Archaeometalurgy

L'uso dei metalli ha necessariamente comportato l'introduzione di nuove figure legate a tutte le fasi dei processi produttivi, dal reperimento delle materie prime ai prodotti finiti, e ha quindi partecipato in maniera significativa a modificare la struttura interna delle società e i rapporti tra i vari segmenti che la costituiscono. Inoltre, si tratti di rame, ferro o oro, la distribuzione 'diseguale' dei giacimenti metalliferi e la pluralità di competenze e conoscenze coinvolte nella catena operativa, dal minerale all'oggetto finito, impone agli artigiani e alle loro comunità la partecipazione a un network ampio e dinamico sulle cui direttrici viaggiano anche altre materie, prodotti e idee. A partire da casi studio su contesti archeologici, con particolare attenzione agli aspetti sperimentali ed etnoarcheologici, e da ricerche demoetnoantropologiche su contesti italiani, europei ed extraeuropei, ci proponiamo di fare emergere insieme ai relatori e al pubblico presente il contributo che l'introduzione della metallurgia e delle attività ad essa connesse hanno operato nella trasformazione della società, nelle dinamiche in-terne e nei rapporti tra le diverse comunità.

This paper presents and discusses the results of the multi-analytical study carried out on a group of 39 Late Bronze Age artefacts from the site of Porto do Concelho, Central Portugal. The chemical composition of the objects was determined by Energy Dispersive X-ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) and their microstructural features were identified by Optical Microscopy (OM) and Scanning Electron Microscopy with Energy Dispersive X-ray Spectroscopy (SEM-EDS). The results show that metals are binary alloys (Cu+Sn) and leaded bronzes (Cu+Sn+>2.0 wt.% Pb), with a variable content of impurities, such as Pb (when lower than 2.0 wt.%), Fe, As, Ag, Sb and Ni. The microstructural characterization carried out on 21 artefacts allowed the identification of two main operational sequences: 10 objects show a dendritic microstructure suggesting that metals have not undergone any post-casting treatment; 11 artefacts display the presence of annealing twins with, in some cases, slip bands, resulting from the application of thermal and mechanical treatments. The analytical results are compared to those of other metal collections from regional LBA, and together with the bibliographic information available become an opportunity to question and rediscuss the real nature of a collection of metals that most of archaeologists consider as a typical LBA founder's hoard.

In this study, Monte Carlo (MC) simulations combined with energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) spectroscopy have been used to characterize non-destructively a collection of Cu-based artifacts recovered from two archeological sites in southern Portugal: (a) the Chalcolithic E.T.A.R. site of Vila Nova de Mil Fontes and (b) the Middle Bronze Age site of Quinta do Estácio 6. The metal artifacts show a multilayered structure made up of three distinct layers: (a) brownish carbonate soil-derived crust, (b) green oxidized corrosion patina, and (c) bulk metal. In order to assess the reliability of the EDXRF-based Monte Carlo simulations to reproduce the composition of the alloy substrate in archeological bronze artifacts without the need to previously remove the superficial corrosion and soil derived patinas, EDXRF analysis together with scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS) was also performed on cleaned and patina-/crust-coated areas of the artifacts. Characterization of the mineralogical composition of the corrosion products in the surface patinas was further determined by means of X-ray diffraction (XRD). Results suggest that the adopted EDXRF/Monte Carlo protocol may represent a safe and fast analytical approach in the quantitative characterization of the bulk chemical composition of Cu-based metal artifacts even in the presence of fairly thick corrosion patinas and/or soil-derived encrustations at the surface of the archeological objects.

ÖZET
ABD’den Türkiye’ye iade edilen (1993 yılı) ve Uşak Müzesi’nde sergilenen Altın Denizatı’nın orijinali (Hippocampus), 2005 yılı sonunda sahtesiyle değiştirilerek çalınmıştır. Eser çalındıktan sonra INTERPOL (Uluslararası Polis Teşkilatı) ve Türk polisi tarafından aranmaya başlanmıştır. Çalınan orijinal kanatlı denizatı aranırken Türk polisi, aralıklarla kaçakçılar tarafından pazarlanan sahte Altın Kanatlı Denizatı’nı ele geçirmiştir. Fakat ele geçenlerin çok basit yapılmış sahte eser olduğu ortaya çıkmıştır. Orijinalliğinden şüphelenilen Altın Denizatı, 2012 yılı Ekim
ayında Almanya’nın Hagen kentinde bulunmuştur. Bu makale, Hagen savcılığında bulunan Denizatı’nın Türkiye’den çalınan orijinal Denizatı olup olmadığının anlaşılması için Türkiye ve Almanya’da yapılan taşınabilir X-Işınları Floresans Spektrometresi (Portable-XRF) analizleri ve bunların istatistiksel olarak değerlendirilmesi çalışmalarını içermektedir. İlk defa denenen bu arkeometrik çalışma sonucunda eserin orijinal olduğu tespit edilmiş ve Türkiye’ye iadesi sağlanmıştır.
ABSTRACT
The authentic golden-winged seahorse (Hippocampus) which returned by USA to Turkey (in 1993) and exhibited in the Uşak Museum was replaced with a fake one and stolen in the end of 2005. Since the theft was recognized Turkish authorities and INTERPOL (International Criminal Police Organization) have been trying to find the original;
occasionally fake hippocampus in illegal markets have been found by Turkish security authority. An object thought to be the original was found in Germany, in the city of Hagen. This study includes Portable X-ray Florescence (P-XRF) analysis made in Turkey and Germany and their statistic evaluation in order to determine the authenticity of this
suspected hippocampus. At the end of this archaeometric study which is first application in this area is proved that the winged sea horse was authentic and returned back to Turkey.

Introducción 2; 1.Fuentes escritas sobre la minería del cobre en la provincia de Cuenca 4;  1.1. Recursos minerales de cobre 5;  1.2. Manejo de documentación histórica 6;  1.3. Uso de datos geológicos y metalogenéticos 12;  1.4. Recopilación de datos sobre mineral de cobre 13;  1.5. Comentario general 25; 2. Estudio de los minerales 26; 3.Piezas metálicas y otros objetos relacionados con la metalurgia del Calcolítico y Edad del Bronce. 32;  3.1. Introducción 33;  3.2. Descripción de las piezas metálicas y otros objetos 34; 4. Conclusiones 103;  4.1. Valoración 104;  4.2. Pruebas de trabajo metalúrgico 107;  4.3. Composición de los objetos 109; Figuras 111; Bibliografía 130; Apéndice  137

The paper presents the results of the lead isotope analyses (LIA) made on various material and artefacts (ore, washing sediments, litharge) uncovered on the recent excavations carried on an ore washing plant in the Roman silver mining district of Carthago Nova. The aim of such analyses was to precise the isotopic signature of the washing plant so that it could be possible to contextualize it in the whole district. Combined with archaeological and epigraphical data, the LIA can contribute to better know the organisation of Roman mining and metallurgical activity in Cartagena.