9 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Comb and gold hair-ring dating back more than 3,000 years unearthed in south Wales

Archeologists in south Wales, have unearthed a golden hair ring and the oldest wooden comb ever found in the U.K. from a roadside burial pit dating back to the Bronze Age.

The find was made during archaeological excavations as part of a road-building scheme in South Glamorgan.

The 3,000-year-old artifacts, which were found in a burial pit containing cremated human remains, demonstrate the Bronze Age people’s attention to detail and craftsmanship, according to experts.

Both pieces have been dated to the middle bronze age (1300-1150BC) and are thought to have been carefully chosen by mourners as grave goods to accompany the deceased person to the afterlife.

Mark Collard, director of Red River Archaeology Group, said in The Guardian: “We’re always finding bits of metal and other artifacts but finding something like a comb is unique. It’s a rare glimpse into the personal life of bronze age people.”

Eight narrow teeth on the comb. It (actually a fragment of the object) measures just 36mm. Wooden and other organic artifacts usually decompose rapidly in soil, but the fact that the comb was burned during the cremation may have saved it from disintegrating completely.

The bronze age hair-ring displays an intricate chevron and herringbone pattern. Photo: Amgueddfa Cymru — Museum Wales

Red River Archaeology Group says it may be the oldest wooden comb ever found in Britain. Until now, the oldest wooden comb found in Britain was a small Roman accessory dated between 140 and 180 A.D.

The gold ring, 1.1cm in diameter, is expertly made and decorated with a finely worked chevron or herringbone pattern. It is believed to be an early example of a decorative hair ring.

It was not possible to say if the comb and ring belonged to a man or a woman, but the skill that went into the ring suggested that it was a high-status person, the researchers said.

David Gilbert, project manager for Red River Archaeology Group, said: “The gold ring is the most eye-catching object to accompany the cremation. However, the most important artifact is what may at first glance seem the more mundane: the wooden comb, which is a find without parallel in Wales, if not the UK. [It shows] the attention to detail and pride in appearance missing from so many depictions of prehistoric people on television or in films.”

Adam Gwilt, the principal curator for prehistory at Amgueddfa Cymru – National Museum Wales, said: “This cremation burial, with its accompanying gold ring and wooden comb, gives us a glimpse of life and death in bronze age times.

“The gold ring is a very early, well made, and a small example of its type, offering new insight into the development of hair-rings as a form of early jewelry across Britain and Ireland.”

Cover Photo: Red River Archaeology Group

Related Articles

4,000-year-old Snake-Shaped Pottery Handle Found in Taiwan

20 February 2024

20 February 2024

National Tsing Hua University archaeologists in Taiwan have discovered a snake-shaped pottery handle dating back approximately 4000 years. Researchers uncovered...

New Study Exposes Origins of Welsh Dragons

7 June 2024

7 June 2024

In a new study conducted by a team from the University of Bristol and published in the Proceedings of the...

13.000 Ostraca Discovered in Upper Egypt

20 December 2021

20 December 2021

The Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities and Tourism announced that a German-Egyptian mission at the Al-Sheikh Hamad archaeological site in Tel...

Glazed Bricks with Bull and Dragon Motifs Discovered at Persepolis

17 December 2021

17 December 2021

A team of Iranian and Italian archaeologists recently unearthed some glazed bricks bearing bull and dragon motifs in the ancient...

3,000-Year-Old Lost Anatolian language ‘Kalašma’ deciphered

5 July 2024

5 July 2024

In 2023 excavation site at the foot of Ambarlikaya in Boğazköy-Hattusha in Turkey, a cuneiform tablet with a previously unknown...

Two statuettes of Demeter discovered in Aigai, the ‘city of goats’ of the Aeolians in western Türkiye

20 November 2023

20 November 2023

Two statuettes of Demeter, the Greek goddess of earth and fertility, were discovered in a cistern in the ancient city...

2,000-year-old Celtic hoard of gold ‘rainbow cups’ discovered in northeastern Germany

13 January 2022

13 January 2022

Archaeologists have found an ancient Celtic coins treasure consisting of 41 gold coins in a field in Brandenburg, a state...

Truncated conical tombs 3,000 years old found in the Chapultepec Forest

26 November 2023

26 November 2023

Archaeologists from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) unearthed 10 truncated conical tombs, approximately 3,000 years old, at...

1,600-year-old Roman-era wine shop unearthed in Greece

29 January 2024

29 January 2024

A team led by Scott Gallimore of Wilfrid Laurier University and Martin Wells of Austin College discovered a 1,600-year-old Roman-era...

1800 Years Old Roman Milestone Used as Seat at Turkish Mosque

7 November 2024

7 November 2024

A milestone from the Roman Emperor Gordianus III period, which dates to 239 AD, was discovered in the Fatsa district...

The World’s Oldest Mummies “Chile’s Ancient Mummies Older than Egypt’s”

20 February 2024

20 February 2024

At the beginning of the 20th century, mummies dating back 2000 years before the Egyptians were found in the Atacama...

An inscription written in both runic and Latin script on a church wall in Denmark turned out to be still a legally significant promissory note

31 May 2023

31 May 2023

An inscription in both runic and Latin script on a church wall in Denmark turned out to be legally valid...

Archaeologists Find Mysterious 2,800-year-old Channels in Jerusalem

30 August 2023

30 August 2023

Archaeologists excavating in Jerusalem have uncovered a network of mysterious channels dating back to the days of King Joash and...

Rare a Serbian Stefan Uros II Milutin Silver Grosso discovered in Bulgaria’s Medieval Rusocastro Fortress

8 September 2023

8 September 2023

Archaeologists have discovered a silver grosso minted by the Serbian king Stefan Uros II Milutin in the medieval Rusocastro fortress,...

Ancient Hippodrome, Subject of Ben-Hur Movie, Will Become “Arkeo Sports Park”

8 August 2021

8 August 2021

Ben-Hur, a wealthy prince living in Jerusalem, is a historical figure who struggled for the freedom of the Jews during...