| Abstract: | Re-examination of St-Brieuc and Wilburton metalworking shows they cannot align, and this requires a general reordering of the Atlantic Late Bronze Age sequence. They have many differences, principally sword types. St-Brieuc always has U-butt Kerguérou (Limehouse in Britain) swords, whereas Wilburton always has Wilburton swords. Wilburton must follow St-Brieuc, so a new Limehouse stage is inserted between Penard and Wilburton, to align with St-Brieuc. The combination of U-butt sword and straight-mouthed chape of St-Brieuc and Limehouse is consistent throughout Atlantic Europe. So too are the characteristics of Wilburton metalworking which followed, and its Brécy equivalent in France. In Britain the contemporaneity of Wallington and Wilburton is reaffirmed. Both played a part in the emergence of Ewart Park 1 metal-working, with South Yorkshire/Lincolnshire a vital contact zone. The Atlantic Late Bronze Age unravelled after Wilburton. Iberia effectively dropped out after Huelva, diverted by Phoenician influences. Links between Britain and Atlantic France declined, and their sword and axe preferences diverged. The various weapon complexes of Ewart Park 1 in Britain have no equivalents in France. Ordering and sub-dividing this final phase of the LBA has always been imponderable but has been helped by the identification of St-Philbert (Huelva) swords, which show what are Ewart Park 1 hoards in Britain and contemporary Longueville hoards in France. They also make clear that the Carp's tongue complex must be relegated to the last part of the Late Bronze Age. |
