Ancient Greeks were among the first people to have traded their nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle for the sedentary farming ways about eight millennia ago. During the prehistoric times, which lasted until about 4,000 years ago, they constantly developed, as manufacture and trade reached unparalleled greatness in their civilization. A reminder of their warfare abilities has recently been uncovered close to the modern city of Mesi, in the northern region of Greece.

Greek authorities announce that a large treasure of some 4,500-year-old copper weapons (actually, the largest of this type found so far) has recently been recovered from the coastal regions in the north, by the city of Mesi. The place is situated approximately 800 kilometers (500 miles) to the northeast of the capital Athens, where the pieces of weaponry were buried at a depth of about 3.2 meters (10.5 feet) below the sandy surface.

 

A later statement issued by the Greek Ministry of Culture indicates that the discovered hoard is comprised of at least 110 bronze hammer and ax heads, and that it is expected more will be detached from the twisted compact mass of rusted metal. At the time these were buried, they must have represented quite a fortune, and it is still a mystery why they were deposited that way.

 

Further investigations could tell us more about their origin and purpose, especially considering that, although buried by the beach, no remains of a shipwreck have been discovered yet, according to the statement. Current suppositions suggest that they were placed beneath the sands in a period of unrest or even war, and that perhaps sea levels were not as high at the time as they are today. It is believed that the location was just a regular coastal region that was only subsequently covered by floods caused by the increased sea levels.