Abstract
Bronze Age Shang China is characterized by its large-scale production system and distinctive ritual world. Both are vividly materialized by a large number of bronze ritual vessels with added lead. Whilst a remarkable amount of research effort has been channeled into the trace elemental and lead isotopic analysis of these ritual vessels, and successfully revealed some important fingerprints such as highly radiogenic lead (HRL), there is as yet no consensus on the metal source(s) which supplied the entire bronze production during the Shang period. In addition to the traditional method to look for matching and mismatching between ores and objects, we propose that environmental archaeological studies can provide crucial clues to address some long-standing questions in archaeometallurgy. In the first part of the paper, we attempt to illustrate the potential and complexity of combining these two subjects together. The second part of the paper offers a case study by reviewing the debate on Yunnan as the source of HRL. Synthesis of various lines of evidence published by most recent studies on environmental archaeology, archaeometallurgy, field reports and radiocarbon dating suggests that this hypothesis appears much less likely than previously suspected.
Highlights
Archaeometallurgy and environmental archaeology have become increasingly important in the study Bronze Age China in recent years (Xu et al, 2011; Zhang et al, 2017; Qiu et al, 2019; Storozum et al, 2020)
The exact sequence of events is of uttermost importance but due to the lack of good-quality materials for dating, the chronological resolution for environmental or archaeological records could be more than one hundred years for some key periods, making it less useful to interpret potential cause and effect between different events in Bronze Age
The Current State of Debate on Highly Radiogenic Lead In Chinese archaeology, highly radiogenic lead, or HRL, refers to a specific type of lead characterized by higher values of the lead isotopic signature (e.g., 206Pb/204Pb > 19, 207Pb/204Pb > 15.75 and 208Pb/204Pb > 39.0) (Jin, 2008; Liu et al, 2015; Jin et al, 2017)
Summary
Archaeometallurgy and environmental archaeology have become increasingly important in the study Bronze Age China in recent years (Xu et al, 2011; Zhang et al, 2017; Qiu et al, 2019; Storozum et al, 2020). The exact sequence of events is of uttermost importance but due to the lack of good-quality materials for dating, the chronological resolution for environmental or archaeological records could be more than one hundred years for some key periods, making it less useful to interpret potential cause and effect between different events in Bronze Age. In Chinese archaeology, highly radiogenic lead, or HRL, refers to a specific type of lead characterized by higher values of the lead isotopic signature (e.g., 206Pb/204Pb > 19, 207Pb/204Pb > 15.75 and 208Pb/204Pb > 39.0) (Jin, 2008; Liu et al, 2015; Jin et al, 2017). It is difficult to tell whether this was made from recycling of objects in other regions
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