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The Nebra Sky Disk

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Writing 1

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May 26, 2021

Archaeologists are caught up in an intense fight over the significance of the

Mysterious Nebra Sky Disk Really. It is founded on the debate between various authors who

have put forth regarding the true origin and value of the mysterious Nebra Sky Disk. Some

archaeologists, including Gebhard, argue that the artifact’s said origin is a misleading concept

and that it is dated from the Iron Age and not Bronze Age, as previously thought. On the

contrary, the other set of experts led by Meller disagree, claiming that there is proof showing

the disk is actually dated from the Bronze Age. The method used by the article to depict the

mysterious artifact’s origin age is ineffective for persuasion.

The artifact Nebra Sky Disk is an unequaled ancient object made of bronze and

copper. In context, it has several symbols that represent the sun or full moon, a lunar crescent,

and the cluster of stars in the background. It weighs 2.2 kilograms and has a diameter of

around thirty centimeters (Cascone, 2021). The origin and the value of the artifact have

recently attracted a tight debate among different archaeologists who have been studying it for

years. The artifact was essentially excavated in Mittelberg, a hillside near Nebra town in

Germany, by looters who then buried it in another location. It was rescued by the authorities

in Switzerland from the black market. Furthermore, Gebhard’s team of archaeologists

disagrees with the looters’ story claiming that their story is based on false evidence for the

purpose of continuing their illegal trade with such artifacts. The archaeologists go on to

consider the artifact as an emotional object.

On the other hand, another group of experts claims that Gebhard’s point is more

selective as they ignore certain key aspects of the research’s work conducted for over twenty

years. Besides, the experts argue that the evidence pointing to the artifact’s Bronze Age

origin, including a sword with a partially wooden handle, supports the looters’ story. The

experts also claim that Nebra Sky Disk is an artifact belonging to the European Bronze Age.

The author caters to this audience by claiming it was named for the increasing communities

that used to cremate the dead and buried them in urns. The publication date for the article is

Sept. 3, 2020. Generally, there is a misconception between the archaeologists regarding the

authentic artifact’s origin and its value.

The author anonymously confuses its audience with the Nebra Sky Disk’s specific

origin, whether from the Bronze Age or Iron Age period. For instance, she claims that some

Archaeologists led by Gebhard argue that the mysterious artifact is not dated from the Bronze

Age some 3600 years ago, as suggested by treasure forger. Instead, the archaeologists claim

that it is a less-remarkable Iron Age object whose origin is dated 1000 years after the Bronze

Age (Cascone, 2021). Logically, Gebhard’s team criticize the emotional part of the object and

claim that the artifact was shifted to a different site to make it appear older to increase its

value. Literally, this shows that the author uses the archaeologists’ team to oppose his first

argument regarding the actual origin and period of the artifact.

The author uses cultural beliefs in claiming that the origin and place from where

the artifact was discovered first. Based on her statement, archaeologists believed that the

Nebra Sky Disk is from the period of Urnfield during the Bronze Age of Europe. She adds

that it was named for the communities that were believed to cremate dead bodies and bury

them in urns. Also, she refers to all of the archaeologists mentioned in the article to have been

studying the artifact, to be based in Europe. For instance, both Gebhard’s and Meller’s teams

are named after German’s professional institutions. Clearly, this shows how the author

emphasizes the fact that the artifact belongs to the ancient European period, and only

archaeologists from the region are mentioned to have gotten involved with studying the

mysterious ancient object.

Furthermore, the author uses emotion and imagery to interpret the artifact’s ancient

use. She claims that the Nebra Sky Disk was used by ancient people to predict the heavens’

movement and for tracking the calendars of lunar and solar to determine the plantation period

(Cascone, 2021). Here, she uses emotional or imagery features drawn on the disk, including

the sun or full moon, crescent moon, and the stars, to evaluate what meant for the ancient

people.

Moreover, the author uses facts and logistics to argue that the looters’ primary goal

of hiding the original cite was to sell the artifact at a higher price. Based on her argument, the

soil samples from Nebra Sky Disk and other artifacts did not match samples of other artifacts

claimed to have been buried together in Mittelberg. Besides, she claims that the primary

reason why the looters failed to uncover the original site is because they had considered the

site as their treasure box.

In conclusion, the approach used by the author to claim her argument is ineffective

for persuasion. It is hard to persuade the audience with her argument as she is so confusing.

At one point, she argues that the artifact originated from the Bronze Age period, and at times

she opposes and claims that it was dated to the Iron Age period. This makes it difficult for the

audience to acknowledge the actual dating period of the Nebra Sky Disk artifact.

Reference

Cascone S. (2021). “Archaeologists Are Caught Up in an Intense Fight Over Just

How Important the Mysterious Nebra Sky Disk Really Is”. Artnet News, Arnet

News,20 Jan

https://news.artnet.com/art-world/debate-nebra-sky-disk-intensifies-1938104

Accessed 17 May 2021

Gebhard, R., & Krause, R. Critical comments on the find complex of the so-called

Nebra Sky Disk.

Mozel, P. (2013). The Sky Disk of Nebra. Journal of the Royal Astronomical Society

of Canada, 97, 245.

Pizzone, R. G. (2020). Evidence of the earliest Supernova observation in the Nebra

disk. arXiv preprint arXiv:2005.07411.