Archaeologists have studied the inscription on the 2000-year-old “bronze hand”: it is probably a sample of a mysterious ancient language – News

Probably, archaeologists have found the oldest sample of the mysterious Vascon language

Antiquity

Archaeologists have analyzed an inscription in a mysterious ancient language on a 2,000-year-old Spanish “bronze hand”. It is probably the oldest and longest known example of the Basque language.

This is reported by Arkeonews with reference to a study published in the scientific journal Antiquity.

Archaeologists discovered a hand-shaped bronze plaque in the northern Spanish region of Navarre in 2021. Its length is 14.5 centimeters.

The artifact is made of a sheet of bronze carved in the shape of a life-size right hand.

Laboratory analysis showed that it was engraved with strange inscriptions, 40 characters long. They are divided into four lines.

Scientists interpreted the text on the “hand” as begging for luck.

“The hand would have a ritual function: either to attract good luck or as an offering to the local god or goddess of good luck,” – the co-author of the study, Mattin Ayestaran, said.

Archaeologists have identified this language as Basque, which is related to the modern Basque language. They found the Basque word “luck” on the artifact.

The Vascon language was spoken by the Vascones, a pre-Roman people who lived in the western Pyrenees, as well as in parts of the Spanish regions of La Rioja and Aragon. Until recently, scientists believed that they did not have writing, but now there is evidence to the contrary.

According to the researchers, even one similar word can indicate the kinship of the Basque and Basque languages. However, it is difficult to prove this definitively, because the text on the “hand” is the only long Basque text found.

It will be recalled that a copper age necropolis with 22 tombs was discovered in Italy.