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The effect of purifying, mixing and firing of clays on trace element concentration was systematically investigated using instrumental neutron activation analysis. Eight different clays from two sites in Crete were used together with sherds found around several kilns near the sites. Trace element analysis showed that the extent to which the concentration changes after purification and firing depends on the initial particle size and chemistry of the clay. The calcite concentration plays an essential role in this. An application is made using roof tiles found at the excavation of the ancient city of Pella in Macedonia.

The majority of the well-stratified Early Bronze Age metal objects from Poliochni, with the exclusion of one hoard find, was analyzed for their chemical and lead isotope composition. The results show that a major change occurred in the metal used at Poliochni during periods contemporary with Troy I and Troy II. Unalloyed or arsenical copper with relatively high lead contents during the earliest two periods 'auurro ' and 'verde ' is gradually replaced and supplemented by tin bronze which, during period 'giallo ', i.e., by the end of Troy It, becomes the dominant metal type. Lead isotope abundance ratios in the earlier artefacts are consistent with a derivation of the metal from regional ore sources but the trace element abundance pattern is not. Concurrent with the appearance of tin bronzes is an increase in the diversity of ore deposits exploited; for about one third of the artefacts from period 'giallo' there is as yet no matching ore source in all Anatolia and the Eastern Mediterranean. It is argued that the tin bronzes have been imported as such but that the lead isotope signature does not provide any direct clues to the origin of the tin.

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