Title

Bracelet, treasure from Arcillera/Ramallas

Anonimous

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Object history

This piece is part of the Ramallas treasure from Zamora, also known as the Arcillera treasure: it consisted of three bracelets, a fragment of a jewel, and twenty-seven Roman denarii. These objects were found inside a ceramic container covered with a stone in the early 20th century.

Their provenance is not entirely clear, as Mattingly stated in 1935 that the collection "has recently come to England from Ramallas." The researcher based his statement on a document preserved in the British Museum (London) which stated the following: "Count de Ligandes told me that they were brought to him by a woman who found them at a place called Ramallas or Ravallas about 5 miles east of Arcillera." Following this lead, Esparza noted that it was Ramallas or Ravallas, a place located very close to Arcillera (Zamora). However, Esparza himself had his doubts: "If it really is Arcillera, it is completely unknown to us. If, as we suspect, it comes from the hill fort of San Juan de Rabanales, this site also presents some problems"(Esparza, 1983). Despite the surveys carried out in both areas, no similar objects have been found in either of them, so Esparza considered another possibility: "If the woman who brought him the pieces was from Arcillera, perhaps she gave her own village as a reference point, rather than the administratively correct one"(Esparza, 1983).

Although Esparza's hypothesis gained strength (Bragado, 1994; Martín, 1995), Matesanz (2022) has resorted to toponymy to try to determine the origin of the pieces. He has suggested the possibility that the treasure was found in Samir de los Caños (Zamora). Archaeological remains have been found in this town at La Corona, a site located in La Ramajosa, a hill to the northwest. Furthermore, in the Marqués de la Ensenada Cadastre, this area of Samir de los Caños is referred to as La Ramayosa. Surveys carried out in the area confirmed that the sites dated from an advanced phase of the Iron Age (Martín and Delibes, 1981; Esparza, 1987). Therefore, this origin seems more likely.

According to the document of sale of the treasure, a woman living in Arcillera found the pieces in a ceramic vessel. She sold it to Robert Marie Armand de Ligondès, a member of the French aristocracy who resided in Arcillera between 1887 and 1934. In turn, the count contacted Laurie Asher Lawrence, selling the treasure in 1932. From that moment on, the pieces were transferred to London, where they were acquired by the British Museum in 1934, where they remain today (Esparza, 1983; Matesanz, 2022).

Description

It is a circular bracelet that is slightly longer than one turn. Eyes and other lines are engraved on its ends, allowing it to be identified as a snake. This type of jewelry was very common in the Iberian Peninsula, with Celtiberian examples found in Padilla, Arrabalde, and Palencia (Esparza, 1983).

Locations

• II B.C. - Early XX^th c.

  archeological site

  La Corona, Samir de los Caños (Spain)

• ca. 1932

  businessman

  Robert de Ligondès, Arcillera (Spain)

• 1932 - 1934

  private collection

  Laurie Asher Lawrence, London (United Kingdom) *

• ca. 1934 - present

  museum

  The British Museum, London (United Kingdom)