Deh Hosein ancient tin-copper mine A clue for the old question of ancient tin Islamic Azad University Science and Research Branch, Tehran
Nottingham, UK, Sept. 2007
Nima Nezafati Ernst Pernicka & Morteza Momenzadeh
[email protected] Background designed by: © Nima Nezafati
The original powerpoint presentation has slightly been modified in 2015 by Nima Nezafati
The Problem of Early Tin Sources Bronze (Sn-Cu alloy) has given it’s name to the second principal period of the three-age Stone-Bronze-Iron System.
It begins in the (late fourth millennium and) early 3rd millennium BCE, when first abundant bronze artifacts appear in the major ancient sites of Western Asia.
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Bronze, slightly goldish, brass has a greenish tone into it and finally copper is more reddish.
In spite of rather abundant copper resources in Western Asia, known tin sources are scarce. On the other hand, the large known tin resources are considerably far from the early centers of civilization. Then, how the emergence and later huge production of tin-bronze in Mesopotamia and ancient Near East can be explained?
Modern known resources of tin
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tin_sources_and_trade_in_ancient_times
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Tin-Bronze vs. Arsenical Copper The superiority of tin-bronze over arsenical copper? • Higher
Hardness
and
tensile
strength? • Better casting properties? • Health effects? • Color? • Availability? After H. Lechtman 1996
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Archaeological evidence
The ancient sites which host the earliest tinbronze artifacts
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Textual evidence The earliest surviving textual (cuneiform) references that refer to bronze in Mesopotamia come from the early-mid 3rd millennium BCE, from which the earliest ones distinguish only between copper and bronze.
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(Limet 1960; Waetzoldt & Bachmann 1984; Muhly 1985; Weeks 1999, 2004)
These texts along with the early second millennium BCE texts from Mari (on the Euphrates) and from Kültepe (ancient Kanesh, central Anatolia) indicate that all the major sources of tin used in the region in the Early Bronze Age were located east of Mesopotamia (Muhly 1985; Larsen 1976, 1987, Moorey 1994; Weeks 1999, 2004)
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Textual evidence The Kanesh texts refer to tin coming overland through the Zagros Mountains to Mesopotamia from northwestern Iran, while Mari seems to have obtained its tin almost exclusively through gift exchange with Susa, the tin having reached Susa from some unknown point further to the east (Muhly 1985; Joannes
x
1991; Moorey 1994). © Nima Nezafati
Among the names which have been mentioned in the ancient texts and inscriptions as the source of tin, “mines behind Ebih (Hamrin)” are of interest (T. F. Potts 1994). The Hamrin Mountains (Jabal Hamrin) are a small mountain range (elevation 500m) in northeast Iraq slightly above the 34° 00´ meridian, opposite which the Deh Hosein ancient mine is located on the other side of the Zagros Mountains slightly below the same meridian.
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Luristan bronzes 1300-650 BCE
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Luristan_bronze
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Analytical consideration • Co-occurrence of arsenic and tin is characteristic of Early Bronze Age metallurgy in Mesopotamia (Fleming et al. 2005). • The comprehensive analytical research on Luristan bronzes of different periods show high arsenic contents in the early artifacts which clearly becomes lower with time and technological improvements in the Iron Age (Fleming et al. 2005).
• There was usually no technical control on the percentage of tin in the final products and the admixture has occurred randomly (Fleming et al. 2005). • The variation in Sn content together with the high As content of early bronze artifacts of Mesopotamia and Luristan, may simply imply that a naturally mixed source of copper, tin and arsenic ore has been used in the earliest times of tin-bronze production. 7
Known tin-bearing mines and areas x Sn-As
x
Mining traces from 2nd millenium BCE
Sn-Cu Mining traces from 2nd millenium BCE
x Sn-Fe Mining traces from 2nd millenium BCE
Several tin bearing districts
x
Several granite-hosted and alluvial cassiterite bearing deposits, but they remained almost intact during the 3rd and 2nd millenium BCE.
No traces of ancient workings prior to 1st millenium BCE. Tin Mineralization
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The Deh Hosein ancient mine
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Location and general geology
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Iran
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Ancient mining
500m
Google Earth
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Radiocarbon measurement of a charcoal piece in the mine yielded a date of 3380±55 BP, which on calibration results in an interval of 1775-1522 BCE at the 2-sigma confidence level (95% probability).
No evidence for ancient smelting has been found in the vicinity of the mine.
No sign of medieval or modern mining has been observed in the area of ancient mining. 15
Geology, mineralogy, and geochemistry of the mine
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500 µm
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500 µm © Nima Nezafati
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Chemical analyses of the ore from the Deh Hosein ancient mine, measured by NAA
Sn: from 0.01 to 6.72 % Cu: up to 10% As: up to 23.9% Pb: up to 3.7%, Zn: up to 0.75% Au: up to 13.3 ppm W: up to 2420ppm + High contents of Ag, Sb and Ni
Compositional analysis from Luristan bronzes (EDXRF) •
Copper (84-96%)
•
Tin (0.48-15.4 %)
•
Iron (max. 6.1%),
•
Lead (max. 4.4%),
•
Arsenic (max. 0.6%),
•
Zinc (max. 6.8%),
•
Silver (max.0.114%),
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Nickel (max. 0.46%)
•
Antimony (max. 0.2%)
Most of the samples show at least 0.1% of Pb and AS contents. Seemingly no technical control on the percentage of tin in the final products. The variation in Sn-contents may imply that a naturally mixed source of copper and tin has been used.
Lead isotope analysis The Deh Hosein deposit shows a rather small variation of lead isotope ratios disregarding if the ratio is from copper minerals, galena, arsenopyrite, copper and tin minerals or bulk samples which contain different range of minerals.
The metal used in a number of the bronze artifacts is isotopically compatible with the Deh Hosein deposit. These include most of the 3rd millennium BCE Luristan artifacts, half of the 1st and 2nd millennium BCE Luristan objects, some southern Persian Gulf artifacts, two samples from Thermi, one artifact from Kish (Mesopotamia), Zeiraqun (Jordan) and Durankulak (Bulgaria). 21
Lead isotope analysis 19
18.8
206Pb/204Pb
18.6
18.4
18.2
Pernicka et al. 1997; Begemann et al. 1992 & 2008; Weeks 1999, 2004; Nezafati et al. 2005
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17.8 0.83
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0.835
0.84
0.845
0.85
Luristan Bronze I: 2nd & 1st Millenium BCE
0.855
0.86
0.865
0.87
0.875
207Pb/206Pb
Luristan Bronze II: 3rd Millenium BCE
Deh Hosein
Luristan bronze 1
Luristan bronze II
Al Sufouh
Unar I & II
Tell Abraq
Sn-As ring, Tell Abraq
Kish
Zeiraqun
Thermi
Troia
Durankulak
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Lead isotope analysis 2.13
2.12
208Pb/206Pb
2.11
2.1
2.09
2.08
2.07 Luristan Bronze I: 2nd & 1st Millenium BCE © Nima Nezafati
2.06 0.83
0.835
0.84
0.845
0.85
0.855
0.86
207Pb/206Pb
Luristan Bronze II: 3rd Millenium BCE
0.865
Deh Hosein
Luristan bronze I
Luristan bronze II
Al Sufouh
Unar I & II
Tell Abraq
Sn-As ring Tell Abraq
Kish
Zeiraqun
Thermi
Troia
Durankulak
0.87
0.875
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Lead isotope analysis 2.1
208Pb/206Pb
2.095
2.09
2.085
2.08
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2.075 0.842
0.844
0.846
Luristan Bronze I: 2nd & 1st Millenium BCE
0.848
0.85
0.852
207Pb/206Pb
Luristan Bronze II: 3rd Millenium BCE
Deh Hosein
Luristan bronze I
Luristan bronze II
Al Sufouh
Unar I & II
Tell Abraq
Sn-As ring Tell Abraq
Kish
Zeiraqun
Thermi
Troia
Durankulak
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Lead isotope analysis 18.7 18.65
206Pb/204Pb
18.6 18.55 18.5 18.45 18.4 18.35 18.3 0.842
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0.844
0.846
Luristan Bronze I: 2nd & 1st Millenium BCE Luristan Bronze II: 3rd Millenium BCE
Deh Hosein Unar I & II Zeiraqun
Luristan bronze 1 Tell Abraq Thermi
0.848
0.85
0.852
207Pb/206Pb
Luristan bronze II Sn-As ring, Tell Abraq Troia
Al Sufouh Kish Durankulak
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Conclusions The mineralogical and analytical evidence • The simultaneous occurrence of Sn and Cu minerals within one mineralization, • the strong correspondence of lead isotope ratios, • good correlation between trace elements of the Deh Hosein and the ancient artifacts (including Sn, Cu, & As)
attest to the role of this mine in supplying copper-tin ore of the ancient workshops. The chronological evidence According to 14C dating and archaeological evidence (pottery shards), the Deh Hosein ancient mine has been in operation at least from early 2nd millennium until 1st millennium BCE. 26
Conclusions The ancient textual records In the ancient cuneiform texts, it has been several times mentioned that copper, bronze and tin come from the east. Among these texts, the text from Kanesh which refers to tin coming overland through the Zagros Mountains to Mesopotamia from northwestern Iran, and the text referring to mines behind Jabal Hamrin (Ebih) may have mentioned the Deh Hosein Mine.
The geographical evidence The Deh Hosein ancient mine is the only known tin (-copper) bearing source in close distance to the eastward Mesopotamia and Luristan area. 27
Conclusions The statistical evidence The abundance of bronze artifacts from the mid Bronze Age to the end of Iron Age in the whole Mesopotamia and western Iran attests to a rich source of ore in the vicinity of these areas, especially when it would be taken into consideration that this abundance has emerged mainly in these areas and not to adjacent areas.
The denomination evidence © Nima Nezafati
The Greek word for tin, κασσίτερος (Kassiteros), can be interpreted as metal “coming from the country of the Kassites” (Ghirshman 1954), and the Kassites lived in central and west central Iran. Also the characteristic Luristan Bronze artifacts appear under the reign of the Kassites in west central Iran and Mesopotamia. Finding two canonical artifacts of Luristan Bronze on Samos and Crete islands may confirm the influence of Kassites (or Luristani people) and the export of their wares 28 to ancient Greek territories in the late 8th or 7th century BCE.
Future investigations
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Major Reference of the Presentation: Nezafati, N. (2006): Au-Sn-W-Cu-Mineralization in the Astaneh-Sarband Area, West Central Iran, including a comparison of the ores with ancient bronze artifacts from Western Asia. PhD thesis, University of Tübingen, https://publikationen.uni-tuebingen.de/xmlui/handle/10900/48972
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