5,000-Year-Old Tooth Necklace Unearthed Near Wrocław

The news in Polish

1. archeolog  (m.)
   Osoba, która bada przeszłość człowieka poprzez wykopaliska i analizę znalezionych przedmiotów. ↩︎
2. naszyjnik  (m.)
   Ozdoba noszona na szyi, często wykonana z koralików, kamieni lub metalu. ↩︎
3. ząb  (m.)
   Twarda, biała część w ustach służąca do gryzienia i żucia pokarmu. ↩︎
4. rzadki
   Coś, co nie występuje często lub jest trudne do znalezienia. ↩︎
5. wyjątkowy
   Coś, co jest niezwykłe, niepowtarzalne i różni się od innych rzeczy. ↩︎
6. znalezisko  (n.)
   Przedmiot lub obiekt odkryty podczas poszukiwań lub wykopalisk archeologicznych. ↩︎

Translation

Text comprehension

Question 1: How many animal teeth make up the necklace?

Question 2: Approximately how old is the necklace?

Vocabulary

Polish	English
archeolog  (m.)	archaeologist
naszyjnik  (m.)	necklace
ząb  (m.)	tooth
rzadki	rare
wyjątkowy	exceptional
znalezisko  (n.)	find

Read the full story

Archaeologists working near Wrocław in south-west Poland have uncovered a prehistoric necklace made of teeth, estimated to be around 5,000 years old. Researchers describe it as an exceptional find on a national scale.

The team is led by Prof. Tomasz Gralak from the Institute of Archaeology at the University of Wrocław, who has stated there is no doubt about the necklace’s exceptional status in Poland. He notes that comparable artefacts are extremely rare in the country. One of the few known comparisons is a necklace discovered at Wojkowice, though that find contained only four teeth and was linked to the later Únětice culture.

In its current form, the necklace consists of 42 teeth. Scientists have confirmed that animal canine teeth are present, but they have not ruled out the possibility that some human teeth may also be among them. Researchers stress this remains a hypothesis requiring thorough investigation.

Analysis of the find will be carried out by Dr Paweł Dąbrowski, head of the Laboratory of Palaeoanatomy and Paleohistology at the Silesian Piasts Medical University in Wrocław. Specialists aim to determine the origin of the individual teeth and how they were used.

Scholars believe the necklace could shed new light on prehistoric practices related to ornaments, symbolism, and the use of animal remains by communities living in Lower Silesia thousands of years ago. Upcoming work by archaeologists and conservators is expected to reveal whether the artefact can also offer insights into the beliefs and rituals of those ancient communities.