Work

Lead isotopic compositions link copper axes from Kietrz (Poland, 3500–3350 BC) to Slovak and Balkan copper mines

Year: 2024

Type: article

Abstract: Chemical and lead isotope analyses aided by metallographic examination of copper axes found at the Late Neolithic settlement of Kietrz in southwestern Poland provide new evidence for the origin of copper and metal trade routes in the region. Our results indicate that metal used for the axes could be sourced from copper mines in modern Slovakia, Bulgaria and perhaps Serbia. The evidence from this study confirms that the Funnel Beaker people from Poland became parties to a metal trading network that connected much of continental Europe in the mid‐4th millennium bce and provides a better understanding of how these contacts provided the background for the technological and socio‐economic developments of the Baden era.

Source: Archaeometry

DOI: 10.1111/arcm.12944

Authors: Łukasz Kowalski, Zofia Anna Stos‐Gale, Kamil Adamczak, Roland Maas, Jon Woodhead, Aldona Garbacz‐Klempka, Magdalena Kozicka, Dominika Kofel, Ewa Matuszczyk

Institutions: Nicolaus Copernicus University, University of Gothenburg, The University of Melbourne, AGH University of Krakow

Language: English

Topic: Metallurgy and Cultural Artifacts

Subfield: Archeology

Field: Social Sciences

Domain: Social Sciences

Open Access status: hybrid

Estimated APC paid: $3,350

OpenAlex ID: W4390637151

FWCI: 6.308

Cites: 34

Cited by: 6

Related to: 10