Provenance Determination of Archaeological Metal Objects

Archaeometallurgy is one aspect of the widespread interdisciplinary field of science-based archaeology and is itself multifaceted (for a recent review, see Rehren and Pernicka 2008). This article deals mainly with the question of how to determine the provenance or “origin” of ancient metals, a subject that is undoubtedly of major importance in archaeology even though it has often been disputed. Here, a short history of the practice of provenance analysis of metals by chemical methods is presented. Studies in this direction were often loaded with high (and mostly unrealistic) expectations and were seemingly disappointing. Close to being regarded as a complete failure, provenance analysis of archaeological metal objects was revived through the introduction of lead isotope analysis, which itself went through a cycle of overly optimistic expectations, later condemnations and finally a realistic assessment of pros and cons. Combined with trace element patterns, lead isotopes do provide a tool with which to determine the provenance of most metals that were produced and used in antiquity. Not all problems can be solved, at least not in the near future, but this is not due to a wrong concept or methodology, but rather due to our limited ability to distinguish between ore deposits, and the imbalance between analyses of finished artefacts and those of archaeologically meaningful ore samples. More new parameters are emerging that also carry information on the provenance of a metal, and the methodology will be adjusted and improved for specific metal types. With realistic approaches and expectations, provenance studies of archaeological metal objects will remain a valuable component of archaeometallurgical and archaeological research.