver, while much of the depiction, in particular of the human figures, relates to the Celts, though attempts to relate the scenes closely to Celtic mythology remain controversial. Other aspects of the iconography derive from the Near East. [8] Apart from Cernunnos and Taranis, discussed above, there is no consensus regarding the other figures, and many scholars reject attempts to tie them in to figures known from much later and geographically distant sources. Some Celticists have explained the elephants depicted on plate B as a reference to Hannibal's crossing of the Alps. [5]Olmsted relates the scenes of the cauldron to those of the Táin Bó Cuailnge, where the antlered figure is Cú Chulainn, the bull of the base plate is Donn Cuailnge, and the female and two males of plate e are Medb, Ailill, and Fergus mac Róich. Olmsted also toys with the idea that the female figure flanked by two birds on plate f could be Medb with her pets or Morrígan, the Irish war goddess who often changes into a carrion bird. [13] Olmsted (1979, 1994) sees Cernunnos as Gaulish version of Irish Cu Chulainn. As Olmsted (1979) indicates, the scene on the upper right of plate A, a lion, a boy on a dolphin, and a bull, can be interpreted after the origin of the bulls of the Irish "Tain", who take on similar animal forms, fighting each other in each form, as indicated in the two lions fighting on the lower right of plate A. Finally, the glass inlays of the Gundestrup cauldron have been determined through the use of X-ray fluorescence radiation to be of a soda-lime type composition. The glass contained elements that can be attributed to calcareous sand and mineral soda, typical of the east coast of the Mediterranean region. The analyses also narrowed down the production time of the glass to between the second century BC and first century AD. [1] [2] Flow of raw material [ edit ] Exterior plate d