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Hermann Parzinger, President of the Prussian Cultural Heritage Foundation, says: "The good and trusting cooperation between the German and Russian experts today is characterised by great mutual appreciation. It is the necessary and stable basis for future co-operation. The scientific community works without borders, with a high international gain in knowledge. Unfortunately, this outstanding exhibition on the Bronze Age must be withheld from the German public as long as the issue of cultural artefacts that were taken away as a result of the war remains unresolved at a political level. But with this presentation, we are also helping to develop solutions."

Bronze Age

The preserved artefacts from the Bronze Age bear witness to interesting historical developments. In this era, copper and tin were mined and exchanged within Europe. Trade relations developed and intensified. The mining and processing of the metal also led to a social differentiation of the agrarian society, which was still homogeneous in the Stone Age. Different specialisations developed in the crafts and a hierarchical society with regional "petty kings". The elite endeavoured to show off their status and acquire prestige goods. Luxury goods thus travelled to distant regions. In addition to the goods, technical knowledge and religious beliefs were also transported. In Europe and the Near East, a common concept of a world of gods emerged. As local conflicts increased, weaponry also developed accordingly.

Exhibition concept

The exhibition is presented in two halls covering more than 1000 square metres in the General Staff Building of the Hermitage. It is organised chronologically into three main sections: the Copper Age (4th - mid 3rd millennium BC), the Copper Age, Early and Middle Bronze Age (second half of the 3rd - mid 2nd millennium BC) and the Late Bronze Age (second half of the 2nd - beginning of the 1st millennium BC). Within these sections, the exhibits are presented according to the archaeological cultures in a regional structure. By comparing finds from Western, Central and Eastern Europe, similarities and differences in the material culture of widely separated regions of Europe can be highlighted. From this, conclusions can be drawn about the mutual influence of different cultural groups. Issues such as intercultural relationships, rule and power, religion and cult are also addressed in the exhibition.

In the exhibition section on the Copper Age, objects made of copper, such as axes from south-east Europe, and gold, such as disc pendants, are presented as evidence of early metalworking. The Cucuteni-Tripolje culture, which is native to the area between Romania and Ukraine, is presented, as is the Maikop culture, which is widespread in the eastern Black Sea region and the northern foothills of the Caucasus. Some of the people buried in kurgans in this culture were richly adorned with gold and silver artefacts.

The second main section contrasts the Copper Age cultures of the 3rd millennium in Central and Western Europe (Corded Ware and Bell Beaker Culture) with the contemporaneous cultures of the forest zone of Russia. The Volosovo culture, which spread from the Baltic region to the Kama river with its extensive settlements, the Globular Amphora culture (northern Germany to Ukraine), the Fatjanovo culture (Duna to the upper Volga), the Balanovo culture (Volga region), the Middle Dnieper culture and the steppe cultures up to the shores of the Caspian Sea and the Caucasus foreland are also given appropriate space in the exhibition. In this way, the cultural phenomena of the 3rd millennium BC can be compared over a wide area and the intercultural relationships, trade routes and migrations can be traced. One of the highlights of the second part of the exhibition is the presentation of the Trojan treasures dating back to the 3rd millennium. Some of these artefacts are kept in Berlin, but most of them are in Moscow and St. Petersburg as cultural artefacts that were taken away during the war and can be shown together for the first time in more than 70 years.

The last main section of the exhibition is described as the age of hoards, warlordism and power. Here, not only the trade and trade relations of Middle Bronze Age Troy are presented, but also all the cultural phenomena of the 2nd and early 1st millennium from Spain via Central and Northern Europe to the Urals in the Caucasus. In addition to gold and silver treasures from the Carpathian Basin, there are also artefacts from central, northern and south-eastern Europe on display. Highlights include the gold treasures from the Middle and Late Bronze Age from Eberswalde, Werder, Sonnewalde and Weissagk (all Brandenburg) and Dieskau (Saxony-Anhalt), which are on public display for the first time since the Second World War, as well as the bronze luren, swords, staff daggers and the cult chariots from Burg an der Spree. The cultural development in Central, North and South-East Europe is contrasted with the contemporaneous developments in the Russian forest zone (Šagara culture, Abaševo culture and Sejma-Turbino culture). The treasure finds from Galič and Borodino from the south of Russia and Ukraine respectively are particularly noteworthy. The exhibition ends with the remains of the peoples who lived in the area north of the Caucasus in the 2nd and 1st millennia BC.

Scientific significance of the exhibition

Never before has it been possible to show the cultural development from the late 4th to the early 1st millennium BC from Western Europe to the Urals and the Caucasus so comprehensively in one exhibition. Only through the co-operation of the participating institutions was it possible to cover such a broad geographical area, and only through this co-operation can certain find complexes central to the Bronze Age period be shown as a whole. These are groups of artefacts that belong to the old collection of the Museum für Vor- und Frühgeschichte in Berlin and are now partly in Berlin and partly, for the most part, in Russian museums as cultural artefacts relocated as a result of the war. The responsible institutions have decided, as they did in 2007 for the "Merovingian Period" exhibition, to develop the scientific concept around these find complexes.

Thanks to the joint scientific collaboration, new insights into archaeological issues can be gained, even though many of the objects in the exhibition were recovered in the 19th and early 20th centuries. In particular, the reunification of closed artefacts for the first time since 1945 allows new historical conclusions to be drawn. Massive advances in the possibilities of scientific analysis mean that new scientific information can also be gained from such "old finds". For example, metal analyses can lead to conclusions about deposits, mineral analyses of pottery can reveal where the clay came from, or investigations into manufacturing techniques can provide information about the spread of technical knowledge. The exhibition "Bronze Age - Europe without Borders" thus demonstrates the great added value that the joint efforts of the German and Russian partners bring to science.

Examples of find complexes from the old collection of the Museum of Prehistory and Early History, which are now wholly or partly in Russia

Treasure find A from Troy (last third of the 3rd millennium BC)
During his excavations in Troy between 1872 and 1890, Heinrich Schliemann discovered 19 treasures, 17 of which ended up in today's Museum of Prehistory and Early History as his legacy. Treasure A was found in an Early Bronze Age layer in 1873. The ensemble could have been a ritual deposit to protect the entire settlement or an emergency hiding place to keep the treasure safe from attackers. Its composition of rich gold jewellery, gold and silver as well as huge bronze vessels suggests that it must indeed have been the property of a princely dynasty from the last third of the 3rd millennium BC. Large parts of 13 treasures from the Berlin museum were taken to Russia. Today, most of them are in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow as cultural artefacts that were taken away as a result of the war, while others are in the Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg. Some items, including a number of silver vessels from Treasure A, are still in the Museum of Prehistory and Early History in Berlin.

Gold hoard from Eberswalde (9th-8th century BC)
The gold hoard was found in a clay pot in 1913 during excavation work on the site of the brass works in Eberswalde. The treasure was presented to the German Emperor by the owner of the brass works, Aron Hirsch, and was destined for the Berlin Museum. This largest Bronze Age gold treasure ever found in Germany is of extraordinary importance for Bronze Age research in Germany. The clay vessel lent to Russia for the exhibition is the only object remaining in the Museum of Prehistory and Early History today. The 8 gold bowls and the numerous gold wires, ingots and semi-finished products are kept in the Pushkin Museum in Moscow as cultural artefacts relocated due to the war.

Cult chariot from Burg (9th century BC)
In the 19th century, two cult chariots were found near a Late Bronze Age fortification at various locations in the Spree lowlands, which were acquired by the anatomist and prehistorian Rudolf Virchow in 1865 and 1876. One went directly to the Berlin Museum, the other was not included in Virchow's estate until 1902. The small chariots are decorated with the heads of waterfowl, often combined with bull horns, and were created for ritual purposes. Today they are kept in the Pushkin Museum as cultural artefacts relocated due to the war.

Gold treasure from Werder near Potsdam (around 1000 BC)
The gold deposit with a magnificent golden vessel, two arm rings and two spiral rings was excavated in 1888 in the area of the Lienewitz Forest under large stones with the remains of a ceramic vessel by Pastor Saalborn. In 1889, the find was brought to the attention of the court antiquarian I. A. Lewy from the Berlin Museum. The gold treasure from Werder is also kept in the Pushkin Museum today as a cultural artefact that was relocated due to the war.

Luren from Daberkow, Mecklenburg-Western Pomerania (9th-8th century BC)
The luren, approx. 1.80 metres long wind instruments, consist of several parts cast using the lost wax technique. The discs at the sound outlet, decorated with bosses and circular beads, are attached to the tubes. Small rattle plates were suspended in rings on the shaft of the horns. The two horns are in pieces and heavily damaged in places. Brown bog patina. Luren are still extremely rare finds in Germany today. Today they are in the State Hermitage Museum in St. Petersburg as cultural artefacts relocated due to the war.

2 pole daggers from Berlin-Schmöckwitz (1st quarter of the 2nd millennium BC)
The daggers were found around 1876 during fieldwork on the large Werder near Schmöckwitz and were purchased by the Berlin Museum in 1881. The two staff daggers had been laid on the ground with their points facing each other. Today they are kept in the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in Moscow as cultural artefacts relocated due to the war.

Sword deposit from Stölln, Brandenburg (9th-8th century BC)
The seven swords and a spearhead were found at the edge of a pond in 1836. The weapons are said to have been wrapped in a bronze chain. This depot is a characteristic example of a Late Bronze Age consecration of swords, which was common in large parts of Europe. One of the swords is in Russia, all the others are in Berlin.

Book accompanying the exhibition

The exhibition is accompanied by a bilingual book with numerous specialised articles by German and Russian scholars. All the exhibits are illustrated in the catalogue. The Berlin holdings from the Museum of Prehistory and Early History, which have been in Russia since 1945, are explicitly identified in the catalogue, and their former German inventory numbers are also given. The catalogue was made possible by the generous support of the Ernst von Siemens Art Foundation. It will be available in the catalogue shop of the Staatliche Museen zu Berlin from mid-August.

Бронзовый век. Европа без границ. Четвертое - первое тысячелетия до н. э. / Bronze Age. Europe without borders. 4th - 1st millennium BC.
Publisher Tabula Rasa, St. Petersburg, 2013; 648 pages.

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