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Metallurgy and Metalworking of the Final Bronze Age

Metallurgy and metalworking of the Final Bronze Age refers to the set of technological techniques, chemical recipes of alloys, and trade and exchange networks of the population of the Northern Black Sea region, the Lower Dnieper region, and Crimea during the transition period from the Bronze Age to the Iron Age (12th–10th centuries BCE).

Overview

A fundamental study of metal artifacts from the Final Bronze Age was conducted on materials from the Burial Ground near the village of Shyroke by archaeologist Tetiana Hoshko. Through X-ray fluorescence and metallographic analyses of 48 metal items (temporal rings, earrings, fibulae, pins, needles), the study determined alloy characteristics, features of blacksmith forging, and the reorientation of raw material sources. Contrary to previous hypotheses of an exclusively Volga-Ural origin of Bilozerka metal, the analysis demonstrated a major import of raw materials and technologies from deposits in the Central Caucasus (Koban culture) via the Crimean Peninsula.

Key Details / Subtopics

  • Alloy Recipes: The foundation of metallurgy comprised binary and complex tin-arsenic bronzes ($Sn$ from 1% to 15%, $As$ from 0.3% to 2.8%). Impurities of antimony ($Sb$ up to 1.5%) and lead ($Pb$) were also recorded, indicating smelting from complex polymetallic ores of the Caucasus (similar to the Tli cemetery of the Koban culture).
  • Blacksmith Technologies: A two-stage technological process was employed: casting blanks in the shape of rods, followed by shaping forging on a grooved anvil or open-die forging. For temporal rings, wire was wound around a cylindrical or conical mandrel, cut into individual rings, and compressed on a flat anvil.
  • Thermal Regime: Blacksmiths deliberately preferred low-temperature annealing ($400\text{--}500\,^\circ\text{C}$) due to the high volatility of arsenic vapors. The degree of deformation (metal reduction) was predominantly $60\text{--}80\,\%$.
  • Reorganization of Metal Supply: In the 11th century BCE, due to the expansion of Gáva sphere cultures, access to traditional Balkan-Carpathian copper and tin deposits was blocked. Metal shortages were compensated for by the inflow of raw materials from the Caucasus through Crimea to the Lower Dnieper region, stimulating the flourish of Bilozerka centers.
  • Connection to the Onset of Iron Metallurgy: The transition period was characterized by the accumulation of experience in high-temperature forging and the production of complex fasteners (Lukyanivka-type fibulae), laying the groundwork for the emergence of the earliest ironworking centers in Crimea (notably at the Uch-Bash settlement).