Copper-based artefacts from Virginian sites: microstructures and compositions
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Published
Nov 12, 2021
Abstract
The purpose of this study is to correlate chemical compositions and metallographic observations from archaeological artefacts discovered at Virginian Native American sites dated between the 16th and 18th centuries AD and expand the dataset available for this type of material. The compositional analyses were carried out using LA–ICP–MS and EPMA, and visual observations were conducted using SEM–EDS and optical microscopy. The presence, absence and types of inclusions in the metal are correlated to the nature of
the copper-based metal (native copper, European smelted copper and brass) as defined by chemical composition. In addition, the techniques used to shape the objects have been deduced from metallographic observations and variations in the processes according to the type of the metal have been identified, suggesting that Native American peoples adapted their techniques to the new materials imported by the Europeans.
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References
Bastian T 1961, ‘Trace element and metallographic studies of prehistoric copper artefacts in North America: a review’, in J B Griffin (ed), Lake Superior copper and the Indians: miscellaneous studies of Great Lakes prehistory (Ann Arbor: Anthropological Papers 17), 151-189.
Bradley J W and Childs S T 1991, ‘Basque earrings and panther’s tails: the form of cross-cultural contact in sixteenth century Iroquoia’, in R M Ehrenreich (ed), Metals in society: theory beyond analysis (Philadelphia: MASCA Research Papers in Science and Archaeology 8, II), 7-17.
Childs S T 1994, ‘Native copper technology and society in eastern North America’, in D A Scott and P Meyers (eds), Archaeometry of Pre-Columbian sites and artefacts (Los Angeles), 229-253.
Dussubieux L 2007, ‘LA-ICP-MS analysis of copper alloy artefacts’, in M D Glascock, R S Popelka-Filcoff and R J Speakman (eds), Archaeological chemistry: analytical techniques and archaeological interpretation (Washington, DC: American Chemical Society Publication Series 968), 337–348.
Dussubieux L, Deraisme A, Frot G, Stevenson C, Creech A and Bienvenu Y 2008, ‘LA-ICP-MS, SEM-EDS and EPMA analysis of Eastern North American copper-based artefacts: impact of corrosion and heterogeneity on the reliability of the LA-ICP-MS compositional results’, Archaeometry 50(4), 643-657.
Ehrhardt K L, Nash S K and Swann C P 2000, ‘Metal-forming practices among the seventeenth century Illinois, 1640-1682’,
Materials Characterization 45, 275-288.
Fitzgerald W R and Ramsden P G 1988, ‘Copper based metal testing as an aid to understanding early European American interaction: Scratching the surface’, Canadian Journal of Archaeology 12, 153-61.
Fitzgerald W R, Turgeon L, Whitehead R H and Bradley J W 1993, ‘Late sixteenth-century Basque banded copper kettles’, Historical Archaeology 27(1), 44-57.
Fleming S J and Swann C P 2000, ‘Distinguishing between native and smelted coppers using PIXE spectrometry: a case history from early colonial America’, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physic Research B 161-163, 709-713.
Fox W A, Hancock R G V and Pavlish L A 1995, ‘Where east met west: The new copper culture’, Wisconsin Archaeologist 76(3-4), 269-293.
Fraikor A L, Hester J J and Fraikor F J 1971, ‘Metallurgical analysis of a Hopewell copper earspool’, American Antiquity 36(3), 358-361.
Franklin U M, Badone E, Gotthardt R and Yorga B 1981, ‘The characterization of native copper artefacts from the North American Artic and sub-artic and the problem of trade’, Networks of the past
: regional interaction in archaeology (Calgary), 351–368.
Gersch H K, Robertson J D, Henderson A G, Pollack D and Munson C A 1998, ‘PIXE analysis of prehistoric and protohistoric Caborn-Welborn phase copper artefacts from the lower Ohio river valley’, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 234(1-2), 85-90.
Gratuze B 1999, ‘Obsidian characterization by laser ablation ICP-MS and its application to Prehistoric trade in the Mediterranean and the Near East: sources and distribution of obsidian within the
Aegean and Anatolia’, Journal of Archaeological Science 26(8), 869-881.
Hancock R G V, Pavlish L A, Farquhar R M, Salloum R, Fox W A and Wilson G C 1991, ‘Distinguishing European trade copper and northeastern North American native copper’, Archaeometry 33(1), 69-86.
Hancock R G V, Fox W A , Conway T and Pavlish L A 1993, ‘Chemical analysis of archaeological copper and brass from northeastern Ontario’, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 168(2), 307-315.
Hancock R G V, Pavlish L A, Farquhar R M, Julig P J and Fox W A 1994, ‘Chemical seriation of northeastern North American archaeological sites using copper artefacts’, in D A Scott and P Meyers (eds), Archaeometry of Pre-Columbian sites and artefacts (Los Angeles), 255-264.
Hancock R G V, Farquhar R M, Pavlish L A and Finlayson W D 1995a, ‘Chemical analysis of copper and brass samples from Christian Island, Georgian Bay, Ontario’, Journal of Radioanalytical and
Nuclear Chemistry 196(2), 255-266.
Hancock R G V, Pavlish L A, Fox W A and Latta M A 1995b, ‘Chemical analysis of copper alloy trade metal from a post-contact Huron site in Ontario, Canada’, Archaeometry 37(2), 339-350.
Levine M A 2007a, ‘Determining the provenance of native copper artefacts from northeastern North America: evidence from instrumental neutron activation analysis’, Journal of Archaeological
Science 34, 572-587.
Levine M A 2007b, ‘Overcoming disciplinary solitude: the archaeology and geology of native copper in eastern North America’, Geoarchaeology: An International Journal 22(1), 51-68.
Luedtke B 1998, ‘Analysis of the copper bead from Calf Island, Massachusetts’, North American Archaeologist 19(2), 163-171.
Maddin R, Stech Wheeler T and Muhly J D 1980, ‘Distinguishing artefacts made of native copper, Journal of Archaeological Science 7, 211-225.
Martin S R 1999, Wonderful power, the story of ancient copper working in the Lake Superior basin (Detroit).
Mohen J-P 1990, Métallurgie préhistorique: introduction à la paléométallurgie (Paris).
Moreau J F 1998, ‘Traditions and cultural transformations: European copper-based kettles and Jesuit rings from 17th century Amerindian sites’, North American Archaeologist 19(1), 1-11.
Moreau J F and Hancock R GV 1999, ‘The effects of corrosion on INAA characterizations of brass kettles of the early European contact period in northeastern North America, Journal of Archaeological Science 20, 1119-1125.
Mulholland S C and Pulford M H 2007, ‘Trace-element analysis of native copper: the view from northern Minnesota, USA’, Geoarchaeology 22(1), 67-84.
Pavlish L A, Hancock R G V and Ross B 2004, ‘Instrumental neutron activation analysis of copper-rich samples from the Bead Hill site, Ontario, Canada’, Historical Metallurgy 38(2), 106-112.
Pernot M 1999, Un quartier antique d’artisanat métallurgique à Autun : le site du lycée militaire (Paris), 154-159.
Rapp G, Henrickson E and Allert J 1990, ‘Native copper sources of artefact copper in pre-Columbian North America’, in N P Lasca and J Donahue (eds), Archaeological Geology of North America
(Boulders, Colorado: Centennial Special Volume 4), 479-498.
Rapp G, Allert J, Vitali V, Jing Z and Henrickson E 2000, Determining the geologic sources of artefact copper: source characterization using trace element patterns (New-York).
Schroeder D L and Ruhl K C 1968, ‘Metallurgical characteristics of North American prehistoric copper work’, American Antiquity 33, 162-169.
Vernon W W 1985, ‘New perspectives on the archaeometallurgy of the old copper industry’, MASCA Journal 3(5), 154-163.
Wayman M I, Smith R R, Hickey C G and Duke M J M 1985, ‘The analysis of copper artefacts of the Copper Inuit’, Journal of Archaeological Science12, 367-375.
Wilson G C, Pavlish L A, Ding G-J and Farquhar R M 1997, ‘Textural and in situ analytical constraints on the provenance of smelted and native archaeological copper in the Great Lakes region in
eastern North America’, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 123, 498-503.
Whitehead R H, Pavlish L A, Farquhar R M and Hancock R G V 1998, ‘Analysis of copper-based metals from three Mi’Kmaq sites in Nova Scotia’, North American Archaeologist 19(4), 279-292.
Bradley J W and Childs S T 1991, ‘Basque earrings and panther’s tails: the form of cross-cultural contact in sixteenth century Iroquoia’, in R M Ehrenreich (ed), Metals in society: theory beyond analysis (Philadelphia: MASCA Research Papers in Science and Archaeology 8, II), 7-17.
Childs S T 1994, ‘Native copper technology and society in eastern North America’, in D A Scott and P Meyers (eds), Archaeometry of Pre-Columbian sites and artefacts (Los Angeles), 229-253.
Dussubieux L 2007, ‘LA-ICP-MS analysis of copper alloy artefacts’, in M D Glascock, R S Popelka-Filcoff and R J Speakman (eds), Archaeological chemistry: analytical techniques and archaeological interpretation (Washington, DC: American Chemical Society Publication Series 968), 337–348.
Dussubieux L, Deraisme A, Frot G, Stevenson C, Creech A and Bienvenu Y 2008, ‘LA-ICP-MS, SEM-EDS and EPMA analysis of Eastern North American copper-based artefacts: impact of corrosion and heterogeneity on the reliability of the LA-ICP-MS compositional results’, Archaeometry 50(4), 643-657.
Ehrhardt K L, Nash S K and Swann C P 2000, ‘Metal-forming practices among the seventeenth century Illinois, 1640-1682’,
Materials Characterization 45, 275-288.
Fitzgerald W R and Ramsden P G 1988, ‘Copper based metal testing as an aid to understanding early European American interaction: Scratching the surface’, Canadian Journal of Archaeology 12, 153-61.
Fitzgerald W R, Turgeon L, Whitehead R H and Bradley J W 1993, ‘Late sixteenth-century Basque banded copper kettles’, Historical Archaeology 27(1), 44-57.
Fleming S J and Swann C P 2000, ‘Distinguishing between native and smelted coppers using PIXE spectrometry: a case history from early colonial America’, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physic Research B 161-163, 709-713.
Fox W A, Hancock R G V and Pavlish L A 1995, ‘Where east met west: The new copper culture’, Wisconsin Archaeologist 76(3-4), 269-293.
Fraikor A L, Hester J J and Fraikor F J 1971, ‘Metallurgical analysis of a Hopewell copper earspool’, American Antiquity 36(3), 358-361.
Franklin U M, Badone E, Gotthardt R and Yorga B 1981, ‘The characterization of native copper artefacts from the North American Artic and sub-artic and the problem of trade’, Networks of the past
: regional interaction in archaeology (Calgary), 351–368.
Gersch H K, Robertson J D, Henderson A G, Pollack D and Munson C A 1998, ‘PIXE analysis of prehistoric and protohistoric Caborn-Welborn phase copper artefacts from the lower Ohio river valley’, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry, 234(1-2), 85-90.
Gratuze B 1999, ‘Obsidian characterization by laser ablation ICP-MS and its application to Prehistoric trade in the Mediterranean and the Near East: sources and distribution of obsidian within the
Aegean and Anatolia’, Journal of Archaeological Science 26(8), 869-881.
Hancock R G V, Pavlish L A, Farquhar R M, Salloum R, Fox W A and Wilson G C 1991, ‘Distinguishing European trade copper and northeastern North American native copper’, Archaeometry 33(1), 69-86.
Hancock R G V, Fox W A , Conway T and Pavlish L A 1993, ‘Chemical analysis of archaeological copper and brass from northeastern Ontario’, Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 168(2), 307-315.
Hancock R G V, Pavlish L A, Farquhar R M, Julig P J and Fox W A 1994, ‘Chemical seriation of northeastern North American archaeological sites using copper artefacts’, in D A Scott and P Meyers (eds), Archaeometry of Pre-Columbian sites and artefacts (Los Angeles), 255-264.
Hancock R G V, Farquhar R M, Pavlish L A and Finlayson W D 1995a, ‘Chemical analysis of copper and brass samples from Christian Island, Georgian Bay, Ontario’, Journal of Radioanalytical and
Nuclear Chemistry 196(2), 255-266.
Hancock R G V, Pavlish L A, Fox W A and Latta M A 1995b, ‘Chemical analysis of copper alloy trade metal from a post-contact Huron site in Ontario, Canada’, Archaeometry 37(2), 339-350.
Levine M A 2007a, ‘Determining the provenance of native copper artefacts from northeastern North America: evidence from instrumental neutron activation analysis’, Journal of Archaeological
Science 34, 572-587.
Levine M A 2007b, ‘Overcoming disciplinary solitude: the archaeology and geology of native copper in eastern North America’, Geoarchaeology: An International Journal 22(1), 51-68.
Luedtke B 1998, ‘Analysis of the copper bead from Calf Island, Massachusetts’, North American Archaeologist 19(2), 163-171.
Maddin R, Stech Wheeler T and Muhly J D 1980, ‘Distinguishing artefacts made of native copper, Journal of Archaeological Science 7, 211-225.
Martin S R 1999, Wonderful power, the story of ancient copper working in the Lake Superior basin (Detroit).
Mohen J-P 1990, Métallurgie préhistorique: introduction à la paléométallurgie (Paris).
Moreau J F 1998, ‘Traditions and cultural transformations: European copper-based kettles and Jesuit rings from 17th century Amerindian sites’, North American Archaeologist 19(1), 1-11.
Moreau J F and Hancock R GV 1999, ‘The effects of corrosion on INAA characterizations of brass kettles of the early European contact period in northeastern North America, Journal of Archaeological Science 20, 1119-1125.
Mulholland S C and Pulford M H 2007, ‘Trace-element analysis of native copper: the view from northern Minnesota, USA’, Geoarchaeology 22(1), 67-84.
Pavlish L A, Hancock R G V and Ross B 2004, ‘Instrumental neutron activation analysis of copper-rich samples from the Bead Hill site, Ontario, Canada’, Historical Metallurgy 38(2), 106-112.
Pernot M 1999, Un quartier antique d’artisanat métallurgique à Autun : le site du lycée militaire (Paris), 154-159.
Rapp G, Henrickson E and Allert J 1990, ‘Native copper sources of artefact copper in pre-Columbian North America’, in N P Lasca and J Donahue (eds), Archaeological Geology of North America
(Boulders, Colorado: Centennial Special Volume 4), 479-498.
Rapp G, Allert J, Vitali V, Jing Z and Henrickson E 2000, Determining the geologic sources of artefact copper: source characterization using trace element patterns (New-York).
Schroeder D L and Ruhl K C 1968, ‘Metallurgical characteristics of North American prehistoric copper work’, American Antiquity 33, 162-169.
Vernon W W 1985, ‘New perspectives on the archaeometallurgy of the old copper industry’, MASCA Journal 3(5), 154-163.
Wayman M I, Smith R R, Hickey C G and Duke M J M 1985, ‘The analysis of copper artefacts of the Copper Inuit’, Journal of Archaeological Science12, 367-375.
Wilson G C, Pavlish L A, Ding G-J and Farquhar R M 1997, ‘Textural and in situ analytical constraints on the provenance of smelted and native archaeological copper in the Great Lakes region in
eastern North America’, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 123, 498-503.
Whitehead R H, Pavlish L A, Farquhar R M and Hancock R G V 1998, ‘Analysis of copper-based metals from three Mi’Kmaq sites in Nova Scotia’, North American Archaeologist 19(4), 279-292.
How to Cite
Copper-based artefacts from Virginian sites: microstructures and compositions. (2021). Historical Metallurgy, 42(1), 39-49. https://hmsjournal.org/index.php/home/article/view/203
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How to Cite
Copper-based artefacts from Virginian sites: microstructures and compositions. (2021). Historical Metallurgy, 42(1), 39-49. https://hmsjournal.org/index.php/home/article/view/203