In the 30 years since the first British Museum volume dedicated to the scientific study of early metallurgy, there has been great progress in understanding the diversity of processes by which ores were mined and smelted as well as significant advances in the methods of study of these. In particular, the experimental replication of ancient processes has assumed ever greater importance.
This volume arose from the conference Metallurgy: A Touchstone for Cross-cultural Interaction which took place at the British Museum to celebrate the enormous contribution to the study and understanding of metallurgy made by Paul Craddock during his 40 years at the Museum. The papers largely relate to mining and extractive metallurgy. The inception and nature of the first smelting technologies of copper and tin in Southeast Asia, the Middle East, Europe and Africa, and of zinc in China and iron in Africa, the Middle East and Britain are discussed together with insights into the archaeology and experimental replication of the processes. The authors are drawn from major institutions worldwide, reflecting the international interest the subject now commands.
Published in association with the British Museum.
Preface and acknowledgements
Susan La Niece and Duncan Hook
Introduction: achievements and challenges
Paul Craddock
Mining and smelting
Chalcolithic copper smelting
David Bourgarit
Zambujal and the beginnings of metallurgy in southern Portugal
Roland Müller, Gert Goldenberg, Martin Bartelheim, Michael Kunst and Ernst Pernicka
The use of experimental archaeology/archaeometallurgy for the understanding and reconstruction of Early Bronze Age mining and smelting technologies
Simon Timberlake
On the Edge of success: the scientific examination of the products of the Early Mines Research Group smelting experiments
Paul Craddock, Nigel Meeks and Simon Timberlake
Towards a functional and typological classification of crucibles
Justine Bayley and Thilo Rehren
Records of palaeo-pollution from mining and metallurgy as recorded by three ombrotrophic peat bogs in Wales, UK
T.M. Mighall, Simon Timberlake, S. Singh and M. Bateman
Copper, tin and bronze
Prehistoric copper production at Timna: thermoluminescence (TL) dating and evidence from the East
Andreas Hauptmann and Irmtrud Wagner
On the origins of metallurgy in prehistoric Southeast Asia: the view from Thailand
Vincent C. Pigott and Roberto Ciarla
Coals to Newcastle, copper to Magan? Isotopic analyses and the Persian Gulf metals trade
Lloyd Weeks
The first use of metal on Minoan Crete
J.D. Muhly
Cross-cultural Minoan networks and the development of metallurgy in Bronze Age Crete
Noel H. Gale and Zofia Anna Stos-Gale
One hundred years on: what do we know about tin and bronze production in southern Africa?
Shadreck Chirikure, Simon Hall and Duncan Miller
Brass and zinc
Of brass and bronze in prehistoric Southwest Asia
Christopher P. Thornton
Brasses in the early metallurgy of the Iberian Peninsula
Ignacio Montero-Ruiz and Alicia Perea
The beginning of the use of brass in Europe with particular reference to the southeastern Alpine region
J. Istenic and Ž. Å mit
Roman brass and lead ingots from the western Mediterranean
Gerd Weisgerber with contributions by Paul Craddock and Nigel Meeks, U. Baumer and J. Koller
Copper-based metal in the Inland Niger delta: metal and technology at the time of the Empire of Mali
Laurence Garenne-Marot and Benoît Mille
Preliminary multidisciplinary study of the Miaobeihou zinc-smelting ruins at Yangliusi village, Fengdu county, Chongqing
Liu Haiwang, Chen Jianli, Li Yanxiang, Bao Wenbo, Wu Xiaohong, Han Rubin, Sun Shuyun and Yuan Dongshan
The origin and invention of zinc-smelting technology in China
Zhou Weirong
Iron and steel
Slags and the city: early iron production at Tell Hammeh, Jordan and Tell Beth-Shemesh, Israel
Harald Alexander Veldhuijzen and Thilo Rehren
Innovations in bloomery smelting in Iron Age and Romano-British England
Sarah Paynter
Decisions set in slag: the human factor in African iron smelting
Thilo Rehren, Michael Charlton, Shadreck Chirikure, Jane Humphris, Akin Ige and Xander Veldhuijzen
The anatomy of a furnace ... and some of its ramifications
Peter Crew and Michael Charlton
Early Chinese ferrous swords from the British Museum collections
M.L. Wayman and C. Michaelson
Crucible steel in medieval swords
Alan Williams
Index
Reviews
...I would recommend this book as a single source for a conservator interested in following recent research in archaeometallurgy.
ICON News (May 2008) 33
This is a premier collection of leading researchers, an excellent advertisement for the field of archaeometallurgy, and a worthy tribute to Paul Craddock. The expertise of the authors is complemented by the extremely high standard of design and typography by Archetype Publications, with high-resolution colour printing throughout.
Journal of Archaeological Science 35 (2008) 3044-3046
