Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age metallurgical practices at Limenaria, Thasos: evidence for silver and copper production

Bassiakos, Yannis; Nerantzis, Nerantzis; Papadopoulos, Stratis

doi:10.1007/s12520-018-0689-4

Cited by 20 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 11 publications

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“…24). In the Aegean, cupellation was practiced no later than the second millennium BCE (25,26). Indeed, Anatolia and the Aegean are known to be the main Mediterranean producers of silver in the second millennium BCE (23,25).…”

Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Lead isotopes in silver reveal earliest Phoenician quest for metals in the west Mediterranean

Eshel

Erel

Yahalom-Mack

et al. 2019

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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Section: Significancementioning

confidence: 99%

Lead isotopes in silver reveal earliest Phoenician quest for metals in the west Mediterranean

Eshel

Erel

Yahalom-Mack

et al. 2019

Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.

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“…ces. Moreover, recent analytical studies in artefacts and metallurgical remains support the use of local ores on Thasos island (Bassiakos et al 2019).…”

Section: Brief History Of Archaeological Research In the Areamentioning

confidence: 97%

“…Part of the evidence relates with later occupation layers (Early or Late Bronze Age), frequently present at the same sites, but much of it comes from secure stratified Late Neolithic deposits and even, exceptionally, from in situ contexts (Aslanis, Tzahili 1990). Archaeometric examination of the related finds has produced valuable information on the technology of early copper, gold and silver exploitation in the area (Mirtsou et al 1997;Koukouli-Chrysanthaki, Bassiakos 2002;Renfrew, Slater 2003;Koukouli-Chrysanthaki, Papadopoulos 2009.2;Papadopoulos 2008.67;Bassiakos 2012;Nerantzis, Papadopoulos 2013;Bassiakos et al 2019).…”

Section: Fig 1 Map Of Greek Eastern Macedonia Showing the Main Locati...mentioning

confidence: 99%

The Emergence of Metal Use in Greek Eastern Macedonia During the Neolithic Period (Late 6th–5th Millennia BC)

2022

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Copper, gold, and silver artefacts, together with evidence of metallurgical activities, have been retrieved from Late Neolithic strata in several settlements in Greek Eastern Macedonia. Recent excavations at Dikili Tash revealed that gold was further used in paints for the decoration of pottery. It appears that the area’s inhabitants had a great familiarity with different metals and the distinct stages of the production-elaboration processes, including those interfering with other chaînes opératoires. Considering also the results from geological research, we propose a reflection on the socio-economic role of metal production and consumption for these societies, in their broader Balkan context.

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“…2008) and the island of Thasos (Bassiakos et al . 2019). On the Iberian Peninsula, however, evidence for cupellation, often in the form of litharge (Pb oxide), is lacking before the Phoenician colonization in the early first millennium bce (Bartelheim et al .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Much is already known about silver mining techniques and metallurgy (Domergue, 2008). Cupellation, the technique of silver purification by smelting in the presence of metallic lead, was known from the early Bronze Age in the Middle East (Pernicka, 2004;Pernicka et al, 1998), Attica (Kakavogianni et al, 2008), and the island of Thasos (Bassiakos et al, 2019). On the Iberian Peninsula, however, evidence for cupellation, often in the form of litharge (lead oxide) is lacking before the Phoenician colonization in the early 1 st millennium BCE (Bartelheim et al, 2012;Pérez Macías, 2016;Rovira Lloréns, 2017), which opened up vigorous exchanges between Iberia and the Near East (Neville, 2007).…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

From commodity to money: The rise of silver coinage around the Ancient Mediterranean (sixth–first centuries bce)

Albarède¹,

Blichert‐Toft

Callataÿ

et al. 2020

Archaeometry

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The reasons why the Western Mediterranean, especially Carthage and Rome, resisted monetization relative to the Eastern Mediterranean are still unclear. Here, we address this question by combining lead and silver isotope abundances in silver coinage from the Aegean, Magna Graecia, Carthage, and the Roman Republic. The clear relationships observed between 109 Ag/ 107 Ag and 208 Pb/ 206 Pb reflect mixing of silver ores or silver objects with lead metal used for cupellation. The combined analysis of Ag and Pb isotopes reveal important information about the technology of smelting. The Greek world extracted Ag and Pb from associated ores, whereas, on the Iberian Peninsula, Carthaginians and Republican era Romans applied Phoenician cupellation techniques and added exotic Pb to lead-poor Ag ores. Massive silver re-cupellation is observed in Rome during the Second Punic War. After defeating the Carthaginians and the Macedonians in the late 2 nd century BCE, the Romans brought together the efficient, millenniumold techniques of silver extraction of the Phoenicians, who considered this metal a simple commodity, with the monetization of economy introduced by the Greeks.Silver has been highly prized in the Mediterranean and Near East region for millennia. The most obvious traces of its extraction can be seen in the contamination of ice and peat bogs all the way to the Arctic (Cortizas et al., 2002;Hong et al., 1994). The rise of monetized silver in the late 6 th and the 5 th century BCE in the Eastern Mediterranean world can be interpreted in different ways. Some consider that minting facilitated trade (Davis, 2012;Kim and Kroll, 2008), and, indeed, the abundance of shipwrecks in the Mediterranean as a proxy for economic performance correlates with lead peaks observed in Arctic ice (Parker, 1992). In the long run, however, the spread of coinage is also undoubtedly linked to the explosion of Greek mercenary service in the late 6 th -5 th centuries, but to an extent that varies with the period and the local political circumstances (De Callataÿ, 2019;Krasilnikoff, 1992; Trundle, 2004). The present work uses Ag and Pb isotopes to further inform the debate by investigating the transition between two modes of silver utilization

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Late Neolithic/Early Bronze Age metallurgical practices at Limenaria, Thasos: evidence for silver and copper production

Cited by 20 publications

References 11 publications

Lead isotopes in silver reveal earliest Phoenician quest for metals in the west Mediterranean

Lead isotopes in silver reveal earliest Phoenician quest for metals in the west Mediterranean

The Emergence of Metal Use in Greek Eastern Macedonia During the Neolithic Period (Late 6th–5th Millennia BC)

From commodity to money: The rise of silver coinage around the Ancient Mediterranean (sixth–first centuries bce)

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