⭐ 9: A copper flat axe

The Oldest Metal Object Discovered in the Posavje Region

The Levakova jama cave in Dol near Šutna is located on the southern hillside of Bočje, in the narrow valley of the Sušica stream. The cave entrance is hidden under a vertical wall above the source of the Sušica stream. The cave is divided into two levels, i.e. the lower passage/source which flows into the Sušica, and the upper dry passage, where archaeological remains were discovered.
For heritage enthusiasts:

Until 1937, people did not know about the cave’s existence as its entrance was filled up. Following floods in August 1937, the cave was opened up by the flood water, which accumulated in the passages that were more than 200 meters in length. Although the locals had a lot of work dealing with the severe consequences of flooding, the cave did not go unnoticed. In fact, the water brought to the surface numerous human skeletal remains and earthenware fragments, which attracted the attention of the local people and archaeologists. The findings were reported by the newspaper Jutro, which encouraged Professor Srečko Brodar to visit the cave. His report listed the finds of numerous bones, a fireplace, and fibulae and an earring from the Early Iron Age, as well as some stone tools. Brodar also mentioned that it was urgent to explore the cave further. The cave exploration was undertaken by Oto Auman, a Krško-born collector of archaeological and historical objects, who had done excavations in almost all the caves on the edge of the Krško Plain (Jermanova jama cave in Pijavško, Ajdovska jama cave near Nemška vas). He conducted excavation in the Levakova jama cave in the first half of October 1937. He left only a few notes about it, a sketch and a list of the finds, which have unfortunately been lost: a Roman silver coin, a Roman bronze coin, part of an earring or fibula.
 

The cave's ground plan as drawn by Oto Auman.	Excavations inside the cave. Photo by Mitja Guštin, 1975.

After Auman's research was completed, interest in the cave waned. In 1973, however, the cave attracted archaeologists' attention once again after cavers from Kostanjevica had discovered an artificially transformed skull, a silver Roman ring and fragments of prehistoric and Roman vessels. The finds were collected by Marijan Slabe from the Ljubljana Regional Office of the Institute for the Protection of Cultural Monuments, who advocated for the excavation of cultural layers in the cave. In September and November 1975, the Posavje Museum Brežice started systematic excavations, which were funded by the Cultural Community of Slovenia and the Krško Cultural Community, and headed by the then curator Mitja Guštin. The excavations revealed two cultural and temporal strata; a prehistoric layer and an ancient layer, which are separated from each other and do not represent a continuous life within the cave, but a legacy of occasional settlement. The entrance area, which is 20 metres in length, was the only inhabited part of the cave.
Of the discovered prehistoric finds, earthenware with inlay (a calcite mixture made of shells or bone, which was used to fill the depressions and thus obtain a contrasting white decoration on a dark background) and the copper axe presented here are particularly important. Owing to these two finds, it was possible to date the prehistoric finds to the late Copper Age, circa 2300 BC.
In June 2021, a chemical material analysis was performed on the copper axe using an X-ray fluorescence (XRF) analyser (Thermo Scientific Niton XL3t GOLDD+). The analysis results revealed that 97 % of the axe is made of is copper.
 

The interior of the Levakova jama cave today.	The entrance to the Levakova jama cave today.

Read more:​

• Černelič Krošelj Alenka (ur.): Štirje elementi: 2 – OGENJ / The four elements: 2 – FIRE, Brežice: Posavski muzej Brežice, 2018.
• Guštin Mitja: Poročilo o izkopu kulturnih slojev v Levakovi jami, V: Arheološki vestnik, letnik 27, 1976, Ljubljana : Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti, str. 260.
• Anton Velušček, Tatjana Greif: Talilnik in livarski kalup z Maharskega prekopa na Ljubljanskem barju, V: Arheološki vestnik, letnik 49, 1998, Ljubljana : Slovenska akademija znanosti in umetnosti, str. 31 – 53. Dostopno na spletu.

Prepared by: Jana Puhar

 
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