Copper and arsenical copper artefacts from prenuragic Sardinian cultures
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Published
Jan 1, 2022
Abstract
Due to its geographical position and numerous ore deposits, Sardinia played a significant, though still not completely defined, role in prehistoric metallurgy in the Mediterranean area. Up to now the most ancient metal production and working phases, where copper and the first alloy (copper-arsenic) were used, have not been documented archaeometrically, but only deduced from archaeological evidence. In this paper the results of the characterization of a first series of eleven finds (weapons) dating to the prenuragic era are presented. Analyses show five of the finds to be made of copper while the other six are arsenical copper with an arsenic content of up to 7%. Based on the microstructural characterization (SEM plus EDS and optical metallography), the possible ore provenance as well as the metal working techniques presumably used are discussed. The lead isotope composition of some of the weapons suggests that two arsenical copper swords of ‘argaric’ workmanship might have been made from Sardinian ores, while for a copper spearhead Cypriot-type ores might have been used.
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References
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Lo Schiavo F, ‘Nota a margine delle spade argariche trovate in Sardegna’, Quaderni della Soprintendenza Archeologica di Cagliari-Oristano 8 (1991), 69-81.
Gale N H and Stos-Gale Z A, ‘Some aspects of early Cycladic copper metallurgy’, in C Domergue (ed) Minieria Y Metallurgia en las Antiguas Civilizaciones Mediterraneas Y Europeas (Madrid 1989), 21-35.
Balthazar J W , ‘New Compositional and metallographic analyses of copper-base objects from Lapithos, Vrysi Tou Barba’, MASCA Journal 4(2) 1986, 60-69.
Arribas A, Craddock P, Molina F, Rothenberg B and Hook D R, ‘Investigation arqueo-metallurgica en yacimientos de las edades del cobre y del bronce en el sudeste de Iberia’, in C Domergue (ed), Minieria Y Metallurgia en las Antiguas Civilizaciones Mediterraneas Y Europeas (Madrid 1989), 71-78.
Eaton E R and McKerrell H, ‘Near Eastern alloying and some textual evidence for the early use of arsenical copper’, World Archaeology 8(2) (1976), 169-191.
Rovira S, Montero I and Consuegra S, ‘Archaeometallurgical Study of Palmela Arrow Heads and other Related Types’, in E Antonacci Sanpaolo, International Colloquium on Archaeometallurgy (Bologna 1992), 270-289.
Caneva C, Frangipane M and Palmieri A, ‘Scienza e tecnologia dei bronzi arsenicali di Aslantepe’, in E Antonacci Sanpaolo, International Colloquium on Archaeometallurgy (Bologna 1992), 402-413.
Lo Schiavo F, ‘Compleso di armi di “bronzo” da Ottana’, in F Lo Schiavo Sardegna centro-orientale dal neolitico alla fine del mondo antico, (Sassari 1978), 75-79.
Ugas G, La tomba dei guerrieri di Decimoputzu (Cagliari 1990).
Atzeni C, Demurtas G and Sanna U, ‘Metallographic and Microanalytic Characteristics of a Pre-Nuragic Cu-As Alloy Sword’, La Metallurgia Italiana, 11/97 (1997), 35-41.
Ferrarese Ceruti M L, ‘La cultura del Vaso Campaniforme - Il Primo Bronzo’, Ichnussa 74 (1981), 15-24.
Lo Schiavo F, ‘Sardinian Metallurgy: The archaeological background’, in M S Balmuth (ed), Studies in Sardinian Archaeology II. Sardinia in the Mediterranean (Ann Arbor 1986), 236.
Lo Schiavo F, Maddin R, Merkel J, Muhly J D and Stech T, ‘Analisi metallografiche e statistiche sui lingotti di rame della Sardegna’, Quaderni della Soprintendenza Archeologica delle
Provincie di Sassari e Nuoro 17 (1990), 1-227.
Gale N H and Stos-Gale Z A, ‘Oxhide ingots from Sardinia, Crete and Cyprus and the Bronze Age Copper trade: new scientific evidence’, in M S Balmuth (ed), Studies in Sardinian
Archaeology III. Nuragic Sardinia and the Mycenaean World (Oxford 1987), 135-177.
Craddock P T and Meeks N D, ‘Iron in ancient copper’, Archaeometry 29 (1987), 187-204.
Tylecote R F, Ghaznavi H A and Boydell J, ‘Partitioning of trace elements between the ores, fluxes, slags and metal during the smelting of copper’, Journal of Archaeological Science 4 (1977), 305-333.
Maréchal J R, ‘Le leghe di rame utilizzate nella metallurgia primitiva europea’, La Metallurgia Italiana (1962), 22-32.
Tylecote R F, A History of Metallurgy (London 1976), 8.
Stos-Gale Z, Gale N H, Houghton J and Speakman R, ‘Lead isotope data from the Isotrace Laboratory Oxford: Archaeometry data base 1, Ores from the western Mediterranean’, Archaeometry 37(2), (1995), 407-415.
Stos-Gale Z A, Gale N H and Annetts N, ‘Lead isotope data from the Isotrace Laboratory Oxford: Archaeometry data base 3, Ores from the Aegean, part 1’, Archaeometry 38(2), (1996),
381-390.
Gale N H, Stos-Gale Z A, Maliotis G and Annetts N, ‘Lead isotope data from Isotrace Laboratory Oxford: Archaeometry data base 4, Ores from Cyprus’, Archaeometry 39(1), (1997), 237-246.
Lo Schiavo F, ‘Le origini della metallurgia ed il problema della metallurgia nella cultura di Ozieri’, in L Dettori Campus (ed) La cultura di Ozieri. Problematiche e nuove acquisizioni (Ozieri 1988), 284.
Lo Schiavo F, ‘Nota a margine delle spade argariche trovate in Sardegna’, Quaderni della Soprintendenza Archeologica di Cagliari-Oristano 8 (1991), 69-81.
Gale N H and Stos-Gale Z A, ‘Some aspects of early Cycladic copper metallurgy’, in C Domergue (ed) Minieria Y Metallurgia en las Antiguas Civilizaciones Mediterraneas Y Europeas (Madrid 1989), 21-35.
Balthazar J W , ‘New Compositional and metallographic analyses of copper-base objects from Lapithos, Vrysi Tou Barba’, MASCA Journal 4(2) 1986, 60-69.
Arribas A, Craddock P, Molina F, Rothenberg B and Hook D R, ‘Investigation arqueo-metallurgica en yacimientos de las edades del cobre y del bronce en el sudeste de Iberia’, in C Domergue (ed), Minieria Y Metallurgia en las Antiguas Civilizaciones Mediterraneas Y Europeas (Madrid 1989), 71-78.
Eaton E R and McKerrell H, ‘Near Eastern alloying and some textual evidence for the early use of arsenical copper’, World Archaeology 8(2) (1976), 169-191.
Rovira S, Montero I and Consuegra S, ‘Archaeometallurgical Study of Palmela Arrow Heads and other Related Types’, in E Antonacci Sanpaolo, International Colloquium on Archaeometallurgy (Bologna 1992), 270-289.
Caneva C, Frangipane M and Palmieri A, ‘Scienza e tecnologia dei bronzi arsenicali di Aslantepe’, in E Antonacci Sanpaolo, International Colloquium on Archaeometallurgy (Bologna 1992), 402-413.
Lo Schiavo F, ‘Compleso di armi di “bronzo” da Ottana’, in F Lo Schiavo Sardegna centro-orientale dal neolitico alla fine del mondo antico, (Sassari 1978), 75-79.
Ugas G, La tomba dei guerrieri di Decimoputzu (Cagliari 1990).
Atzeni C, Demurtas G and Sanna U, ‘Metallographic and Microanalytic Characteristics of a Pre-Nuragic Cu-As Alloy Sword’, La Metallurgia Italiana, 11/97 (1997), 35-41.
Ferrarese Ceruti M L, ‘La cultura del Vaso Campaniforme - Il Primo Bronzo’, Ichnussa 74 (1981), 15-24.
Lo Schiavo F, ‘Sardinian Metallurgy: The archaeological background’, in M S Balmuth (ed), Studies in Sardinian Archaeology II. Sardinia in the Mediterranean (Ann Arbor 1986), 236.
Lo Schiavo F, Maddin R, Merkel J, Muhly J D and Stech T, ‘Analisi metallografiche e statistiche sui lingotti di rame della Sardegna’, Quaderni della Soprintendenza Archeologica delle
Provincie di Sassari e Nuoro 17 (1990), 1-227.
Gale N H and Stos-Gale Z A, ‘Oxhide ingots from Sardinia, Crete and Cyprus and the Bronze Age Copper trade: new scientific evidence’, in M S Balmuth (ed), Studies in Sardinian
Archaeology III. Nuragic Sardinia and the Mycenaean World (Oxford 1987), 135-177.
Craddock P T and Meeks N D, ‘Iron in ancient copper’, Archaeometry 29 (1987), 187-204.
Tylecote R F, Ghaznavi H A and Boydell J, ‘Partitioning of trace elements between the ores, fluxes, slags and metal during the smelting of copper’, Journal of Archaeological Science 4 (1977), 305-333.
Maréchal J R, ‘Le leghe di rame utilizzate nella metallurgia primitiva europea’, La Metallurgia Italiana (1962), 22-32.
Tylecote R F, A History of Metallurgy (London 1976), 8.
Stos-Gale Z, Gale N H, Houghton J and Speakman R, ‘Lead isotope data from the Isotrace Laboratory Oxford: Archaeometry data base 1, Ores from the western Mediterranean’, Archaeometry 37(2), (1995), 407-415.
Stos-Gale Z A, Gale N H and Annetts N, ‘Lead isotope data from the Isotrace Laboratory Oxford: Archaeometry data base 3, Ores from the Aegean, part 1’, Archaeometry 38(2), (1996),
381-390.
Gale N H, Stos-Gale Z A, Maliotis G and Annetts N, ‘Lead isotope data from Isotrace Laboratory Oxford: Archaeometry data base 4, Ores from Cyprus’, Archaeometry 39(1), (1997), 237-246.
How to Cite
Copper and arsenical copper artefacts from prenuragic Sardinian cultures. (2022). Historical Metallurgy, 33(1), 1-6. https://hmsjournal.org/index.php/home/article/view/300
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How to Cite
Copper and arsenical copper artefacts from prenuragic Sardinian cultures. (2022). Historical Metallurgy, 33(1), 1-6. https://hmsjournal.org/index.php/home/article/view/300