Can you believe the loot people find in deadly fires?

Firemen in Prague have discovered a massive illegal collection of antiquities in a burnt-out apartment. The owner/looter, most likely a metal detecting type, died in the fire.

The collection comprises some 1,900 bronze objects and 1,400 iron objects. Ceramic and objects made of other material appear only marginally in it.

Only several objects represent the beginnings of metallurgy in Central Europe in the late Neolithic (about 4,000 B.C.), while more objects date back to the Bronze era (about 2,000-700 B.C.), Iron era (the last seven centuries B.C.), the ancient Roman era and the Migration Period (until 568 A.D.)

In addition, the collection includes medieval objects and those originating in the early modern times.

Unfortunately, the scientific value of these rare and magnificent artifacts is significantly reduced by the lack of provenance. That’s the things about looters: they don’t often keep detailed records of the location and condition of their thefts.

On another note, can you believe this is a pendant?