Abstract
The aim of the proposed work is to clarify the origin, dating and, if possible, the principles of application of the sickle found on the Ekritten / Vetrovo-3 soil repository. An analysis of such artifacts, known in the antiquities of the lower Volga and in the east of Central Europe, led some authors to recognize such sickles as a specifi c type of edged weapon. Attracting analogies in the form of other folding-type blades allows us to draw the following conclusions. The combat affi liation of folding sickles is unlikely due to the lack of a stopper when opening the blade. Most likely, such sickles (as the braids of the carriers of Prussian culture in its early phase) were used by Sambian warriors and carriers of various cultures of the Viking era as a tool for obtaining food for a war horse in marching conditions. The fi nd of a folding sickle, unique for the Amber Coast, testifi es to the connections of the Prussian warriors with the nomadic population of the steppes of Eurpasia.
Keywords
Archaeology, southeastern Baltic, sickles, Viking age.
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