Archeometallurgy

Cet ouvrage est consacré à l’exceptionnel dépôt de près de 370 objets métalliques, majoritairement en bronze, découvert en 1969 dans le secteur nord-est de la basilique du forum de l’antique Bagacum. La mise au jour du Trésor des bronzes de Bavay a accéléré la création du musée municipal en 1976 et demeure encore aujourd’hui la pièce maîtresse des collections du Forum antique de Bavay, musée archéologique du Département du Nord. Dans le cadre du renouvellement de la présentation muséographique de cet ensemble, le musée a sollicité une équipe pluridisciplinaire de spécialistes pour mener un nouvel examen approfondi des objets. Une partie des pièces du Trésor a été soumise à des techniques avancées d’analyse scientifique par le Centre de recherche et de restauration des musées de France. C’est le résultat de ces échanges, des regards croisés de spécialistes aux expertises différentes et complémentaires que le Forum antique de Bavay vous propose de découvrir dans cet ouvrage. L’ensemble des pièces constitutives du Trésor est présenté dans le catalogue.

L’archeologo del XXI secolo non vive più di solo studio e scavo. Oggi la moderna ricerca impone di affiancare al lavoro in cantiere e ai libri in biblioteca modi sempre nuovi di indagare, comunicare e gestire l’antico. Bastano un po’ di fantasia, versatilità e intraprendenza per dare vita, da archeologo, alle attività più disparate. Come hanno fatto i 34 professionisti che si raccontano in Archeostorie: c’è chi cura un museo e chi gestisce un’area archeologica, chi narra il passato ai bambini e chi lo “fa vedere” ai ciechi, chi usa nel racconto le tecnologie e i linguaggi più diversi e persino i videogame; c’è poi chi ricostruisce l’antico in 3D e chi lo sperimenta dal vivo, chi organizza i dati di scavo e chi li rende disponibili per tutti; c’è chi scrive sui giornali e chi parla di archeologia alla radio o in tivù, chi realizza documentari e chi racconta l’archeologia sui social network; c’è ancora chi punta sul marketing e chi sul crowdfunding, chi fa dell’archeologia un’esperienza per tutti e chi difende le bellezze da furti e scempi. C’è anche chi studia e scava, e nel libro descrive la vita vera di studio e scavo al di là dei miti e dei sogni.
Il risultato è un manuale non convenzionale che offre spunti originali e concreti agli archeologi del futuro in cerca di reali possibilità di occupazione. Una sorta di bottega artigiana dove apprendere i segreti del mestiere, o meglio dei mestieri, che un’archeologia nuova, pragmatica e ancorata nel presente può ispirare.

This article presents the results of the first-ever lead isotope (LI) analysis of copper-based archaeological artefacts found in the region of Finland. Eight metal objects recovered from the Iron Age water burial site of Levänluhta in western Finland were analysed via multi collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS) and portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (pXRF) in order to attain geochemical and LI data. The majority of the objects are Merovingian period (ca. 550-800 CE) jewellery, displaying domestic Iron Age artefact styles, and were probably cast by local workshops in Finland. Until recently, the copper exploited in Bronze and Iron Age metallurgy in Finland had been linked to Scandinavian ores. However, this provenance scenario seems implausible in the light of recent LI studies demonstrating that Scandinavian Bronze Age artisans in fact relied on long-distance metal transport. Comparisons between the LI data of the analysed objects and published ore databases exclude the possibility of a domestic or Scandinavian copper source for the metals. Instead, it appears likely that the copper originated from southern European ores. The low arsenic and antimony levels in the copper alloys provide indication of long recycling patterns of the metals used in the Iron Age workshops in Finland. It is possible that the Iron Age artefacts contain recycled copper-alloys already acquired in the Bronze Age. The metals were transported for long distances, and it appears that the pan-European metal circulation network also crossed the Baltic Sea to reach coastal Finland.

Experimental results from small diameter, high shaft bloomery furnaces, which are blown with medium to high air rates, are presented. The underlying thermodynamic principle demands a minimum temperature and CO concentration for the wustite reduction, which is not reached everywhere in the cross-section of the hot zone. The heat demand of the descending cold ore is influencing the contours of the isotherms. The interaction of these effects is responsible for a remarkable independence of the experimental outcome from the chosen air rate. The Urbain slag model is consulted to explain, why the bloomery process must leave ca. 50% FeO unreduced in the slag. Isothermal reduction experiments demonstrate, that carburization of the bloom can only proceed through direct contact with the carbon. The degree of the carburization is dependent on the slag volume of the ore.

Este articulo se centra en el proceso metalurgico lIevado a cabo en las huayrachinas (pequenos hornos de viento) de Porco-Potosi, en el sur de Bolivia. Para analizar la tecnologia de las huayrachinas, este estudio considera el proceso de produccion actual de plata tal y coma fue documentada por el Proyecto Arqueologico Porco-Potosi -PAPP. Se presentan los resultados de los analisis arqueo-metalurgicos deI metal producido en un contexto etnografico con el uso de las huayrachinas. A continuacion, estos resultados se comparan con muestras de metales arqueologicos provenientes de diferentes sitios con presencia de huayrachinas.

The paper reports the results of die studies of three major Ptolemaic gold coinages of Alexandria: the coinage in the name of the Theoi Adelphoi, featuring the jugate busts of the two first Lagid couples; the mnaieia in the name of Arsinoe Philadelphus; and the main issue of mnaieia depicting the radiate Ptolemy III wearing the aegis like a chlamys. The die studies reveal a distinct pattern of production for each of these coinages. Metallurgical analyses identify the stocks of metal used and provide new evidence for the absolute chronology of the first two coinages. The authors also discuss other evidence relevant to chronology, hoards and circulation, and the probable functions of the three coinages.

The castle of Miranduolo (Municipality of Chiusdino, Province of Siena, Italy) is a long-term medieval settlement, starting in the 7th  century and definitively abandoned around the mid 14th century. Excavations led by the University of Siena between 2001 and 2016, yielded important information for a better understanding of the postclassical settlement network formation processes in rural Tuscany. Metallurgy represents a constant economic factor for the whole lifespan of the site. In fact, Miranduolo was founded during the 7th century with an exclusive economic specialization, entirely centred on the exploitation of the local iron ores. A complex mining system has been identified on the northern part of the hill, while a large and composite metallurgic area, with several structures involving the whole production cycle, was uncovered on the southern slopes. Evidence of iron reduction continues also in the 8th century, when the settlement’s economic focus changes drastically towards an agricultural enterprise led by emerging local elites. A first set of archaeometric analyses, using SEM-EDS techniques on a sample of slags, has been carried out in order to explore quality and composition of the exploited iron ores. The preliminary results are presented in this paper, showing that at least two different types of mineral, both pertaining to a local basin, were used in the site’s Early Medieval production areas.

Résumé :
Les statères aux types de Philippe II de Macédoine représentent un sujet d'étude crucial autant pour les spécialistes du monde grec – au sein duquel ils constituent un des principaux monnayages d'or – que pour ceux de la Gaule, où ils furent abondamment imités. Cet article propose un regard croisé sur ces statères, à la fois comme monnayage grec mais également comme modèle à l'origine d'un grand nombre de monnayages en or gaulois. En nous appuyant sur la documentation existante, nous proposons tout d'abord un inventaire révisé des statères originaux aux types de Philippe II trouvés en Gaule, ainsi qu'un tableau synthétique des premières séries d'imitations. Dans un second temps, nous tentons de mieux cerner les circonstances et l'ampleur du phénomène d'importation des philippes originaux en Gaule à travers l'étude des principales séries émises en Macédoine et dans le nord de l'Asie Mineure. Nous reprenons enfin les différentes hypothèses avancées pour expliquer l’arrivée des philippes en Gaule et leur succès tout en replaçant ces phénomènes dans le contexte de transition et d'expansion de l'ensemble du monde celtique au IVe et au IIIe siècle av. J.-C.
Mots clés : Statère de Philippe II de Macédoine, circulation monétaire, imitation celtique.

Summary:
The staters with types of Philip II of Macedonia are as crucial an issue for
specialists of the Greek world – in which they are one of the main gold coinages – as for those of Gaul, where these coins were much imitated. This article aims to provide a cross-perspective on these staters, both as a Greek coinage and as the model for a large number of Gaulish gold coinages. We first offer a revised inventory of original staters found in Gaul based on the existing literature and a table summarizing the first series of imitations. Through the study of the main series issued in Macedonia and in northern Asia Minor, we then try to give a more accurate view of the circumstances and extent of import the gold coins of Philip in Gaul. Finally, after replacing these phenomena in the context of transition and expansion of the Celtic world in the 4th and 3rd centuries BC, we discuss the various hypotheses explaining the arrival of these coins in Gaul.
Keywords: Gold stater of Philip II, coin circulation, Celtic imitation.

Hoards of metal objects dated to the 3rd – 4th century AD in Bohemia
This paper refers to three hoards of metal objects. Recent one from Rosovice and two older (but originally incorrectly dated) from Lety near Dobřichovice and Benátky nad Jizerou in central Bohemia region. The analysis confirmed that all three hoards were buried during 3rd – 4th century AD. The paper also includes the results of the archeometalurgical analysis of scythes found in Rosovice and description of making functional replicas.

El texto Indios en Holguín compila un conjunto de artículos que aportan un panorama novedoso del legado indígena en el espacio de la actual provincia de Holguín, Cuba. Es un intento regional en la valoración de los procesos de interacción hispano indígena e inserción indígena (ya desde la condición de indio) en el mundo colonial cubano, integrando enfoques de la historia, la arqueología, la etnografía y la lingüística, y valorando estos procesos tanto en los ambientes de antiguas aldeas indígenas como en espacios rurales coloniales o en entornos urbanos entre los siglos XVI y XIX.

In 2016, an Early Medieval sword scabbard chape was handed over to the Museum of Kostrzyn Fortress. According to the person submitting it, it was found about 5-6 years earlier in the northern part of Kostrzyn nad Odrą. The main decorative motif of the openwork field is a heraldically arranged bird. The closest analogies to the chape in question are dated to the second half of the 10th and 11th century. Artefacts of this type could have been produced in Scandinavia, but also in the Rus and Baltic areas. Unfortunately, we are not able to say what raw material was used to cast the artefact in question. An analysis of the metal composition of the find carried out on the surface of the artefact demonstrated that a very heterogeneous lead alloy was used, which could have also been a result of lead-bleaching. The same technology was also observed on the chapes from Ruthenia. Scholars have explained the presence of an ornithomorphic motif on the surface of the artefact in various ways.