The Nebra Sky Disc, over 3,600 years old, is considered a globally significant discovery and has been part of UNESCO’s Memory of the World Program since 2013. This bronze disc, one of the most extensively studied archaeological objects to date, astonishes not only for its design and astronomical symbolism but also for the technical enigmas surrounding its manufacture. Recent metallographic analyses have unveiled fascinating details about the complex processes that shaped this artifact.

Since the piece was recovered in 2002, numerous scientific investigations have been conducted to uncover its secrets. Previous studies determined that the disc could not have been made simply by casting due to its material composition and physical structure. The latest discovery adds another layer of complexity by confirming that the disc was created through a highly sophisticated hot-forging process.

The production of the disc involved approximately ten work cycles, each consisting of heating the metal to about 700 degrees Celsius, hammering it into shape, and performing an annealing process to relax the internal structure of the material. This method allowed the disc to achieve the required thinness and strength, with a final diameter of approximately 31 centimeters and a thickness of just a few millimeters.

Nebra sky disc
The coppersmith Herbert Bauer makes a replica of Nebra’s celestial disk. Credit: Denkmalpflege und Archäologie Sachsen-Anhalt, Juraj Lipták.

To investigate these processes, a team of specialists from the Landesamt für Denkmalpflege und Archäologie (LDA) of Saxony-Anhalt collaborated with the Otto-von-Guericke University of Magdeburg and the company DeltaSigma Analytics GmbH. Using advanced technologies such as energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and backscattered electron diffraction, microscopic samples of the disc were analyzed.

These tests were complemented by hardness measurements and practical experiments conducted by a master blacksmith who recreated a replica using traditional methods.

A small sample from the periphery of the Nebra Sky Disc, previously extracted and restored in 2002, was reexamined. Detailed analysis identified the heating, forging, and cooling techniques that ensured the material’s stability, revealing the remarkable technical skill of its creators.

Nebra sky disc
The Nebra Sky Disc with the marked sample extraction point. Credit: Denkmalpflege und Archäologie Sachsen-Anhalt, Juraj Lipták.

The fact that, more than 20 years after the recovery of the Sky Disc, research has yielded such significant new findings once again underscores the extraordinary nature of this unique discovery of the century and the advanced level of metallurgical knowledge already developed in the Early Bronze Age, stated state archaeologist Prof. Dr. Harald Meller.

The latest research results make it clear that Early Bronze Age artisans were not only excellent metal casters but also highly skilled in the post-processing of bronze artifacts, such as hot forging. With their extensive experience and knowledge, they were capable not only of producing numerous axes in what could be considered early mass production but also of forging a unique piece from today’s perspective, like the Nebra Sky Disc.

The Nebra Sky Disc is also an impressive testament to how important it is for the advancement of knowledge to reexamine even well-known and supposedly well-researched discoveries when new methods become available, said Meller.

SOURCES

Landesamt für Denkmalpflege und Archäologie Sachsen-Anhalt

Dieck, S., Michael, O., Wilke, M. et al. Archaeometallurgical investigation of the Nebra Sky Disc. Sci Rep 14, 28868 (2024). doi.org/10.1038/s41598-024-80545-5

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