A Brief History of Cornwall – Part 2 – As Time Moved On…

The Bronze Age

Following on from the Stone Age came the Bronze Age (2400BC – 600BC) when there was a considerable increase in the settlement population as more settlers came from across Europe, including a large contingent from Brittany.

It was at around this time, that Cornwall’s rich natural deposits of copper and tin had been discovered, and with it being the Bronze Age and all – this was pretty good news for Cornwall, or at least it may have been if there had been any monetary gain to be had at this point in time!

In any case, it is the fact that these minerals could be so readily sourced, that brought many additional settlers to the area, and using techniques such as tin-streaming and open-cast mining to extract the minerals from the Cornish soil, this can be considered the early beginnings of Cornwall’s tin-mining trade.

Whilst structures, weapons, and other tools of the time, continued for a long time to be made from stone, over the next two thousand years or so, the use of the bronze metal alloy for such implements became far more popular and effective.

Metalworking became the skill that defined the era, and more and more sophisticated tools were being produced as time went on, as well as items of jewellery and other decorative items that characterised the development of this society. Many of these items were beginning to be exported, back to the places from whence the setters came, along with increasingly large amounts of the natural ores.

Many discoveries of Bronze Age implements have been made throughout the years, including a find at St.Michael’s Mount off Cornwall’s south coast near Marazion, as recently as 2009!

No fewer than 47 artifacts were discovered here, and are now on display in the island’s castle, which is open to visitors until the 2nd November this year.

A visit here is highly recommended during any stay in Cornwall, and you will find a number of high quality cottages to rent in Cornwall nearby.