The mystery of the ancient axes that arrived at the Museum of Ireland in a box with no return address

The box arrived at the National Museum of Ireland in late June. It was a storage container for oats and had no return address. Inside, carefully wrapped in foam and cardboard scraps, were two 4,000-year-old axe heads. The archaeologists’ hearts nearly jumped out of their chests.

The case was a mystery. The Bronze Age objects were perfectly preserved, but the researchers wanted to know more. They needed to know more. What they were most concerned about was not who had sent them, but where they had been found. A treasure like this is not discovered every day.

Discovered with a metal detector

The only information they had was contained in a letter accompanying the axes. It said the fascinating artefacts, dating from around 2150-2000 BC, were found in County Westmeath in the interior of Ireland using a metal detector.

The person who had found them wrote little else. Just a reference to his wish that the Museum should preserve the flat axe heads. And the days passed but no more clues appeared. So the Antiquities division of the Museum decided to make the case public in an attempt to shed light on the matter.

“To fully understand and appreciate these finds, it is crucial to know the exact location where they were found. The context of such discoveries helps archaeologists reconstruct ancient settlement patterns and cultural practices. For example, hoards or collections of objects were often deliberately placed in specific locations for reasons ranging from ritual to supernatural practices,” the experts said in the published announcement.

At the time of receiving the anonymous package, researchers from the Department of Antiquities were participating in an international study of Bronze Age goldsmithing, with the aim of tracing the origins of the metals used in these artefacts. So any additional information was welcome.

“We are excited by the discovery of these Early Bronze Age axe heads, but to really understand their significance, we need to know where they were found,” said Matt Seaver, deputy curator of Irish antiquities at the National Museum.

Days later, his appeal has finally been successful. Farmer Thomas Dunne came forward this week as the mystery sender, admitting that he made the “absolutely crazy” discovery in a silage field in Banagher, County Westmeath, which has been owned by his family for the past 40 years.

“One day I was cutting forage for cattle and a piece of metal fell from a mower,” he told the Irish Times“We started looking for it because we thought it might get into the combine and break it. So, I got a man with a metal detector to look for it and that’s how we found the axe heads,” he added.

In Ireland, it is illegal to search for archaeological objects using a detector unless you have received written permission. Penalties can range from up to three months in prison or a fine of up to €63,486. No one expects charges to be brought against Dunne, however.

The first thing the Irish farmer thought when he discovered the artefacts was that they were the remains of an ancient horseshoe. Now, archaeologists have been able to visit the site to analyse the area and try to find out more about the people who lived there 4,000 years ago.