1. Burial Customs Arts and crafts
The Bronze Age
Burial Customs
Arts and crafts
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

2. Arts and Crafts
An important area of work was metalwork such as mining.
Smiths were people who made the weapons and tools.
To make the weapons they used stone and clay moulds to make axe-heads, swords and arrowheads.
They also hammered the metal to make it tougher!
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

3. Gold was used as a metal for Arts and Crafts!
Gold was beaten into thin sheets to make lunulae and sun-discs.
Later gold was twisted into torcs, necklaces and braclets.
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

4. Examples of Arts and crafts
Lunulae
Sun-disc
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

5. Learning Objectives Key Terms
Cist Graves
Wedge Tombs
Standing Stones
Smiths
Lunulae/ Sun-disc
To understand different aspects of Bronze Age culture
To understand key terms relating to the Burial Customs and Arts + Crafts
To be able to identify differences between the Stone and Bronze Age
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

6. Cist Graves
Bronze Age people were usually buried in single graves known as cist graves.
These were rectangular pits dug in the ground and lined with stone slabs
The bodies were buried in a crouch position.
Grave-goods such as food, arrowheads and beads were placed in pots behind the body.
This shows that the Bronze Age people believed in the afterlife
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

7. Wedge Tombs
Wedge tombs were the most common of the megalithic tombs – over 500 have been found!!
The tombs were built with large flat stones, some forming the side walls, with a large capstone on top.
The tombs were wedge-shaped as the entrance was wider and higher than the back of the tombs.
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture

8. Standing Stones
Burial places have also been found with stone circles, stone rows and standing stones.
Many can be found around the country e.g. Drumbeg, Co. Cork
These stone monuments may have been used as part of some religious ceremony!
The entrance to the stone circles is usually in the north-east of the circle.
The smallest stone in the circle is opposite the entrance
Archaeologists think that this is linked to the movements of the sun
Learning Objective - To understand aspects of Bronze Age culture