Archaeometallurgical Investigations in Nakhchivan,Azerbaijan: What Does the Evidence from Late Chalcolithic Ovçular Tepesi Tell Us about the Beginning of Extractive Metallurgy?

The Late Chalcolithic (4400–3950 b.c.) occupation levels from Ovçular Tepesi have yielded a significant assemblage of copper objects and remains of copper production. Together with ore finds, two fragments of nozzle, crucible remains, and a number of small metal artifacts, this assemblage includes the unexpected discovery of three copper axes in an infant burial jar. These axes are the earliest examples of large copper tools known to date in southwestern Asia, whether it is in the Caucasus, Iran, or the Anatolian highlands. More importantly, the fact that these objects were locally produced suggests that significant metallurgical activities were being carried out at Ovçular as early as the second half of the 5th millennium b.c. After presenting the evidence from Ovçular Tepesi, this paper will proceed to a reassessment of the available archaeological and geochemical data concerning the emergence of extractive metallurgy in the southern Caucasus.     

The analysis of copper artifacts of the copper inuit

Metallography and neutron activation analysis have been used to investigate copper artifacts from 19th century archaeological sites associated with the “Copper Inuit” of the west-central Canadian Arctic. A knowledge of the source of the copper from which the artifacts were manufactured - native (local) copper or European (exotic) copper - is important, for example, to studies of the effects of European contact on utilization of native copper and on the general lifestyle of the Copper Inuit. Trace element analysis by neutron activation using the SLOWPOKE reactor has allowed local native copper, from the Coppermine River and Victoria Island, NW Territories, to be clearly distinguished from 19th century European smelted copper, which was found to contain higher concentrations of arsenic, antimony, nickel and selenium. Moreover, optical and scanning electron metallography revealed significant microstructural differences between native copper and the 19th century smelted copper. As a consequence it was possible to differentiate between native copper archaeological artifacts and those produced from smelted copper.     

The agricultural basis of Umm an-Nar society in the northern Oman peninsula (2500–2000 BC)

This paper argues that the agricultural aspect of the Umm an-Nar economy has been largely ignored by researchers, due to an overemphasis on copper production and trade. This is true at the level of the smallest rural settlements, villages and settlements whose primary focus was agricultural production.
The key social developments of this period have often been explained by linking them to the exploitation of copper ore and its trade with surrounding regions such as Mesopotamia and the Indus. However, this paper will argue — based on quantified pottery analysis — that it is during this time that we see the development, for the first time in the Oman peninsula, of widespread sedentary occupation that was based on small agricultural villages where there is no evidence of copper ore exploitation, thus suggesting that the economic basis of Umm an-Nar society was essentially agricultural.
Furthermore, it will be argued that, through the use of a new survey methodology, it is possible to locate such settlements, even where they have left no traces of monuments, such as tombs or round towers. The methodology allows preliminary comparisons to be made between the intensity of occupation in different periods. The paper also argues that the Umm an-Nar period was one of the most intensive periods of occupation in pre-Islamic history.     

Magnetization of Ancient Ceramics

The saturation magnetization σ of soft baked pottery appears to be determined during the firing process by transitions between the iron oxides magnetite, maghemite, hematite and perhaps goethite. The finding of large variations in σ motivated the design and construction of a ‘magnetization–gravitation’, or ‘MG’, balance for rapid non‐destructive magnetization measurements. The first results with this MG balance are presented: iso‐σ contours, typical histograms and correlations with colour features. Practical MG applications are summarized.     

论两汉时期皖南铜与皖南经济

皖南地区铜矿资源丰富,两汉时期的皖南属于丹阳郡,丹阳铜以质优量多而闻名全国.两汉时期皖南铜矿得到了较大规模的开采和冶炼,同时兴起了铸钱和铜镜制造业,从而扩大了皖南地方政府的财政来源,增强了皖南地区的经济实力,推动了皖南的农业和其它行业的发展,可以说皖南铜在皖南经济发展中发挥了极其重要的作用.     

Exchange Rate Policy and Economic Growth after the Financial Crisis in Central and Eastern Europe

In a paper on the effects of the global financial crisis in Central and Eastern Europe (CEE), a European Union economist reacts to a companion paper (Åslund, 2001) published in the same issue of Eurasian Geography and Economics on the influence of exchange rate policies on the region's recovery. The author argues that post-crisis corrections in current account deficits in CEE countries do not in themselves signal a return to steady economic growth. Disagreeing with Åslund over the role of loose monetary policy in fostering the region's economic problems, he outlines a number of competitiveness problems that remain to be addressed in the 10 new EU member states of CEE, along with improvements in framework conditions supporting future macroeconomic growth.     

楚金币的发现与研究

本文概述了楚国金币的发现情况,对楚金币的种类、形制、印记、重量与刻文诸问题加以探讨,对楚金币出土情况进行剖析,认为,楚金币是流通中的秤量货币,它与铜贝是主币与辅币的关系;并对楚金币的币材产地、冶炼技术与铸造年代等进行研究。