Diving in lakes by Kozielec, archaeologists found sickles, fragments of sword sheathes and chain belts on which the Celts once hung their weapons.
Whilst the Celts were famed for making ritualistic offerings of weapons, cooking utensils and tools in places such as rivers, lakes and swamps, this is the first time such a site has been found in Poland.
Making the haul even more unique is the age of the weapons. Dated to 3 B.C., the find pre-dates the times in which the Celts are known to have traveled so far north.
An Indo-European people, the Celtic settlements once stretched from Great Britain to the Carpathian Basin, southern France, the Iberian Peninsula, northern Italy, Silesia and Małopolska.
About a decade back, archaeologists were also able to confirm a Celtic presence in the Kujawy region of Poland after the discovery of objects dating from 1 B.C.
However, historians have stressed that the latest discovery was not an accident. The dive, said Professor Bartosz Kontny of Warsaw University, was conducted after a Celtic sword from 3 B.C. ended up in the collection of the Land Forces Museum in Bydgoszcz.
After interviewing the finder as to where the sword had been discovered, archaeologists decided to conduct a wider search. For the time being, however, the exact location has been kept secret and will only be revealed in the autumn once researchers complete their work.
