Sabine Klein, Susan La Niece, Andreas Hauptmann

Objects from the Ur collection of the British Museum Sampling and Analytical Investigations

Introduction

Objects from the ur collection of the british museum sampling and analytical investigations. Explore metallic objects (gold, silver, copper) from the British Museum's Ur collection. Analytical investigations reveal lead isotope signatures and compositional insights.

Abstract

In addition to the material from the Penn Museum, which was already accessible in generous volume, access was requested to The British Museum to its portion of the Ur material from the Royal Cemetery. The aim was to supplement the material from Philadelphia, more precisely the different material groups such as the gold, the silver and the copper-based objects. The focus was on the metallic objects at The British Museum rather than on the stone material from Ur. Copper was used at Ur in a wide spectrum of compositions. Most significant is the consistency of the lead isotope signature between copper and silver of the objects from Ur, and other similarities are observable for the lead isotope ratios of both the copper-based and the silver objects.

Review

This paper presents an important analytical investigation into a selection of metallic objects from the Ur collection housed at the British Museum. Building upon previous work on material from the Penn Museum, this study aims to significantly expand the analytical dataset for the Royal Cemetery of Ur, focusing specifically on supplementing the existing knowledge of gold, silver, and copper-based artifacts. The opportunity to analyze material from such a historically critical site, especially from a collection as prominent as the British Museum's, promises valuable insights into ancient Mesopotamian metallurgy and trade networks. The research strategically focuses on metallic objects, deliberately excluding stone material to provide a concentrated analysis of the metallurgical practices at Ur. While the abstract does not detail the specific analytical techniques employed beyond 'sampling and analytical investigations,' the mention of 'lead isotope signature' strongly suggests advanced isotopic analysis. A key finding is the diverse range of compositions observed for copper used at Ur. Most notably, the study reveals a striking consistency in the lead isotope signatures between the copper and silver objects, further corroborated by other similarities in lead isotope ratios across both copper-based and silver artifacts. This finding is particularly significant for understanding the sourcing of metals. The reported consistency in lead isotope signatures between distinct metallic groups like copper and silver strongly suggests shared ore sources or interconnected supply chains for these materials, offering crucial data for reconstructing ancient metallurgical provenance and economic interactions. This study promises to significantly enrich our understanding of the technological sophistication and resource management of the Ur civilization. While the abstract provides compelling initial findings, a full paper would ideally elaborate on the specific methodologies, sample sizes, and provide a more detailed discussion of the implications of these isotopic links for understanding resource exploitation and trade within the wider Mesopotamian region. Nevertheless, this work appears to be a substantial contribution to archaeometallurgy.

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