Gold Objects Research Articles

The Pulborough Gold Torc: a 4th to 3rd century BCE artefact of European significance

Two fragments of a decorated buffer terminal torc were found in 2019 near Pulborough, West Sussex. The simplicity of the design belies the complexity of the construction of this hollow, gold alloy neck-ring. The overall shape is that of 4th to 3rd century BCE buffer terminal torcs found in western Europe, particularly France, Germany and Belgium. The terminal and neck-ring are decorated with filigree made from block-twisted wire soldered to the surface of the sheet metal parts. Filigree ornament is unusual in this shape of torc but is known from other varieties of torc and contemporary gold objects found on the Continent. The location of this find, towards the south coast of England along ancient routes of Atlantic and cross-channel contact and trade, is intriguing given the disparate influences seen in the design. This is not the first buffer terminal torc discovered in England; its discovery is preceded by both gold and copper-alloy versions, but it stands out for its individual style and decorative effect. After its discovery and reporting to the Portable Antiquities Scheme, the torc was subject to analysis and examination, confirming it qualified as Treasure under the stipulations of the Treasure Act 1996. The Sussex Archaeological Society acquired the torc in 2023 for the Barbican House Museum, Lewes, Sussex. Further detailed technical examination of the torc was carried out on their behalf at the British Museum and is described here.

Metal Trade and Contraband: Archaeological Discoveries and Insights from the Nanhai No.1 Merchant Shipwreck

The archaeological evidence from the Nanhai No.1 shipwreck provides tangible evidence for the study of maritime trade during the Song Dynasty, revealing the presence of a significant amount of smuggled metal in the cargo, suggesting possible involvement in smuggling activities. Merchants may have used tactics such as under-reporting and clandestine transportation of prohibited items to evade supervision, thus engaging in the illicit trade of metal materials and artifacts banned by the Song government on the international market. Valuations of the goods recovered from Nanhai No.1 indicate that the value of iron and silver exceeds that of porcelain, while the value of gold objects and currency exceeds that of porcelain by one-third. Research also suggests a possible shift in the model of maritime trade during the Song Dynasty, from government-led to merchant-led, with a gradual weakening of government supervision and control over trade. This change may be related to reforms in trade organization and the government leniency toward prohibited activities. Despite repeated government bans, smuggling of metal goods continued throughout the Song Dynasty, with no significant reduction in the scale of the metal trade due to the profit-seeking behavior of private merchants, highlighting the inadequacy of government control over illegal smuggling activities. This complex interplay between economic gain, national security, private interests and government control had profound implications for China, the broader South China Sea region and beyond, while the outflow of metal artifacts also facilitated the exchange of goods, technology and culture between China and the aforementioned regions.

Forecasting for new lode-placer gold objects in the southwestern ending of the Kurtushibinsky metallogenic zone, based on the digital relief analysis

The article provides conclusions on the history of development of the topography within the Kurtushibinsky metallogenic zone, based on compilation of maps of the vertex and base surfaces of different levels. The areas of erosion and accumulation of loose material, took place at different phases, have been distinguished. The outlines of the potentially gold-bearing Gagul River paleovalley were drawn, that was not previously identified. The prospect for gold of this paleostructure and its associated recent alluvial systems has been concluded. The sites most promising for placer gold exploration have been outlined.

An Argaric Tomb for a Carpathian ‘Princess’?

Around 120 years ago, a burial was discovered in the Argaric settlement of San Antón, 60 km southeast of Alicante (Spain). Although it was similar to many others recorded during more than a century of research, some gold objects found made this burial exceptional in the Iberian Bronze Age funerary record. Based on the most recent archaeological data, this article reviews both the context and the whole set of grave goods. It also explores the intersocial relationships that these gold ornaments suggest, which directly or indirectly seem to point towards both eastern Mediterranean Europe as well as to the Carpathian Basin.

Archaeometric Investigation of a Hunnic-Period Sacrificial Assemblage from Nyergesújfalu, Hungary

Near Nyergesújfalu (Komárom-Esztergom County, Hungary), objects of a Hunnic-period sacrificial assemblage were found in 2021. The Hunnic period assemblage contains fifteen items altogether: four gold lunular mounts, six cellwork-decorated gold oval mounts, two cellwork-decorated gold suspension rings, two gold buckles and fragments of a scale-patterned gilded silver plate. The present study aims to determine the elemental composition of the metal alloy of the Hunnic-period objects and characterise the decoration techniques (gilding and garnet inlays) by using optical microscopy, handheld X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (hXRF) and scanning electron microscopy with energydispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM-EDX). The gold objects, including their small parts such as the rivets of buckles and lunular mounts, sockets and filigree, were manufactured from a relatively goodquality gold alloy (>80 wt% Au). The fragments of the scale-patterned silver plate were manufactured from a high-quality silver alloy (>94 wt% Ag), similar to late Roman silver alloys characterised by high Ag content, and was decorated with fire (mercury) gilding. The garnets used for inlays are almandine and intermediate pyrope-almandine garnets. Based on their chemistry, the garnets belong to Group X and probably originate from the placer deposits of Sri Lanka.

Characterization of an Ancient Bimetallic Alloy from Moche Civilization (Peru).

The Moche civilization in Peru developed marvelous metallurgy, primarily using alloys of gold, copper and silver, with the most famous of them called Tumbaga, which resembles pure gold after a depletion process on its surface. However, they also created objects with more standard single-layer alloys or gilding. To distinguish between these techniques in a non-destructive manner is essential. Here, we analyzed a thigh protector, composed of two parts, one seemingly in silver and the other seemingly in gold. The sample was analyzed using X-ray fluorescence measurements integrated with Monte Carlo simulation. The results show that the silver part is formed of a silver-based alloy covered in a corrosion layer, while the gold part is made of Tumbaga. Moreover, for the first time, the gold profiles of different Tumbaga gold objects, from the same burial, were compared, allowing us to obtain information about the standardization of their manufacture.

Prehistoric gold from Lake Sevan Basin? New research on Armenian gold deposits and objects

The article gives an overview of the results of a joint Armenian-German project in the area of today's open pit gold mine of Sotk in Eastern Armenia. Special attention is given to the preliminary results of the gold analysis. Interdisciplinary studies on regional natural gold deposits - especially the Sotk and Tsarasar deposits - and their archaeological context are presented together with the analytical results of 43 gold and four silver objects from five different sites in Armenia. The LA-ICP-MS data are discussed in terms of their alloy and trace element composition. They provide information on the use of raw material sources, intentional alloying, and the preferred use of these alloys. The archaeometric investigations show that the gold objects were mostly made of secondary placer gold. However, for one object, the oldest object examined in this study, the use of primary rock gold could not be excluded. Furthermore, the data provide information on the serial production of typologically identical types found at different sites, indicating that these objects were probably traded over long distances.

The Kumtor gold deposit in the Middle Tien Shan, Kyrgyzstan, and the application of 3-D modeling in Seequent’s Leapfrog Geo software for the geological exploration

The Kumtor deposit is one of the largest gold deposits in the Tien Shan. The ore zones are localized in rocks of the black shale formation, in an amagmatic gently dipping structure. Distinctive features of the ore deposit in a line of gold objects localized in black shales are the predominance of ores of pyrite-(feldspar)-carbonate composition and the almost complete absence of arsenic in the ores. Kumtor is a typical representative of orogenic type deposits.The use of 3D modeling of the geological structure of the ore deposit with the Leapfrog Geo software allows one to quickly correct the model when new drilling and operational exploration data are received, to optimize the exploration work, and to forecast new sites for the exploratory drilling

Looking at the Evidence of Local Jewelry Production in Scythia

This article considers finds from the Scythian monuments of the North Black Sea area that can be connected to local jewelry production from the 7th century to the end of the 4th century BCE. I wish to draw attention to the problem of prolonged bias in this area of study. The prominence of the famous masterpieces by West Asian artisans (Lyta Mohyla and Kelermes Kurgans) and of the Greco-Scythian goldwork from the North Pontic kurgans (Chortomlyk, Solokha, Tovsta Mohyla, etc.) invited the view that the vast majority of the gold objects that the Scythians used during their lifetime and later took into their graves were imported rather than locally produced. Instead of trying to consider all artifacts that could potentially be Scythian-made, my goal in this article is to review the direct archaeological evidence of local jewelry production in the form of punches, matrices, and recorded cases of workshops at Scythian settlements. Gathering this evidence, as I will argue, gives us compelling insight into the high level of Scythian goldsmithing from the beginning of Scythian culture in the 7th century BCE and its improvement and adaptation of new techniques in the 5th and 4th centuries BCE, probably in the context of intensified cultural exchanges between Scythians and Greeks.

Electrochemical dating of archaeological gold based on repetitive voltammetry monitoring of silver/copper in depth concentration gradients

The use of repetitive voltammetry for dating archaeological gold objects is described. The method involves the record of the gold- silver-, and copper-related voltammetric responses obtained for metal nanosamples attached to graphite electrodes immersed into HCl electrolytes. This methodology permits to characterize different electrochemical types representative of different manufacturing techniques. Age estimates are based on the assumption that decuprification/desilvering processes advance with time under reasonably uniform conditions. Age calibration curves covering a range of ca. 2500 years were obtained from a set of archaeological samples from the Mapungubwe Gold Collection at the University of Pretoria Museums, South Africa, the Rijksmuseum of Amsterdam, The Netherlands, the Rheinische Landesmuseum Trier of Mannheim (Germany), the Museu de Belles Arts de Castelló, Spain, the Museu de Segovia, Spain, and the repository of the Servei d’Investigació Arqueològica Municipal de València, Spain.

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Tubo-Sogdian Relations along the Silk Road: On an Enigmatic Gold Plaque from Dulan (Qinghai, China)

In 2018, some tombs that belonged to early Tibetan-related elites at the site of Dulan (Qinghai, China) were disturbed by looters’ activity. One of the gold objects confiscated by local police officers displays a curious composite creature that could be called a winged ichthyocentaurus or triton. This creature includes the torso of a dressed man with a beribboned crown holding a rhyton-like horn and a coiled fish tail. This article discusses the possible function and meaning of this type of composite creatures that appear also on some artifacts from Central Asian archaeological sites and Sino-Sogdian funerary monuments. The iconography of the hybrid creatures seems to be rooted in Greek art. Sogdians possibly transmitted it to the Tibetan Plateau along the so-called Silk Road in the 7th-8th cc. The horn held by the creature is reminiscent of one attribute of the ancient Chinese wind god “Feng Bo” (风伯, “Master of the Wind”) that has been depicted in the funerary milieu since the Han period (202 B.C.-220 A.D.) because of its association with immortality. This object could allow us to identify the iconography of the Sogdian wind deity Weshparkar (Avestan Vayu) who sometimes had a “wind blowing horn” like in the Dulan gold plaque. The study of this specific detail could help to shed light on the multicultural background of early Tibetan societies that definitely had contacts with Central Asia and China along the Silk Road trading network.

Portable laser ablation sheds light on Early Bronze Age gold treasures in the old world: New insights from Troy, Poliochni, and related finds

The paper focuses on the archaeometric analyses of the gold objects from the famous so-called ‘treasures’ of Troy and Poliochni on the island of Lemnos. Altogether 61 Early Bronze Age (EBA) gold objects dating between 2500 and 2000 BCE were investigated in this study. They were primarily sampled with a portable laser ablation (pLA) unit in the National Archaeological Museum in Athens and analyzed with ICP-MS at the Curt-Engelhorn-Centre Archaeometry (CEZA) in Mannheim. The main advantage of this approach is the possibility to obtain samples on site without the necessity of transport. It is a minimally invasive method that leaves no visible damage on the objects. As an additional advantage there are no restrictions on the size of the objects under study. The central goal of the study was to obtain high-quality compositional analyses of gold objects from the sites Troy and Poliochni to investigate, if the typological similarity is paralleled by the elemental composition of the gold, including the trace elements. This would suggest not only similar procurement of the metal across these sites but also potential exchange of objects and/or specialist workers. In a second step, the results were compared with data from contemporary gold objects from Ur in southern Mesopotamia, from where LA-ICP-MS data have recently become available. Finally, a survey of such data for gold objects from gold-rich regions is used to narrow down the possible origin of Early Bronze Age gold in the Old World.

Ball Brooches in the Age of Citizen Science

Ball brooches make a difficult research theme in Denmark. This is mainly because very few of the hitherto published specimens were found in a context or under circumstances that help to shed light on their chronology. The most recently published study is a very brief paper by Jesper Laursen on the chronology and typology of ball brooches (Laursen 1984). Laursen’s paper was published at a time when hobby metal detecting was only at its early stages in Denmark. Therefore, this hobby had not yet had its impact on the material. Metal detecting favors objects with much metal and since cultivated soil contains a lot of iron waste most hobby detectorists tend to screen for iron. Consequently, objects of bronze, silver and gold will have a tendency to dominate the finds brought in by these people, and especially massive objects. Thus, ball brooches, especially the cast bronze specimens, would have a good chance to be detected and collected. As the internet developed, some private sites were established were the finders themselves published their finds. Recently the app named DIME launched by University of Aarhus (in September 2018) and until today (29.09.2021) 121.186 finds have been registered by private users in the database. The newly available information, correlated with the previous ones, offers the possibility of a preliminary study of the ball brooches, which we propose in this article.

New insight into Bronze Age goldwork from northern Portugal. Bracelets, spirals and torcs from the region of Vila Real

This work is the first analytical study carried out on a representative group of early gold objects found in the region of Vila Real, situated in one of the richest gold-bearing areas in the northwest of the Iberian Peninsula. The objects were examined by optical microscopy and mobile XRF in four museums. Among them are the unique Early Bronze Age spiral ring from Vila Real (found at Fraga da Pitorca), one of the three chains of gold spirals from North Portugal and one of the few Villena-Estremoz type bracelets found in the Northwest (both from Alto da Pedisqueira). They constitute the Treasure of Chaves. Two of the three Bronze Age bracelets from Vila Real (found at Torgueda and Vinhós) have also been analysed together with typical productions of the region of Chaves, the Iron Age torcs from Rendufe, Codeçais and Paradela do Rio. Two similar torcs found in Lugo were analysed for comparison. When the earliest objects from Vila Real are compared to those found in neighbouring regions (Bragança, Minho and Galicia), they suggest regional exploitation of local gold resources. In Vila Real, native gold seems to be used as found until at least the end of the Bronze Age, but search and implementation of metallurgical practices related to several stages of production of intentional gold alloys seem to begin in the Early Iron Age. Some objects are made with gold containing a little more copper but amounts of silver within the same range as earlier objects, suggesting the addition of copper to local native gold, whereas others, particularly the torcs, contain increasing amounts of silver and copper. When copper and increasing amounts of silver are added to a gold containing 10 wt% Ag and 0.2 wt% Cu (native alloy observed at Vila Real) the theoretical debased alloys cover the chemical range defined by objects dated from the Iron Age to the early Roman period found north of Douro river, suggesting the use of well-established metallurgical practices.

Technology, life histories and circulation of gold objects during the Middle Period (AD 400–1000): A perspective from the Atacama Desert, Chile

Studies of archaeological goldwork in the Americas are increasingly revealing a rich variety of context-specific ways in which gold items were produced and valued, but research attention has largely focused on visually striking artefacts. However, in the south-central Andes, goldwork is described essentially as a ‘sheet technology’—a definition that tends to downplay the potential complexity and cultural significance of this technology in such an extensive and varied region. Here, we employ a life-history approach to explore the existence of particular traditions within this large area. We present chemical and microscopic analyses, using pXRF, SEM–EDS, PIXE and digital microscopy, of 142 gold and silver objects from San Pedro de Atacama (northern Chile), recovered in seven cemeteries dated to the Middle Period (AD 400–1000). Our results reveal a heterogeneous assemblage where compositions, techniques, designs and skill levels vary, suggesting that gold artefacts circulated and were imported from different areas of the south-central Andes, such as Tiwanaku, Cochabamba and northwest Argentina. We also identify for the first time two distinct technological traditions used in San Pedro: small-scale goldwork production, and a tradition of modifying and reusing imported objects by cutting, perforating and separating object parts. Considering the depositional contexts, we propose that the funerary ritual at San Pedro was a key factor in the development of this local goldwork. Our research demonstrates that even small and unimpressive artefacts can be successfully interrogated from archaeological perspectives with integrative approaches that go beyond overly generalising perspectives of gold as an exotic status marker.

Weight regulation in British and Irish Bronze Age gold objects: a reanalysis and reinterpretation

Sophisticated metrological systems were common in the European Bronze Age and mass-regulation has been argued for various classes of object, including gold artefacts. A recent study published in Antiquity used Cosine Quantogram Analysis to demonstrate mass-regulation in a small sample of gold objects from Britain, Ireland and France. Since then, substantial quantities of new data from British Bronze Age gold objects have been collated. Here, the author presents the results of Cosine Quantogram Analysis on nearly 1000 such objects—the largest sample analysed to date. The results demonstrate that, even though some regularities can be discerned, mass-regulation is no longer a tenable interpretation of gold objects from Bronze Age Britain.

The Essence of Power

The study discusses a new gold armlet from Tápióbicske (Pest County, HU), a unique masterpiece of the Carpathian Middle Bronze Age. This exceptional find belongs to the group of gold armlets with crescent-shaped terminals. Its best parallel is the Bilje (HR) gold armlet. The results of stylistic analysis of the patterns on the Tápióbicske gold armlet suggest that these sheet metal gold armlets may be associated with the gold and bronze products from the Br A2 (Hajdúsámson horizon) and Br B1 (Koszider horizon) periods. Pottery discovered during the field survey of the site also supports the Middle Bronze Age dating. It seems plausible that the find was manufactured and probably deposited around the time of the Koszider period (Br B1, 1600–1450 BC), based on the chronological range of parallels, especially gold ones and the fine analysis and comparison of the chased, and embossed patterns on the Tápióbicske gold armlet, as well as on the general tendency of gold object deposition during the Middle Bronze Age in the eastern part of the Carpathian Basin. Regarding the material of the armlet, its technological and stylistic character, along with its symbolical depictions, it is undoubtedly a special product intentionally made for a member of the Middle Bronze Age elite, probably at the highest level of the local hierarchy.

The Maikop culture in the Northern Caucasus

The Maikop culture in the Northern Caucasus

«БОЛЬШОЙ СТИЛЬ» В ИСКУССТВЕ БОСПОРА: СВИДЕТЕЛЬСТВА, ИСТОКИ И РАЗВИТИЕ

Among the objects of greek art of the Bosporan production, greek archaic art basis is quite clearly observed. We can interpret it as the preserva- tion of early aesthetic ideas in the perception of plastic form, a certain “manner of vision”, transferred with the Hellenic impulse to a new environment in the C. 6 BC. Over time, the plastic manner was modified, but the “archaic trace” in the sculpture was preserved. Undoubtedly, it became the defining basis of a peculiar local form, which was gradually filled with elements learned from subsequent masters of the new “classical” schools. A relief with a battle scene (Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts) turned out to be a kind of key to understanding the bright variety of local art, which was proposed to be distinguished and designated as the “Bosporan style”. We can also refer to it a number of other monuments of monumental sculpture, both of the late 6 th and 4 th centuries BC, and later, including the widespread Bosporan tombstone steles of the Hellenistic and Early Roman era. There are reasons to assume the existence of the Bosporan style in the forms of architectural deco- ration, and in torevtik (gold objects from the Donetsk and Stavropol mounds: Perederieva Mogila and the mound, excavated in 2013 in Stavropol), and even in small forms – terracotta plastic – this style is reflected: the statuette of a horse- man from the Pushkin State Museum of Fine Arts in the composition, flattened surface of the relief and characteristic details resembles the style of the Bosporan steles of late Hellenism. All this translates the phenomenon under consideration into the status of the so-called “Grand Style”, that is, an artistic manner that manifests itself in various categories of culture and for several centuries has de- termined the expressive appearance of the Bosporan environment.