Mirror from the chariot burial at Wetwang
Iron Age, around 300 BC
East Yorkshire, England
This iron mirror was found resting against the woman's ankles in
the grave. Careful cleaning has revealed well over a hundred tiny
blue glass beads, so small that they could only have been threaded
on to horse hairs, as well as metal and coral beads. Were the beads
from a tassel at the end of the handle, or perhaps from a bag in
which the mirror was kept? As the mirror decayed, impressions
formed in the rust of some cloth where it touched the mirror.
Why was the mirror in the grave? Was it an important personal
object that the woman used in life? Did the mirror have a special
religious or magical role?. These are questions that we may never
be able to fully answer.
To find out more and see a reconstruction of the chariot, see
the 'Wetwang Chariot Burial' tour.