P.P. Betancourt and S.C Ferrence, eds., Metallurgy: Understanding How, Learning whY. Studies in Honor of James D. Muhly. Preshistory Monographs 29. Philadelphia: INSTAP Academic Press, 2011. In Mouseion 12.1 (2012): 89-91. (original) (raw)
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The article’s aim is to foster an interdisciplinary debate regarding the direction that archaeometallurgical studies in the central Mediterranean region, from the late Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age (c4500-1650 BC), ought to take in the next decade. It is argued that early metallurgical studies in the area have followed an idiosyncratic course due to the sway held on the discipline by Idealism, an influential philosophical movement that greatly hindered the development of science-based archaeology until the late 20th century. The last fifteen years, however, have witnessed an unprecedented if rather tumultuous expansion of metallurgical research, and important advances have been made in the chronology and chaîne opératoire of early metal technology and artefacts. Yet it is the author’s contention that, in order to reap full benefits from the recent disciplinary growth, an explicit research agenda must be set. Above all, it is argued that the new agenda must be grounded in the cross-disciplinary examination of the materiality of metalwork, hitherto poorly explored in this region.
Archaeological Science - an introduction, 2020
Metals have always fascinated humans, for reasons ranging from practical through aesthetic to philosophical considerations. More than for other materials, this fascination can be seen to cover both the production of metals and their use. In most societies ceramics play a much more fundamental and ubiquitous role than metals, but it is only the high-end varieties, such as porcelain, terra sigillata or colourful glazed wares that attract particular attention. Few people, past and present, philosophise about the transformational processes involved in changing the plastic, pliable clay into a hard and rigid water-resistant ceramic. Interest in wool, linen and other fibres is almost entirely restricted to our obsession with fashion and the social expressions it allows, but the production processes involved are a minority interest and outside the general folklore. In contrast, metals play not only a role in many societies’ mythology and moral narrative, assigning notions of nobility, strength and value to them, but even their production forms the basis for many metaphors, tales and symbolic expressions. The ‘trial by fire’ makes direct reference to cupellation, an obscure and specialised metallurgical operation in which the quality of gold or silver is tested for any debasement by copper – but as a metaphor it already appears in the Old Testament, and is still understood today. ‘Brass’ evokes a very different connotation from ‘gold’ when talking about values and appearances. Prospects of a ‘mother lode’ or ‘bonanza’ resonate with many people even if they are not metal prospectors. In archaeology, metals not only make a disproportionally high contribution to structuring major periods of cultural development and evolution, but archaeometallurgists specialising in the study of their production have even been referred to as a ‘priesthood’ trying to exploit secret knowledge and driving hidden agendas, potentially not in the best interest of the wider scholarly community (Doonan and Day 2007); a charge that to the best of my knowledge has not been levelled against any other science-based discipline within archaeology, such as archaeo-botany or -zoology, or ceramic petrography. Clearly, metals fascinate humans, whether it is for the right or wrong reasons.
The story of copper and the role it has played since the dawn of metallurgy more than 7,000 years ago is a remarkable, at times breathtaking, often inspiring tale of evolution and innovation; it imparts some of the greatest technological achievements of man and his persistent striving towards efficacy in the transformation of stone into metal. The 37 chapters of this volume, dedicated to the memory of Beno Rothenberg, present a variety of new studies related to copper in antiquity, with case studies spanning from the British Isles to Oman, Cyprus and Greece. Special emphasis is given to Timna and other copper ore districts in the Arabah Valley, which have been subjected to a surge of research in recent years. This new research is a direct continuation of Rothenberg’s pioneering work at Timna, and similarly takes advantage of the extraordinary preservation of archaeological sites there to shed new light on copper production technologies and the societies behind them. Rothenberg’s collaborative work at Timna during the second half of the 20th century was an important milestone in the foundation of the research discipline of archeaometallurgy, the study of metal and metal production in antiquity. The present volume, the work of 66 scholars, reflects the current prosperity of this discipline in its broadest sense, with contributions that reach beyond technological reconstructions and analytical reports, including studies on metalworkers’ diet and habitation, metal trade, and more. In this, the book aptly emphasizes Rothenberg’s impact, as his research on ancient copper was always part of a comprehensive search for a better understanding of past societies and historical processes.