Meanings of the Dacian golden spiral barcelets. outlines

Abstract

For the fi rst time in the study of the Dacian age, the similarities between the golden bracelets on the Grădiștea and Căprăreaţa Hills and the other silver exemplars allow us to establish an esthetic and symbolic link between the vestiges in the Orăștie Mountains and the pompous manifestations in other parts of pre-Roman Dacia. These analogies indicate the adherence of local elites to a symbolic and heraldic code of identity that was probably elaborated exactly around the monumental center of Grădiștea de Munte. This is perhaps the most important implication of the golden bracelets. At the same time, the discovery of the golden bracelets may be perceived as the first confirmation of some burial practices with possible votive values in the immediate vicinity of the monumental edifices on Grădiștea Hill.