Unexpected find in Villena: Bronze age treasures made of meteoric iron

Among the golden treasures from the Iberian Bronze Age in the treasury in the Spanish city of Villena, scientists discovered two exceptional specimens. A hollow hemisphere and what was once a bracelet caused quite a surprise. As the researchers explain in the scientific journal "Trabajos de Prehistoria," both items were made of meteoric iron, as confirmed by their analyses.

According to scientists, the Villena treasure (comprising around 66 items), discovered by José M. Soler at the end of 1963 in Rambla del Panadero and housed in the Villena Museum, is one of the most important gold collections from the Bronze Age on the Iberian Peninsula. Researchers appreciated its value but had problems determining its chronology within the Bronze Age. A particular challenge was dating the two iron objects - a small hollow hemisphere covered with an openwork sheet of gold that could have been the finishing touch for a scepter or sword handle, and the bracelet.

In 2007, Prof. Concepción Blasco Bosqued suggested testing the objects to see if they were made of "earthly" or meteoric iron. Scientists took samples from the mysterious hemisphere and the bracelet and subjected them to detailed analyses. They examined, among other things, their composition and viewed them under a metallographic microscope. The research findings indicated that the items were likely made of meteoric iron and were the first such items on the Iberian Peninsula.

"The available data suggest that the cap and bracelet from the Villena treasure would be the first two examples attributed to meteoric iron on the Iberian Peninsula," the article states. The scientists also explain this is "consistent with the chronology of the late Bronze Age, before the beginnings of widespread production of earthly iron."

The items from the Villena treasure are heavily corroded. For this reason, experts emphasize the need for further research to resolve remaining doubts. They mention non-invasive methods such as gamma spectrometry, CT scanning, and muon radiography. These methods could finally confirm the extraterrestrial origin of the iron used to make the hemisphere and bracelet.