Early Bronze Age Levantine Metal Weapons from the Collection of the Palestine Exploration Fund

ABSTRACT

Metal weapons found during the two historic excavations of Tell el–Hesi and Gezer carried out by W.M.F. Petrie, J.F. Bliss, R.A.S. Macalister, and Alan Rowe, on behalf of the Palestine Exploration Fund are here re-evaluated and compared in the light of recent discoveries. An in-depth study allowed some considerations about the connection existing between Southern Levantine ‘urbanisation’ and metal weapons, remarking the relation between such a kind of specimens and hoards, depots and funerary sets.     

Lisht as a New Kingdom Glass‐Making Site with Its Own Chemical Signature

Lisht is one of a few New Kingdom sites with known glass‐working debris. Here, we present evidence for the primary production of glass at Lisht, including crucible fragments and semi‐finished glass. We also provide 12 new chemical analyses of glass from Lisht, including trace elements. We argue that the glass made at Lisht has a specific chemical signature within the broader range of Late Bronze Age glass compositions from Egypt, further underlining the former existence of primary glass production there and offering the possibility of identifying Lisht‐made glass elsewhere in Egypt and beyond.     

A Comparison Study of Middle Bronze Age II Daggers and Their Rivets as a Tool for a Better Understanding of Their Production

The Middle Bronze Age II is a period during which there exists a contemporaneous usage of arsenic copper and tin bronze for metal weaponry production. In order to learn more about the alloys used in this period, the blades and rivets from 65 daggers of two significantly different types, which were discovered at the Rishon LeZion (RL) cemetery, Israel, were tested by the non‐destructive method of X‐ray fluorescence (XRF). The results reveal new knowledge of the alloys selected for dagger and rivet production, both of which represent fine examples of the Middle Bronze Age II Southern Levant in metal industry.     

Geochemical and Petrographic Analysis of Late Bronze Age Cypriot Ceramics (White Slip I and II and Monochrome) from Tell Atchana/Alalakh (Hatay) in the Amuq Valley

White Slip ware, both White Slip I and II, and Monochrome ware are Middle to Late Bronze Age Cypriot pottery types found across a large area of the Eastern Mediterranean region. A vast quantity of these wares has also been uncovered in Tell Atchana/ancient Alalakh in Hatay in southern Anatolia. We analysed a total of 56 White Slip (n = 36) and Monochrome potsherds (n = 20) from Tell Atchana using XRF, ICP–MS and petrographic thin‐section methods. The main aim of the study was to explore the compositional characteristics of the wares and to determine whether they are local imitations of the Cypriot White Slip and Monochrome wares or represent Cypriot exports to this region. The analytical results proved that White Slip I and II were produced from raw clay of mafic and ultramafic source rocks exposed in the Troodos Massif, available in the Limassol area of southern Cyprus and traded to Tell Atchana. Examples of Monochrome ware excavated in Tell Atchana were also imported to the region, most probably from east/north‐east Cyprus. These results demonstrate a close trading connection between Tell Atchana/Alalakh and southern Cyprus during the Middle to Late Bronze Age.     

玉门火烧沟遗址出土骟马文化铜器的科学分析研究

骟马文化的发现填补了河西走廊西部在四坝文化之后晚期青铜时代的空缺,也为探讨四坝文化的流向提供了重要线索。本文首次对玉门火烧沟遗址出土的骟马文化铜器进行了科学分析,结果表明其材质以红铜为主,也有少量锡青铜、铅青铜和砷青铜。火烧沟骟马文化的铜器合金化程度较低,含有较多杂质元素,延续了该遗址四坝文化时期的铜器技术特点,但与同时期的河西走廊东部、洮河流域及青海东部等地相比,却显示了不同的技术发展趋势。河西走廊受本土早期铜器技术的影响较大,而洮河流域则更多地体现与中原铜器技术体系的联系。     

古铜镜“水银沁”表面形成机理的研究

对加工纯铜、黄铜、锡青铜和铸造高锡镜青铜样品的基体及“磨镜药”处理前后表面进行检测,发现在磨镜处理时,“磨镜药”中的Sn原子通过Hg的作用首先以置换方式扩散渗入铜材表面的α固溶体中,当Sn元素浓度达到饱和时,将首先在晶体缺陷处生成Cu41Sn11新相并逐渐长大,使表面形成“水银沁”富锡层。富锡层逐渐氧化生成致密的、显微晶态的SnO2膜。此即古铜镜“水银沁”表面的形成机理。     

Al-Khidr site on Failaka Island in the Bronze Age: Pottery perspective

The objective of this article is to evaluate the results of the excavation at the site of Al-Khidr on Failaka Island that was probably a port or a fishermen’s settlement in the past. A very large number of stone architectural remains and artifacts have been discovered there. Al-Khidr is a typical Dilmun culture site and the settlement was probably contemporary with the known sites F3 and F6 located on the south-west coast of the island. Based on the pottery that has been processed, we preliminarily dated the site to a period between the beginning of the second millenium and approximately 1500 BC, although older settlement may have occurred, beginning at the end of the third millennium.     

西周王盂新解

本文认为陕西扶风所出西周铜器王盂,乃周王为"蒡京中寝"所作"馈盂"。中寝即西周王后居住的中宫。馈,则表明该盂为周王正配司掌馈食供养所专用。此篇铭文的重新解读,对探索西周王后之职以及相关礼制研究具有重要意义。     

An archaeometric study of the Konya basin metallic ware through FTIR and XRD analysis with chemometrics: Central Anatolian Early Bronze Age ceramics

Fourier-transform infrared, X-ray diffraction and chemometrics were used to characterize the mineralogical composition and firing conditions of 59 Early Bronze Age ceramic sherds from the Konya Plain (Turkey). These include the Konya Basin Metallic Ware (KBMW) and a control group of contemporary local products. The analysis indicates significant differences in mineral inclusions and firing temperatures, with KBMW generally being fired above 800°C and characterized by standardized fabric recipes. Assessed together with other published evidence, these results indicate a high degree of specialization in the production of KBMW ceramic assemblages in central Anatolia during the third millennium BCE.     

Toward an understanding of the exchange in ancient scented oils through organic residue analysis of Bronze Age Near Eastern ceramic bottles by GC-MS

This paper presents a gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) organic residue analysis (ORA) of samples extracted from five Early Bronze Age ceramic bottles excavated at the archaeological site of Küllüoba in Anatolia (modern Turkey), and the first attempt at directly analysing the content of this category of products. Our results show that various types of liquid have been contained in different bottles and identify the presence of dicarboxylic and oleic acids with a large amount of palmitic acid in most samples, suggesting that they may have mostly contained a plant-based oil. The presence of diterpenoids further shows the addition of ingredients such as conifer resin and other plant-derived products. Overall, the analytical results presented here indicate the exchange of scented oils in Anatolia already during the late third millennium BCE. The different organic residue profiles contained in different samples also suggest a range of different recipes for these products.