Dubbed the Patrick-Middleton spoon, researchers believe the flat, strawberry-shaped artifact may have been used by Iron Age people to forecast the future.
Manx National HeritageThe Patrick-Middleton spoon is roughly 2,000 years old and was likely used in ritual attempts to predict the future.
A metal detectorist recently made a fascinating discovery on the west coast of the Isle of Man: a 2,000-year-old “divination spoon” used by Iron Age people to foresee the future.
Just 27 other ancient divination spoons have been found across Britain, Ireland, and France, and this is the first artifact of its kind to be uncovered on the Isle of Man. Its discovery hints at some of the ritual practices that once took place on the island.
The Discovery Of An Iron Age Divination Spoon On The Isle Of Man
Manx National HeritageRob Middleton, the metal detectorist who made the discovery, holds the spoon.
The discovery was made by metal detectorist Rob Middleton, who found the bronze spoon on a private farm owned by David Anderson in the parish of Patrick. After doing some of his own research on the artifact, Middleton presented the find to Manx National Heritage.
In a recent statement, Allison Fox, the archaeology curator for Manx National Heritage, explained, “Dating to around 400 to 100 [B.C.E.], this bronze spoon is one of the most intriguing objects ever discovered on the Island. Iron Age finds are relatively scarce, with bronze spoons dating to this period rare, making this find all the more remarkable.”
“Although it sounds rather plain because we call it a spoon,” Fox added, “it really is an unusual find illustrating potential prehistoric ritual activity taking place on the Isle of Man.”
How The Patrick-Middleton Spoon Is Rewriting History On The Isle Of Man
Manx National HeritageAllison Fox, Rob Middleton, and David Anderson pose with the bronze divination spoon.
This ancient artifact is now known as the Patrick-Middleton spoon. It has a broad bowl shaped like a strawberry with a circular handle decorated with spiral designs. There are also two engraved lines that intersect to form a cross, creating four quadrants inside the bowl.
Researchers are unsure of the spoon’s exact purpose, but they theorized that it was used in divination rituals as a means of predicting the future.
“The spoons are usually found in pairs, and it has been suggested that liquid of some form would have been poured into the spoon which has the cross, and whatever quarter it landed in would tell something about the future,” Fox explained. “The details of such ceremonies have been lost in the midst of time.”
Speaking to the BBC, Rob Middleton said he was “humbled” to find the spoon because he was “literally the first person in 2,000 years to handle it, to look at it, and to appreciate the beauty” of it.
It is not the first time Middleton and Anderson have donated to the heritage, either. In the statement, Fox thanked both men for their previous contributions, adding, “Donations such as this really help us explore what our ancestors were up to, and this find in particular puts the Isle of Man firmly on the map of Iron Age ritual.”
“With great finds come great responsibility,” Middleton said, “so that’s why it’s been donated to the public so they can connect with it.”
After learning about the discovery of this Iron Age divination spoon on the Isle of Man, read about another recent discovery of a Viking coin hoard on the island. Or, see 44 other ancient artifacts that illuminate our past.
