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Mysteries uncovered by 4,000 BC treasures discovered in dumpster

By
ANTOINETTE KELLY,
IrishCentral.com Staff Writer
Published Monday, April 4, 2011, 7:30 AM
Updated Monday, April 4, 2011, 9:43 AM

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4,000 year old lunula
4,000 year old lunula


Read more: 4,000-year-old necklace found in dumpster

Two years ago police discovered a hoard of ancient gold objects in a dumpster in Dublin. Now the significance of their find has become evident

What they found, wrapped in a sheet of paper, were two gold discs and an early Bronze Age lunula, a crescent-shaped collar from 4,000 BC . The ornaments  had been in a safe stolen from a pharmacy in Strokestown, and the thieves apparently didn't notice the gold treasures.

The objects, which were nearly reburied in the dump, were first dug up from a bog at Coggalbeg in 1945 but their significance was never fully understood until now . What was interesting was that the lunula and the discs were found together.

“It’s the first time ever that we have an association between the discs and the lunula, because the discs would be considered amongst the earliest gold ornaments and the lunula as coming a little bit later,” Mary Cahill of the National Museum of Ireland told the Irish Times.

The appearance of the objects together suggests they may have functioned as part of the same set of regalia, with the discs representing the sun and the lunula the moon.

The vast majority of gold lunulae found in Western Europe come from Ireland, and, says the Irish Times, are thus the first strong evidence we have of a distinctively Irish cultural form.

Read more: 4,000-year-old necklace found in dumpster

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5 Comments

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Mayosligo | Apr 06, 2011, 09:17 AM EDT
"Gold is where you find it."

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midsummer | Apr 05, 2011, 02:10 AM EDT
I am excited about this article and can't wait to hear more about the discoveries. Being a History buff and a proud Irish-American, this is the news I live for. But I have to tell you folks, I was in possession of the most precious treasure to ever come out of Ireland, for many years. That was my Beautiful, Angel of a Mother, Dorothy McNulty of Lurgan, County Armagh, who gave my father the honor of becoming his bride, married in Lurgan, at the end of WWII. God Bless My Mum, The Real Treasure Of Ireland.

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PhlutiePhan | Apr 04, 2011, 04:24 PM EDT
Why would you say "BC is in the dumpster"? I could say the same about "ND"! Go BC! Beat ND!

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Laochra | Apr 04, 2011, 04:19 PM EDT
The story of how these items came into the possession of the pharmacy in Strokestown has always been a bit dodgy. The owner's daughter said that her father bought it from someone who "found it in the bog." Very unlikely story. Perhaps the father (long ago deceased) was a dealer in such antiquities and the daughter was covering for themselves (there were 2 daughters) and their father's memory? Perhaps the items were taken from one of the many ancient burial sites/forts/mounds found in the Strokestown/Tulsk area before such exacavations were regulated by the state and the items (as well as others) found thier way to the pharmacist? Put no credance in the statement that they were discovered together. They were not.

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cillowen | Apr 04, 2011, 02:20 PM EDT
dumpster dum unlike pope's archivest "Dempster" - a Scot who was caught tampering with Vatican records to make all things referring to Ireland to appear as of Scotland.

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