it turned partly over on its side, no doubt many more articles will reward further explorations. It is evident that this ancient boat was sunk on purpose, because there is a square hole about six inches in diameter hewn out of the bottom; and it has been suggested that these objects were sunk as offerings to the Lake, but, on the whole, it seems more probable that in some time of panic or danger the objects contained in it were thus hidden by their owner, who was never able to recover them. Even in recent times of disturbance, as, for instance, in the beginning of last century, and in 1848, many arms, ornaments, household utensils, etc., were so effectually hidden in the lakes and peat mosses, that they could never be found again. Much interest is added to this vessel and its contents, by the fact that we can fix almost their exact date. The boat lies, as I have already mentioned, within a few yards of the spot where the previous discoveries at Nydam were made, and as all the arms and ornaments exactly correspond, there can be little doubt that they belong to the same period. Now, the previous collection included nearly fifty Roman coins, ranging in date from A.D. 67 to A.D. 217, and we cannot therefore be far wrong in referring these remains to the third century.
A very similar discovery has been made at Thorsbjerg in the same neighbourhood, but in this case, owing to some chemical difference in the peat, the iron has been almost entirely removed. It may naturally be asked why, then, this should be quoted as an instance of the Iron Age? And the answer seems quite satisfactory. All the swords, lance-heads, and axe-blades have dis- appeared, while the handles of bronze or wood are perfectly preserved, and as the ornaments and other objects of bronze are well preserved, it is evident that the swords, etc., were not of that metal; and it is therefore reasonable to conclude that they were of iron, more especially as the whole character of the objects resembles that of those found at Nydam, and the coins, which are about as numerous as those from the latter
