Stone Bracers in Continental Western Europe. New Insights from Bell Beaker and Early Bronze Age Contexts

International audienceThis paper aims to collect and comment on up-to-date typological and contextual data for the study of items that are as problematic as they are emblematic of the Bell Beaker phenomenon: the so called ‘wrist-guards’ or stone bracers. The first stage presents the results, method and geographical distribution of a new critical inventory of continental Western Europe stone bracers (Netherlands, Luxemburg, Switzerland, France, Spain, Portugal). 186 stone bracers could be recognised while 79 items have been rejected as they do not meet the proposed criteria. The second step is a descriptive analysis of the recorded stone bracers’ typological features. These appear simple except in the most easterly regions where the typological pattern is richer. The third part deals with contextual reliability and relationships of the corpus. The vast majority of contexts are funerary; however, reliable assemblages are in a minority. Metallurgy and archery seem to be equally represented among associated grave goods, the former more particularly in the Iberian Peninsula and the latter in the Rhine basin. Both typological and contextual data can be compared to what occurs in Great Britain and Central Europe. Finally, chrono-cultural and functional issues remain unresolved and need further work