Some European History from 1000-750BC

Golden Hat of Berlin

This post will look at European history for the period from around 1000-750BC. Due to the lack of sources we will have no real written records to rely on. This means that to look at history for this place and time we have to rely primarily on the archaeological record. This is fine and useful, but like all methods of looking at history it has its flaws and caution must be used. The dates in particular must be treated with caution. Some of the issues with dating have been dealt with in the previous post on European history. 

By the year 1000BC, Indo-European languages had probably reached nearly every part of Europe, although some areas, such as upper Scandinavia, perhaps parts of Ireland, Crete, Sardinia and parts of the Iberian Peninsula may not have spoken Indo-European languages. The Bronze Age had now spread across practically the entire continent, but was slowly being replaced by the new iron-working knowledge from the Middle East. While there were few trade routes as such, the Amber Road, which brought the prized amber from the Baltic, through the Moravian Gate and into central and southern Europe. 

Iron Age houses

In the century of the 1000’s BC the last remnants of civilisation on Crete appear to disappear. This had been known as the Sub-Minoan Age and was perhaps the last place where the palace organisations survived. But eventually this too was abandoned. It seems that Crete had a non-Greek speaking population until the 3rd century BC. This language, known as Eteocretan, was very likely to be a descendant language of the language spoken by the Minoans. Very few inscriptions remain; enough to be tantalising but not enough to translate satisfactorily, and some of those few were destroyed in World War II. Enough remains however to show that it has no clear relationship with Indo-European languages or any other known language family. 

Far to the north of Europe, it is around this time that the speakers of Uralic languages began to inhabit the northern reaches of Scandinavia. The languages spoken by these people would eventually evolve into Sami, Finnish and Estonian. 

Artifact from Hallstatt

Also in Scandinavia, at the site of Uppsala in Sweden, a great mound was made around this time called the Håga Mound. It is one of the largest Bronze Age burials in Europe and was larger even than the King’s Mound in Scania. Uppsala, where this tomb lay, would be an important cultural and religious centre in Scandinavia. It was the largest pre-Christian temple of the pagans and even today is the home of an old cathedral that was built at the site after the Christianisation of Sweden. The Håga Mound itself was excavated in 1902 by, among others, a young Swedish prince with a love for archaeology who later became King Gustaf IV Adolf of Sweden. 

On the Balearic Islands of Minorca and Mallorca a new culture, known as the Talaiotic Culture, arose around this time. Like the torri of Corsica or the nuraghes of Sardinia, the taliots of the Balearic Islands were tower-like structures that appeared all over the islands. They do however appear to be somewhat later than the nuraghes and it is unclear if the two phenomenon are related. 

This period also saw the burial of a huge cache of gold known as the Treasure of Villena. This was the largest Bronze Age treasure from all of Europe. The hoard was discovered in Spain and contained gold, silver, iron and amber. Despite the fact that the prehistory of the Iberian Peninsula is poorly known outside the region and often is not talked about, the sheer volume of treasure found at this one site, outweighed the golden goods of the Mycenaean graves. 

One of the major shifts that was happening quietly around this time was that the use of iron was beginning to spread throughout Europe. The Treasure of Villena contained iron, but it seemed to be a valuable metal that was used more for a decoration. The Iron Age refers to a time when iron was so cheap and economical to use that people used it more than bronze or stone for their tools and weapons. It is the ubiquity of the material that makes the age. Slowly but steadily iron-working technology was spreading westward and northwards across Europe and bronze would be gradually used less. Thus the Iron Age came by slow degrees to Europe. 

Urns of the Urnfield culture

Culturally, much of continental Europe was dominated by the Urnfield culture, where the dead were generally buried in urns. Cremation was common. Bronze was the main metal of choice, even as the use of iron began to spread through the tribal lands. Warrior elites fought from chariots with spoked wheels. Large fortified settlements were built atop hills, while in the lakes of the Alpine regions, houses were built on piles driven into the lakes to protect the dwellers from those who roamed the shores. In central Europe, though not necessarily outside it, the Urnfield culture may have corresponded loosely to the speakers of proto-Celtic, though we must be careful of confusing material cultures with linguistic ones. 

Two more of the enigmatic Golden Hats were created around this time. The Golden Cone of Ezelsdorf-Buch and the Avanton Gold Cone date from around this period. The astronomical features of these golden hats and other earlier artefacts such as the Trundholm Sun chariot might suggest that the Urnfield culture peoples, and the peoples of the Nordic Bronze Age cultures, might have primarily worshipped the sun. But this is speculation. 

The Golden Hat of Berlin

Around the year 950 the Golden Hat of Berlin was made. Like the Golden Hat of Schifferstadt, the Golden Cone of Ezelsdorf-Buch and the Avanton Gold Cone, this was an ornate golden hat, beaten out of thin sheet gold and covered with intricate spirals, similar in construction to the Mold Cape from Britain. The metallurgy needed to create such a perfect work from such a tiny amount of gold showed that the tribes of northern Europe had master goldsmiths. The golden hat would have been worn atop a hat of other materials and was probably worn for religious purposes. The symbols on the hat were probably astronomical in nature and may have represented the astronomical knowledge of the wise men of these tribes. 

The hat was deliberately buried with earth inside it to preserve its shape. The shape of the hat is tall, with a broad brim. The Berlin Hat is, in my opinion, the finest of the late Bronze Age Golden Hats and is well worth a visit to the Neues Museum in Berlin. 

I wonder if there was some cultural memory of old wise people wearing tall hats that transferred to a later wizard stereotype. It probably is a mere coincidence but I cannot look at any of the golden hats (there are four that are known to us) without considering the possibility of a Bronze Age Gandalf.

Around the year 900BC the Proto-Villanovan culture ended in Italy and was replaced by the Villanovan culture. This was more of a gradual evolution rather than a violent replacement. The Proto-Villanovan and Villanovan were both derived from or influenced by the Urnfield culture that was dominant in central Europe in previous centuries. 

Villanovan burial urn

The Villanovan culture roughly coincided with the spread of iron working to the Italian Peninsula. Their warriors wore elaborately crested helms and they had a warrior culture similar to the other regions of Europe. Not much more can be said of this culture, although those who came afterwards would be famed. 

Around this time the Phoenicians, who lived on the Levantine coast, began to send colonies throughout the Mediterranean. These were mostly in the eastern Mediterranean or in Africa to begin with, but not long afterwards Phoenician colonies would be settled in the Iberian Peninsula, on the island of Sicily and along the southern coasts of what is now France. There is the possibility that Phoenician colonisation began some centuries earlier, but this is debateable. 

Around the year 850 the Eberswalde Hoard was buried in the region that is now Germany. This was a hoard of the late Bronze Age, although the Iron Age was coming to that region of the world. There over 80 gold objects, mostly gold spirals and bangles, but including some beautifully decorated gold bowls. The treasure was stored in Germany and disappeared to Russia in the aftermath of WWII. A reproduction can now be viewed in Germany. 

Around the year 800BC the Urnfield Culture is generally viewed as coming to an end and the Hallstatt Culture is said to have evolved out of the parent Urnfield Culture. The Hallstatt Culture was named after a burial site at a village called Hallstatt in Austria. Over 1,300 burials were found, spanning a period of centuries. The distinctive artwork found in certain of these graves has given rise to the name of the culture. The Hallstatt culture, in the areas west of Hallstatt, are generally associated with the culture later known as Celtic. 

Around this time the Iron Age seems to have reached the island of Britain. Strangely enough the technology does not seem to have crossed over to Ireland, perhaps because there were large quantities of copper on Ireland that made bronze cheaper to produce than in other areas. 

Giant of Mont’e Prama

Around this time the people of the Nuraghic culture, on the island of Sardinia, built a huge tomb, possibly an entire necropolis. This tomb, near Mont’e Prama, was flanked (probably) with large statues carved as outsized warriors. The artwork might appear crude to us, but the site was subject to extensive looting after its discovery and many of the most impressive sculptures are probably missing. The dating of this tomb and these statues is problematic. They could date anywhere between 1000-300BC. I have written about them during this time period, but this is merely one interpretation. It is worth remembering that there were little known civilisations who nevertheless produced artworks. Without writing it is of course difficult to say more. 

On the Pontic steppe, in the areas now referred to as Ukraine and southern Russia, the Novocherkassk culture began. These were a steppe people who buried their dead in kurgans. Like other steppe peoples they appear to have been very concerned with horses and cattle, but not much more can be said of them. 

In the year 776BC the first Olympic Games in Greece are said to be held and the Greeks dated their Olympiads from this date. There is no contemporary evidence of this event and I would be wary of taking the date overly seriously. But there is no real reason to discount it automatically either. 

Spread of Celtic culture across Europe

In the year 753BC Rome was said to have been founded by Romulus. As with the Olympic dating in the previous decades, there is no contemporary evidence of this and there is a strong chance that it is legendary. However, it is likely that there were some village settlements on the hills of Rome during this time and that they may have begun to amalgamate themselves in or around this time period. Possibly they did this under the guidance of a charismatic tribal leader: Possibly his name was Romulus. But while not impossible we cannot leave it unquestioned either. 

The Oracle of Delphi was probably established by around the mid-700’s BC. This was a prophetess cult in Central Greece. Volcanic vapours wafted into a cavern over which a temple was later built. A woman specially chosen for the purpose would be sent into the cave for some time, before emerging in a euphoric trance speaking prophecies, which might or might not be intelligible. Those who came to the Pythia, for so she was called, would have these replies cast into a definite form by the priests and this guidance led most of the Greek world. Whenever a Greek individual or city wished to do anything of importance they would first consult the Oracle and thus it became the main focal point of the Greek world. 

Reconstruction of the Eberswalde Hoard

It was around this time that the Greeks were beginning to emerge from their Dark Ages. Greek cities, while still small and relatively poor compared to the cities of Egypt or the Near East, were now suffering from overpopulation. To solve the problems of overpopulation and discontent, Greek cities would send away colonies, groups of perhaps a thousand or more people to found a new city in faraway lands. There would be generally good ties between the parent city and the child colony, but many of the colonies became major cities in their own right. The prospective colonists would consult the Oracle who would give advice on where and how to settle the new lands. After this the Greeks would sail out into the frightening waters, for navigation was still an uncertain art for the Greeks. They would come into conflict with the Carthaginians who were already colonising and trading in the Mediterranean. 

Treasure of Aliseda

One of the most important markets for both the Carthaginians and the Greeks was the semi-mythical city of Tartessos. This was probably located in the region of southern Spain/Portugal, past the Pillars of Heracles, but south of the Tagus. Archaeology has shown that there was a rich culture in the region, but it is unclear exactly where the city of Tartessos itself existed, if it did exist. 

The Greek accounts are contradictory as to where exactly it lay and there is the possibility that Tartessos was not an exact place. The Phoenicians of Tyre, Sidon and Carthage were the main commercial contacts of Tartessos and jealously guarded their secrets. The confusion over Tartessos may be as the result of contradictory tales put about by the Phoenicians to protect their trade secrets. 

Tartessos may even be mentioned in the Bible a number of times, as the Biblical writers mention a trading port named Tarshish across the sea to the west. But they give few further details of this strange place. 

Villanovan Helmet

Possibly the most important change that occurred around the mid-700’s BC was the creation of the Greek alphabet, adopted from the Phoenician alphabet. This is the ancestor of the current Greek alphabet, as well as the ancestor of many of the alphabets in use in the world today. While no texts survive from this exact time period, the script must have been invented around this time, as many inscriptions appear shortly afterwards. This means that after several centuries of near total silence, at least one European civilisation could transmit their writings to later generations. 

And thus the period draws to a close, with the Iron Age technology spreading westwards across the continent, but with the fringe regions still primarily using bronze. The proto-Celtic Urnfield Culture had evolved into the primarily Celtic Hallstatt culture. Great advances were being made in Greece, which was once again linked by trading ties to the Near East and the Greek region is about to re-enter the field of history rather than prehistory.

Related Blog Posts:
Some European history from 4000-3000BC
Some European history from 3000-2000BC
Some European History from 2000-1500BC
Some European History from 1500-1000BC
Some European History from 1000-750BC
Some European History from 750-500BC