Archaeometallurgical characterization of hellenistic metal objects: The contribution of the bronze objects from rishon le-zion (Israel)

An archaeometallurgical analysis is presented of 14 bronze artefacts retrieved from an Early Hellenistic-period farmstead in controlled archaeological excavations at Rishon Le-Zion, Israel, and dated to the first quarter of the third century bce according to coins and pottery vessels. The bronze assemblage includes a needle, pins, spatulas and fibulas. The aims of the research are to determine the composition, microstructure and manufacturing process of these artefacts, and to discover their place of production. This will provide a better understanding of Hellenistic technological abilities and material culture. The examination included optical microscopy, microhardness, SEM including EDS, and XRD. The results show that the collection consists of Cu-Sn binary alloys, with evidence for a controlled alloying process and the absence of recycling. Furthermore, the microstructure of the objects indicates that all artefacts were produced by a cold-working process. Moreover, the manufacturing process of the rectangular cross-section fibulas included sophisticated joining techniques of copper and iron.