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Dictionary:

celt

  (sĕlt) pronunciation
n.

A common prehistoric tool of stone or metal, shaped like a chisel or ax head.

[Medieval Latin celtis, chisel.]


 
 
Archaeology Dictionary: celt

[Ar]

Obsolete but occasionally used term for a prehistoric axe-like tool or weapon. The word is said to be derived from the pseudo-Latin word ‘celtis’, and was current as early as the 18th century ad when it was applied mainly to hafted cutting or chopping implements of bronze.
 
Wikipedia: celt (tool)
Three Olmec celts. The one in the foreground is incised with an image of an Olmec supernatural. It is likely that these "tools" had a strictly ritual function.
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Three Olmec celts. The one in the foreground is incised with an image of an Olmec supernatural. It is likely that these "tools" had a strictly ritual function.
This article is about the archaeological tool, for the top, see rattleback.

Celt (pron. /selt/) is an archaeological term used to describe long thin prehistoric stone or bronze adzes, other axe-like tools, and hoes.

By the beginning of the twentieth century, the term had largely been abandoned by archaeologists, who were beginning to classify the tools into more precise sub-groups. It remains in use in a few specific artifact types such as the Danubian and Shoe-last celts, as well as in Olmec studies.

The term "celt" came about from a misreading of Job 19:24 in the Sixto-Clementine edition of the Latin Vulgate Bible where the certe in Stylo ferreo, et plumbi lamina, vel certe sculpantur in silice was read as celte. A 'Celte' was wrongly assumed to be a type of ancient chisel, when in fact it was a misspelling of the word certe ("indeed"). During the late 11th century, the word appeared with this interpretation in scholarly medieval Latin. Eighteenth century antiquarians then adopted the word for the stone and bronze tools they were then finding at prehistoric sites.

Celt
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Celt

This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)

 
Translations: Translations for: Celt

Dansk (Danish)
n. - kelter

n. - kelter

Nederlands (Dutch)
Kelt

Français (French)
n. - (Hist) outil préhistorique de pierre ou de métal

n. - Celte

Deutsch (German)
n. - (Archäol.) Kelt

n. - Kelte, Faustkeil

Ελληνική (Greek)
n. - (εθνολ.) Κέλτης

Italiano (Italian)
celtico, ascia preistorica

Português (Portuguese)
n. - celta (m)

Русский (Russian)
кельт

Español (Spanish)
n. - hacha o cuchillo de piedra o bronce

n. - celta

Svenska (Swedish)
n. - kelt

中文（简体） (Chinese (Simplified))
凯尔特人

石斧或石凿

中文（繁體） (Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 凱爾特人

n. - 石斧或石鑿

한국어 (Korean)
n. - 돌도끼

n. - 켈트 사람

日本語 (Japanese)
n. - ケルト人, ケルト族

العربيه (Arabic)
‏(الاسم) كلتي, من سكان بريطانيا القدام‏

עברית (Hebrew)
n. - ‮כלי קדם-היסטורי מצוי מאבן או ממתכת בצורת ראש מפסלת או גרזן‬
n. - ‮קלטי‬

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Copyrights:

Dictionary. The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2007. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.  Read more
Archaeology Dictionary. The Concise Oxford Dictionary of Archaeology. Copyright © 2002, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.  Read more
Wikipedia. This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Celt (tool)".  Read more
Translations. Copyright © 2007, WizCom Technologies Ltd. All rights reserved.  Read more

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