Bronze Razor from the Collection of the National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences

Among the numerous objects kept in the collections of the National Archaeological Institute with Museum at the Bulgarian Academy of Sciences there is one object that stands out for its specific characteristics. It is a moon-shaped blade with a handle – most probably a razor. The aim of the present article is to publish this object, and to attempt to clarify its cultural affiliation and relative chronology. The dimensions of the bronze razor are: length (with the handle) – 13.5 cm; length of the handle – 4 cm; width (max.) – 5.1 cm; thickness of the blade – 0.1 cm; width (middle) – 4.00 cm; diameter of the ring on the handle – 1.3x1.2 cm; thickness of the handle – 0.4 cm. In conclusion, it can be pointed out that the object fits perfectly into a group of artefacts whose territorial distribution, of the particular type of Vetulonia, covers the lands of northern Italy within the historical limits of northern Etruria and more precisely its central part. The dating can be placed at the time of the first phase of the Early Iron Age, in a relatively narrow time span (10th–7th centuries BC). Considering the archaeological context in which these objects are usually found, as well as their semantic context, there should be no objection to interpreting it as part of the grave goods belonging to a male individual associated with the initiations of growth, maturation and incorporation into the community that generated and produced this type of bronze ware.