A large number of bronze items have been produced in Etruria Mineraria since the first Iron Age up to the romanization (IX-III cent. BC). Although extremely variable in shape, use and metal technology, the Etruscan bronze alloys show a remarkably constant composition, with about 8-10 wt % tin. This would imply a significant consumption of tin. Where did this metal come from? Was it exclusively imported from abroad (e.g., Cornwall) through trade exchanges? The occurrence of tin ores within Etruria Mineraria, the Monte Valerio Fe-Sn mine in the Campiglia Marittima polymetallic district, was known to the Etruscans of the nearby Populonia and Vetulonia towns? Did they ever exploit these metal resources? We report hereafter the state of the art on this yet poorly known problem, by contributing some new data coming from recent archaeometallurgical research in the Populonia - Monte Valerio area. In addition to a detailed geological survey of the Monte Valerio deposit, a mineralogical, textural, compositional and Pb-isotope analysis of the ores and the metallurgical debris discharged in the Baratti-Populonia area have been undertaken. Evidences in support of and against the existence of an “Etruscan tin” are discussed.
The “Etruscan tin”: a preliminary contribution from researches at Monte Valerio and Baratti-Populonia (southern Tuscany, Italy) / M. BENVENUTI; L.CHIARANTINI; L.NORFINI; A.CASINI; S.GUIDERI; G.TANELLI. - STAMPA. - BAR Int. Series 1199:(2003), pp. 55-65. (Intervento presentato al convegno XIVth Congress of the International Union of Prehistoric and Protohistoric Sciences tenutosi a Liege, Belgio nel 2-8 Settembre 2001).
The “Etruscan tin”: a preliminary contribution from researches at Monte Valerio and Baratti-Populonia (southern Tuscany, Italy)
BENVENUTI, MARCO;CHIARANTINI, LAURA;TANELLI, GIUSEPPE
2003
Abstract
A large number of bronze items have been produced in Etruria Mineraria since the first Iron Age up to the romanization (IX-III cent. BC). Although extremely variable in shape, use and metal technology, the Etruscan bronze alloys show a remarkably constant composition, with about 8-10 wt % tin. This would imply a significant consumption of tin. Where did this metal come from? Was it exclusively imported from abroad (e.g., Cornwall) through trade exchanges? The occurrence of tin ores within Etruria Mineraria, the Monte Valerio Fe-Sn mine in the Campiglia Marittima polymetallic district, was known to the Etruscans of the nearby Populonia and Vetulonia towns? Did they ever exploit these metal resources? We report hereafter the state of the art on this yet poorly known problem, by contributing some new data coming from recent archaeometallurgical research in the Populonia - Monte Valerio area. In addition to a detailed geological survey of the Monte Valerio deposit, a mineralogical, textural, compositional and Pb-isotope analysis of the ores and the metallurgical debris discharged in the Baratti-Populonia area have been undertaken. Evidences in support of and against the existence of an “Etruscan tin” are discussed.
I documenti in FLORE sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
