Vase

This unique silver vase was found in 1828 near the village of Neerharen at the border between the Netherlands and Belgium, when the Zuid-Willemsvaart canal was under construction. Its shoulder and foot are decorated with diverse motifs, and a number of characters have been scratched into the underside of the base, in the manner of prehistoric graffiti. What these characters signify is unclear. The vase comes from the Celtic cultural region and was probably made somewhere in southern Europe. It therefore provides clear evidence of commercial ties between North and South.