Dacian Bracelets at the National History Museum
The Dacian bracelets in the collections of the Romanian National History Museum (MNIR) are among the most spectacular Romanian cultural heritage items
Ion Puican, 14.06.2026, 13:47
The Dacian bracelets in the collections of the Romanian National History Museum (MNIR) are among the most spectacular Romanian cultural heritage items. Massive spirals, crafted from a single gold bar, decorated with palmettes and stylised animal heads, combined in an original Dacian creation. All the artefacts come from one place: Sarmizegetusa Regia, in the Orăștie Mountains, near the sacred space on Dealul Grădiști, the heart of the Dacian Kingdom of Decebalus.
Cristiana Tătaru, head of the Numismatic Office and Historical Heritage Section of the MNIR, told us more about the bracelets:
Cristiana Tătaru: “The Romanian government has managed to recover only 14 such bracelets so far. The first 13 were brought in between 2007 and 2013, and the recovery of the 14th bracelet in 2025 was a real success. The most spectacular, and I could say, very subjectively, some of the most important items that we have today in the Historical Treasure exhibition are these royal Dacian gold bracelets, which are still a surprise for specialists and the Romanian public. Because nothing was known about their existence until the early 2000s, despite all the archaeological research done in the Dacian settlements during the communist period, when this topic of the Dacian culture and civilisation was brought to the forefront. Dacian bracelets, folds, silver spirals had been discovered as early as in the 19th century in Transylvania, in Oltenia, in Muntenia, but the discovery of these pieces was a huge surprise, so much so that made many believe that these items were not authentic.”
Cristiana Tătaru also gave us some details about the myth of the Dacian gold:
Cristiana Tătaru: “It is important to link the story of these Dacian bracelets with the myth of the Dacian gold. The Roman army led by Trajan allegedly seized 1,350 tons of gold and 3,310 tons of silver from Dacia. These figures were reached over time, some other calculation points to only 135 tons of gold and 331 tons of silver. But, beyond the exact figures, this idea of the Dacian gold has captivated many minds and there has been a lot of talk on this topic, although very few gold objects have been recovered from archaeological digging over the last two centuries.”
The police estimate that at least 24 such bracelets have been discovered, in 5 declared locations, using metal detectors:
Cristiana Tătaru: “I feel and believe that the history of the royal gold bracelets should be known to as many people as possible, because it’s quite tempestuous. The items were found between 1999 and 2001, during illegal detections. And I find it very interesting that the indictments issued by the judicial authorities and the information recovered from the thieves who discovered these pieces and then illegally exported them from the territory of Romania indicate that more than 24 such bracelets were discovered in at least five locations near the sacred area of the Sarmisegetuza Regia fortress. This suggests that, in fact, these bracelets are more likely ritual offerings, rather than hidden treasures to be recovered later. These bracelets show no signs of wear. Most likely they manufactured them and used them in ritual offerings immediately. And I find it amazing that these very heavy, massive gold bracelets were only discovered in the Sarmisegetuza Regia area, so they may have been used only by the royal family or by priests, by those who performed religious services.”
The bracelets are impressive items, weighing between 600g and almost 3 kilos. Our guest Cristiana Tătaru tells us about their artistic value and how they were made:
Cristiana Tătaru: “We cannot ignore the decorations on these artefacts, which at first glance are simple bracelets with several spirals, but the extremities of which feature dragon heads, which fall into two categories: some dragons have their bodies covered in scales, while the wavy lines in other bracelets suggest they are covered in fur. Dacian bracelets tell us a lot about the manufacturing techniques known to the Dacian community that lived in the Orăștie Mountains. And it would be interesting to start by comparing them with the Hellenistic Greek jewellery also used by Dacians. Discovered in relatively large numbers in Dacian settlements, due to the contacts the locals had with the Greek fortresses on the Black Sea coast, those Greek jewels were generally made of thin sheets, using repoussé for decoration with various symbols used in that period. Instead, the Dacian bracelets suggest that the local craftsmen used blacksmithing techniques. The Dacian bracelets are not hollow; they are made of solid gold, using an impressive processing technique. This technique is absolutely amazing, as these bracelets ranging between 1.70m and 2.88m long were made from rectangular ingots, with very small deviations in thickness between the spiral area and the ends. After making these almost 2-meter long bars, they decorated the protoms, the ends, making these dragonhead shapes, ornate with perfectly made small dots and lines. And only then, using an anvil, they shaped the bars into bracelets.”
Beyond the brilliance of gold, the Dacian bracelets are also a lesson about heritage fragility. Today, the National History Museum presents them to the public not only in its exhibition halls, but also online, using three-dimensional digital models. (AMP)
