The bronze artifacts from the Yejiashan site and the political presence of the Zhou dynasty in the middle Yangtze Plain: an application of lead isotope analysis

Lead isotope ratios of 15 Chinese bronze artifacts from the Yejiashan site (Suizhou City, Hubei Province) were analyzed and compared with copper ores across China. This study attempts to provide a new perspective to discuss the role that Zeng State played among all the vassal states in the early Zhou dynasty (ca. 1046–977 BC). The political presence of the Zhou dynasty in the middle Yangtze Plain is another main content of this paper. The lead isotopic characteristics of Chinese bronze artifacts between different historical periods are also in the scope of the study. By comparison, the lead isotopic ratios of the tested bronzes and copper deposits in the north Jiangxi Province show numerous overlaps. It indicates that the tested bronzes might have a single ore source, and this source was in the south of the Zhou dynasty. Combined with history and archaeological records, it is highly likely that the middle Yangtze Plain might be a part of the Zhou dynasty since the very beginning. Moreover, Zeng State might have a great influence in the ancient middle Yangtze Plain, and the nobles of Zeng State might even have authority to supervise certain area extending to Jiujiang. As lead isotopes of the bronzes appear to show a clear relation to chronology, the change of lead isotope patterns across times may further serve to distinguish the bronzes of the Western Zhou dynasty from the late Shang ones.     

秦始皇帝陵园出土彩绘青铜水禽铜矿料来源探索

关于秦始皇帝陵出土彩绘青铜水禽铜矿料来源的研究,对进一步研究秦代的物质文化、青铜器冶铸工艺、装饰工艺以及铜矿来源均具有重要意义。本研究对部分秦始皇帝陵园出土彩绘青铜水禽基体进行了铅同位素分析及微量元素分析。并在此基础之上,与甘肃东部及关中西部出土的部分早期秦文化铜器、国墓地出土的部分铜器、周原李家铸铜作坊出土的部分铜器、山西中条山、江西瑞昌、江西铜岭、安徽铜陵以及湖北大冶铜绿山古铜矿以及秦岭山区的部分现代铜矿的相关数据进行了对比研究。结果发现,秦始皇帝陵园出土的青铜水禽使用了相同的矿料,且与绝大多数早期秦文化铜器所使用的矿料基本相同,但与国墓地以及李家铸铜作坊出土西周铜器的矿料明显有别。秦人使用的铜矿与秦岭山区现代铜矿较为接近,表明秦人的铜矿来源可能与秦岭山区有关。     

AN ELEMENTAL AND LEAD‐ISOTOPIC STUDY ON BRONZE HELMETS FROM ROYAL TOMB NO. 1004 IN YIN RUINS

Lead isotope and element composition analyses were performed by thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP–OES) on bronze helmets from royal tomb No. 1004 at Yin Ruins, the last capital of China's Shang Dynasty (17th to 11th centuries bc ). The data show that the copper‐based alloy helmets can be divided into two categories: tin bronze and leaded tin bronze; and the lead isotope ratios for both categories are in the range of highly radiogenic lead (HRL). This result offers some important clues to answering questions concerning the provenance of raw metal materials, as well as the chronology of this famous royal tomb.     

朝鲜半岛及日本细形青铜武器的原料产地

对朝鲜半岛及日本出土细形青铜武器的原料产地问题作了尝试性探讨,以了解朝、日及中国大陆古代青铜原料的流通状况。利用青铜器及铅矿物中所含铅的四种稳定同位素的比值,在三维坐标系中观察其分布规律,并结合统计学方法探讨青铜器所含铅与铅矿地域特征的关联。通过比较分析中国大陆、朝鲜半岛及日本列岛出土的部分青铜器及铅矿物标本的铅同位素比值,指出上述三地某些青铜器原料中的铅可能有共同的产地,而朝、日当地铅矿的开采似不早于公元7世纪,故朝、日细形青铜武器的铅原料可能来自中国大陆。     

Lead isotope and metal source of Shang bronzes: a response to Sun et al.’s comments

In this brief response to Sun et al.’s ( 2018 ) comments on our paper, we re‐emphasize that archaeological, chemical and isotopic evidence are all relevant to the discussion about the metal source of the Shang period with highly radiogenic lead isotope ratios. The southern African bronzes have much lower lead contents and quite different lead isotopic signatures than the Shang bronzes. More importantly, there was no metallurgy of any kind in southern Africa before c.200 ce , so southern Africa cannot possibly be the source of Shang bronze, which date to about 1500 to 1000 bce .     

MICROANALYTICAL METAL TECHNOLOGY STUDY OF ANCIENT NEAR EASTERN BRONZES FROM TELL BEYDAR*

Forty‐six bronze objects have been investigated to assess their composition and microstructure, using SEM–EDX and optical microscopy. The bronzes originate from Tell Beydar, a site in the northeastern part of Syria that was mainly occupied during the third millennium bc . The compositional results of the metals show a clear chronological sequence in the use of the alloying elements arsenic and tin. In addition, the microstructure indicates advancement in the metalworking techniques that were used.     

虢国墓地出土部分青铜器微量元素的分析

将微量元素示踪法与铅同位素比值法结合起来对青铜器矿料的溯源会起到相得益彰的效果。先前对虢国墓地青铜器的铅同位素比值测定表明,其青铜器铅同位素与山西中条山和长江中下游地区都有重合。本次微量元素分析结果显示,虢国墓地青铜器与山西中条山古矿冶遗址微量元素特征不同,而与长江中下游地区的湖北铜绿山古矿冶遗址铜锭的微量元素特征相似,推测长江中下游地区可能为虢国墓地青铜器提供了大量的铜料。此外,微量元素与铅同位素都表明虢国墓地不同墓葬的青铜器基本具有一致的矿料来源。     

铅同位素考古研究的可行性问题——浅议“青铜器铅同位素指示意义的范铸实验研究”

国际上对铅同位素示踪方法在青铜器原料产地研究中的应用做过很多探讨。《范铸》一文再次提出有关问题,认为铅同位素分析结果不能确切指示青铜器铜锡铅原料的来源信息。本文考察了其依据的实验数据,它们似乎与其观点互相矛盾,其结论说服力相当有限。     

甘肃崇信于家湾西周墓出土青铜器的金相与成分分析

为探索先周时代以至西周初年周人的活动地域和陇东地区先周文化的发展历史,运用光学金相显微镜、扫描电子显微镜和能谱仪,对甘肃崇信于家湾出土的先周至西周早中期16件青铜器的金相组织、合金成分和制作工艺进行研究。发现有13件为低锡青铜,3件为高锡青铜;就制作材质而言,共有锡青铜5件,铅锡青铜8件,铅青铜、CuS- nPbAs四元合金和CuSnPbFe四元合金各1件;其中4件经热锻加工制成,12件为铸造加工制成。5件铜盆中的4件是目前经金相分析确认的最早的锻打成形青铜容器。本工作为甘肃地区先周至西周时期青铜器和青铜文化研究提供了重要的科学信息。     

Revisiting the lead isotopic compositions of the Shang bronzes at Hanzhong and the new hypothesis of Qinling as the source of highly radiogenic lead

The provenance of the highly radiogenic lead (HRL) contained in Chinese Shang bronzes has attracted great scholarly attention in recent years. A new study of the Hanzhong Shang bronzes has put forward a hypothesis that the HRL metal may come from the adjacent Qinling Mountains. This article reanalyses the lead isotope ratios and alloy compositions of the Hanzhong bronzes. Combining the analytical results, the modern ore data and the slags from Guanzhong area, we propose that there is no direct evidence to identify Qinling as the provenance of HRL metal (especially lead). Whilst over 80% of the Hanzhong bronzes contain HRL, the indigenous artefacts containing both HRL and special alloying elements (As, Sb, Ni) account only for minor portions. This fact cannot verify that HRL originates from Qinling, and even makes it difficult to prove that most of the Hanzhong bronzes use local metal resources. An alternative argument might be that the HRL used in Hanzhong derived from the Shang dynasty. The use of HRL reflects a unified system for allocating metal resources centred on the Shang kingdom, which has great significance for further understanding of the resource circulation patterns among different bronze cultures and locations during the Shang period.     

Long‐distance interaction in Urartu?: Provenance and composition of copper alloys from Ayanis,Turkey

The paper analyses tin bronze weaponry found at the first‐half‐of‐the‐seventh‐century‐BCE Urartian fortress in the Lake Van region of eastern Turkey. Examples of finely manufactured artefacts provide evidence for the consumption of high‐quality bronzes in a well‐defined elite context. This study tests for the presence or absence of long‐distance procurement of the raw materials used to produce status objects. The results of quantitative elemental and lead isotope abundance ratio analyses show that the bronzes were produced with varying copper tin alloys, and the copper was procured from several possible locations, including Anatolia and Cyprus.     

夏家店下层文化遗址出土铜器的矿料来源分析

为进一步了解夏家店下层文化铜器的物料信息,探讨其矿料来源,采用多接收电感耦合等离子体质谱仪(MC-ICP-MS)对4处夏家店下层文化遗址和1处高台山文化遗址出土的部分铜器进行了铅同位素比值测定,并将测定结果同辽西地区几处金属矿的铅同位素数据进行了对比。结果表明:这4处夏家店下层文化遗址出土铜器的原料可能是使用辽西当地的大井多金属矿的矿石冶炼而成,而大山前遗址出土铜器的铅料有可能来自辽宁桓仁的多金属矿,二道井子遗址所出红铜器的铜料则可能另有来源。所属高台山文化的湾柳遗址铜器的铅同位素数据具有高放射性成因铅特征,表明其与同期其他考古学文化存在某种联系。     

基于铅同位素比值的古代矿料混合模型分析法

为深入研究古代青铜器示踪矿料来源中矿料混合问题,通过铅同位素研究数据构建矿料混合模型,从理论上探讨满足条件的青铜器数据样本其矿料混合的情况。基于模型,通过对铅同位素数据的处理,不仅能够匹配相应的矿料混合模式,而且可为器物分类提供依据。此外,还可计算出相应的铜料中表观含铅量,为相关研究提供参考依据。     

A CASE STUDY OF ARTHROPODS PRESERVED ON ARCHAEOLOGICAL BRONZES—MICRO‐ARCHAEOLOGICAL INVESTIGATION HELPS RECONSTRUCTING PAST ENVIRONMENTS

This paper offers new perspectives for improving our knowledge of arthropods in wet and aerobic archaeological contexts. The very‐near environment of uncleaned buried bronze artefacts, two ronde‐bosse ornaments of a Celtic grave from the Iron Age (275 to 250 bc , La Fosse‐Cotheret, Roissy‐en‐France), was studied by means of optical and scanning electron microscopies. Taking into account recent knowledge on bronze corrosion (decuprification), this micro‐investigation (micro‐archaeology) allowed identification of two fossilized arthropods—Cryptophagus sp. (Insecta, Coleoptera, Cryptophagidae) and Coccotydaeolus sp. (Acari, Tydaeoidea, Iolinidae)—which sheds some light upon the complex taphonomic process that occurred after the burial of a Celtic chariot. These first results support the idea that the local corroded metal/soil system has to be investigated for a better understanding of archaeological microenvironments. Efficient minute investigation of soiled bronzes could be performed prior to systematic cleaning of artefacts.     

Sourcing copper ores for production of bronzes excavated at Shuangyantang,a Western Zhou (1046–771 <Emphasis Type="SmallCaps">bc</Emphasis>) site in Chongqing (Southwest China): evidence from lead isotope analysis

Energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) and lead isotope analyses were applied to 12 Western Zhou (1046–771 bc) bronzes unearthed from the Shuangyantang site in Wushan County, Chongqing (southwest China), to investigate their chemical compositions and possible mineral source(s). The results showed that (1) the investigated bronzes were mostly bronzes with low, common lead and (2) their lead isotopic values almost all fall into a relatively narrow range, suggesting possibly the use of raw materials from a common copper mine. The comparison between lead isotopic values for Shuangyantang bronzes and those already published for copper mines and other bronzes produced and used about at the same times leads us to believe that the Shuangyantang bronzes probably used the same copper ores as used in bronzes from the Peng and Jin states in Shanxi Province. However, it would not be possible at this point to come up with a clear idea of where exactly these copper ores may come from. Candidate copper mines might be the Tonglvshan mines in Hubei Province, the Zhongtiaoshan mines in Shanxi Province, or the Dajing copper mines in Inner Mongolia.     

湖北宜城跑马堤墓地出土铜器的科学分析研究

跑马堤墓地是位于湖北省宜城市郑集镇的一处战国至汉代墓地。该墓地出土了大量青铜器,为研究从战国到汉代青铜器的制作技术变迁提供了系统性的资料。本研究对该墓地出土的部分铜器进行了金相组织观察和元素成分分析。结果显示,战国晚期铜器的材质包括铅锡青铜和锡青铜两类,不同类型功用的器物,在材质的选择上也有所不同;西汉铜器的材质则以铅锡青铜为主,合金元素总量相对于战国晚期铜器要低,而且变化范围较大。整体上,该批铜器主要为铸造成型,但其中有3件汉代青铜容器为锻造而成,这三件锻造铜器均为敞口薄壁器物。研究结果可为汉代以后考古学和金属技术史研究提供资料,并为中国古代金属技术史演进序列的补充完善提供科学数据。     

Metallurgical traditions and metal exchange networks in late prehistoric central Myanmar,c. 1000 BC to c. AD 500

Myanmar has been notably underrepresented in recent studies of archaeometallurgy in Southeast Asia, despite its richness in both mineral and cultural resources and its potentially central role in long-distance exchange networks linking India, China and peninsular neighbours. Here, we present original analytical data on copper-base artefacts from several Bronze Age and Iron Age sites in Myanmar. Observed microstructures range from as-cast, worked, to fully annealed; compositions include leaded copper, low-tin to high-tin bronzes, and arsenical copper/bronze. Lead isotope analyses indicate that the metal originates from different geological sources, including several that match the lead isotope signatures of known prehistoric copper mines in Thailand and Laos. These archaeometallurgical data, including evidence for secondary copper-base production, more than double those currently available for Myanmar and document the presence of multiple local alloying and working traditions, perhaps chronologically differentiated, as well as identifying possible links to primary mineral sources across the region. Overall, this adds significant new information to the emerging picture of Southeast Asian prehistoric metallurgy at the crossroads of several major ancient cultures.     

ON THE COMPOSITION AND PROVENANCE OF METAL ARTEFACTS FROM POLIOCHNI ON LEMNOS

Summary. The majority of the well-stratified Early Bronze Age metal objects from Poliochni, with the exclusion of one hoard find, was analyzed for their chemical and lead isotope composition. The results show that a major change occurred in the metal used at Poliochni during periods contemporary with Troy I and Troy II. Unalloyed or arsenical copper with relatively high lead contents during the earliest two periods 'azzurro' and 'verde' is gradually replaced and supplemented by tin bronze which, during period 'giallo', i.e., by the end of Troy II, becomes the dominant metal type. Lead isotope abundance ratios in the earlier artefacts are consistent with a derivation of the metal from regional ore sources but the trace element abundance pattern is not. Concurrent with the appearance of tin bronzes is an increase in the diversity of ore deposits exploited; for about one third of the artefacts from period 'giallo' there is as yet no matching ore source in all Anatolia and the Eastern Mediterranean. It is argued that the tin bronzes have been imported as such but that the lead isotope signature does not provide any direct clues to the origin of the tin.     

殷墟1004号王墓出土青铜胄研究

对商晚期都城殷墟遗址的1004号王墓出土的7件青铜胄进行了热电离质谱(TIMS)铅同位素比值分析和电感耦合等离子体发射光谱(ICP-OES)成分分析,数据显示铜胄的合金类型可分为两类——锡青铜和铅锡青铜,且其二者的铅同位素比值均处于高放射性成因铅范围。此研究结果为探索金属矿料的产地来源及此著名王墓的年代等问题提供了重要线索。     

The early roman imperial AES coinage II: Tracing the copper sources by analysis of lead and copper isotopes—copper coins of Augustus and Tiberius*

Lead and copper isotopes of Roman Imperial copper coins (denominations as and quadrans) were analysed by MC–ICP–MS. We concentrated on well‐dated coins minted at the official mint of Rome under the Emperors Augustus and Tiberius (between 16 bc and ad 37). The lead isotope results were compared with published lead isotope data of ore bodies from the Aegaean, Cyprus, Italy and Spain, in order to fingerprint the sources of Roman copper. During the Augustan period the main copper supply, as judged from the copper coins, is from Sardinia and south‐east Spain, with minor contributions from Tuscany. Except for Tuscany, this continued into the Tiberian period, when Cypriot copper also appears. Augustan quadrantes and late Tiberian asses came solely from the Rio Tinto area in south‐west Spain. Copper isotopes were applied here for the first time to systematic archaeometric studies. They are supplementary to lead isotopes and allow further grouping and classification of the copper coins.