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274:, off the coast of Turkey. The remains included a substantial amount of copper oxhide ingot material: 34 in full, five in half, 12 corners, and 75 kilograms (165 lb) of random fragments. Twenty-four full copper oxhide ingots have stamps on their centers—usually of a circle containing intersecting lines. These stamps were likely made when the metal was soft. In addition, the ship contained numerous complete and incomplete copper bun-shaped ingots, rectangular tin bars, and Cypriot agricultural tools made of scrap bronze.
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standard and thus the ingots were not a currency. Another theory is that the oxhide shape, as well as the bun shape that some ingots took, was a visual statement that the ingot at hand is part of a legitimate trade. In
Sardinia, oxhide ingot fragments have been found in hoards with bun ingots and scrap metal and, in some cases, in a metallurgical workshop. Citing this evidence, Vasiliki Kassianidou argues that the oxhide ingots "were meant to be used rather than to be kept as prestige goods".
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from 20.1 to 29.5 kilograms (44 to 65 lb) after being cleaned of their corrosion. These ingots were found stacked in four rows following a herringbone pattern. The smooth sides of the ingots faced downwards, and the lowest layer rested on brushwood. There are three whole tin oxhide ingots, and there are many tin ingots cut into quarters or halves, with their corner protrusion(s) still intact. Besides metal ingots, the cargo included ivory, metal jewelry, and
380:. Archaeologists found burnt copper droplets around the mold. In spite of the questionable durability of limestone, Paul Craddock et al. concluded that limestone can be used for casting “large simple shapes” such as oxhide ingots. Evolution of carbon dioxide from the limestone would damage the metal surface that touched the mold. Thus, metal objects requiring surface detail could not be produced successfully.
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In 1982, a diver discovered a shipwreck off the shore of
Uluburun, Turkey. The ship contained 317 copper ingots in the normal oxhide shape, 36 with only two corner protrusions, 121 shaped like buns, and five shaped like pillows. The oxhide ingots (ingots with two or four protrusions) range in weight
347:
Some scholars worry that the 1250 BC date is too limiting. They note that Cyprus was smelting copper on a large scale in the early LBA and had the potential to export the metal to Crete and other places at this time. Furthermore, copper ore is more plentiful on Cyprus than on
Sardinia and far more
405:
While only one oxhide ingot fragment has been recovered from Egypt (in the context of a LBA smelting workshop), there is a wide array of painted scenes in Egypt that show oxhide ingots. The earliest scene dates to the 15th century BC and the latest scene to the 12th century BC. The ingots display
327:
analysis (LIA) suggests that the late LBA ingots (that is, after 1250 BC) are composed of
Cypriot copper, specifically copper from the Apilki mine and its surrounding area. The Gelidonya ingots' ratios are consistent with Cypriot ores while the Uluburun ingots fall on the periphery of the Cypriot
396:
In the Late Bronze Age, Cyprus produced numerous bronze stands that depicted a man carrying an oxhide ingot. The stands were designed to hold vases, and they were cast through the lost-wax process. The ingots show the familiar shape of four protruding handles, and the men carry them over their
253:
of firewood from the ship gives an approximate date of 1300 BC. More than 160 copper oxhide ingots, 62 bun ingots, and some of the tin oxhide ingots have incised marks typically on their rough sides. Some of these marks—resembling fish, oars, and boats—relate to the sea, and they were probably
220:
ingots are similar enough to have allowed "a rough but quick reckoning of a given quantity of raw metal prior to weighing". But George Bass proposes, via the
Gelidonya ingots, whose weights are approximately the same if somewhat lower than the Uluburun ingot weights, that the weights were not
306:
Macroscopic observation of the
Uluburun copper ingots indicates that they were cast through multiple pours; there are distinct layers of metal in each ingot. Furthermore, the relatively high weight and high purity of the ingots would be difficult to achieve even today in only one pour.
257:
Recently Yuval Goren proposed that the ten tons of copper ingots, one ton of tin ingots, and the resin stored in the
Canaanite jars aboard the ship were one complete package. The recipients of the copper, tin, and resin would have used these materials for bronze casting through the
290:
content of less than one weight percent. The few tin oxhide ingots that have been available to study are also exceptionally pure. Microscopic analysis of the
Uluburun copper oxhide ingots reveals that they are highly porous. This feature results from the
200:, approximately 1500 BC to 1450 BC. The latest oxhide ingots date to approximately 1000 BC, and were found on Sardinia. The copper trade was largely maritime: the principal sites where oxhide ingots are found are at sea, on the coast, and on islands.
310:
The porosity of the copper ingots and the natural brittleness of tin suggest that both metal ingots were easy to break. As Bass et al. proposes, a metalsmith could simply break off a piece of the ingot whenever he liked for a new casting.
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of tin oxhide ingots and the limited data for lead isotopic studies of tin, the provenance of the tin ingots has been uncertain. The fact that scholars have been unable to pinpoint Bronze Age tin ore deposits compounds this problem.
192:
The appearance of oxhide ingots in the archaeological record corresponds with the beginning of the bulk copper trade in the
Mediterranean—approximately 1600 BC. The earliest oxhide ingots found come from Crete and date to the Late
387:
clay mold, Bass et al. argue that the ingot's smooth side was in contact with the mold while its rough side was exposed to the atmosphere. The roughness results from the interaction of the atmosphere and the cooling metal.
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was equivalent to the value of one ox. However, the similarity in shape is simply a coincidence. The ingots' producers probably designed these protrusions to make the ingots easily transportable overland on the backs of
344:. The controversy settles on the validity of LIA. Paul Budd argues that LBA copper is the product of such extensive mixing and recycling that LIA, which works best for metals from a single ore deposit, is unfeasible.
406:
their typical four protrusions, and red paint (which suggests they are copper) is preserved on them. The captions accompanying the scenes explain that the men who bring the ingots come from the north, specifically
820:
Yuval Goren, "International
Exchange in the Eastern Mediterranean: Food and Ships, Sealing-Wax and Kings as Seen Under the Petrographic Microscope," Institute of Archaeology Kenyon Lecture, London, 13 Nov.
575:
Muhly, J. D.; et al. (1988). "Cyprus, Crete, and Sardinia: Copper Oxhide Ingots and the Bronze Age Metals Trade". Report of the Department of Antiquities, Cyprus, Part 1 (Nicosia) (Report).
874:
Stos-Gale, Z. A.; Maliotis, G.; Gale, N. H.; Annetts, N. (1997). "Lead Isotope Characteristics of the Cyprus Copper Ore Deposits Applied to Provenance Studies of Copper Oxhide Ingots".
589:
Stos-Gale, Zofia A.; Gale, Noël H. (1992). "New Light on the Provenience of the Copper Oxhide Ingots Found on Sardinia". In Tykot, Robert H.; Andrews, Tamsey K. (eds.).
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to Egypt. Some scholars identify Cyprus with Alashiya. In particular, the Uluburun cargo is similar to the goods that, according to the letters, Alashiya sent to Egypt.
414:(unidentified). They are shown being carried on the shoulders of men, sitting with other goods in storage, or as part of scenes in smelting workshops. In a relief from
645:
Bass, George F.; Throckmorton, Peter; Taylor, Joan Du Plat; Hennessy, J. B.; Shulman, Alan R.; Buchholz, Hans-GĂĽnter (1967). "Cape Gelidonya: A Bronze Age Shipwreck".
778:
Hauptmann, Andreas; Maddin, Robert; Prange, Michael (2002). "On the Structure and Composition of Copper and Tin Ingots Excavated from the Shipwreck of Uluburun".
433:” dating to the mid-14th century BC refer to hundreds of copper talents—in addition to goods such as elephant tusks and glass ingots—sent from the kingdom of
677:
Kassianidou, Vasiliki (2005). "Cypriot Copper in Sardinia: Yet Another Case of Bringing Coals to Newcastle?". In Lo Schiavo, Fulvia; et al. (eds.).
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plentiful than on Crete. Archaeologists have discovered numerous Cypriot exports to Sardinia including metalworking tools and prestige metal objects.
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123:(LBA). Their shape resembles the hide of an ox with a protruding handle in each of the ingot’s four corners. Early thought was that each
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shoulders. These Cypriot stands were exported to Crete and Sardinia, and both islands created similar stands in local bronze workshops.
1000:
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Lo Schiavo, Fulvia (2005). "Oxhide Ingots in the Mediterranean and Central Europe". In Lo Schiavo, Fulvia; et al. (eds.).
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and spearing an oxhide ingot with five arrows. A laudatory caption emphasizing the pharaoh’s strength accompanies the scene.
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Pulak, Cemal (2000), "The Copper and Tin Ingots from the Late Bronze Age Shipwreck at Uluburun", in Yalçin, Ünsal (ed.),
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Acts of the International Archaeological Symposium "Cyprus between the Orient and the Occident" Nicosia, 8–14 Sept. 1985
95:
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213:
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Muhly, J. D. (1986). "The Role of Cyprus in the Economy of the Eastern Mediterranean". In Karageorghis, V. (ed.).
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Merkel, John (1986). "Ancient Smelting and Casting of Copper for 'Oxhide' Ingots". In Balmuth, Miriam S. (ed.).
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180:. Archaeologists have recovered many oxhide ingots from two shipwrecks off the coast of Turkey (one off
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It is uncertain whether the oxhide ingots served as a form of currency. Ingots found in excavations at
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Typically the copper oxhide ingots are highly pure (approximately 99 weight percent copper) with
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inclusions are also present. Their existence implies that slag was not fully removed from the
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Bronze stand showing oxhide ingot-bearer, found at Kourion, Cyprus, now in the British Museum
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This is not to say that oxhide ingots were normally cast in limestone molds. Using an
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Bass, George F. (1986). "A Bronze Age Shipwreck at Ulu Burun (KaĹź): 1984 Campaign".
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isotopic field. On the other hand, Late Minoan I ingots found on Crete have
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for casting an oxhide ingot was discovered in the LBA north palace at
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of brushwood from the ship gives an approximate date of 1200 BC.
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lead isotope ratios and are more consistent with ore sources in
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incised after casting, when the ingot was received or exported.
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Oxhide ingot found at Enkomi, Cyprus, now in the British Museum
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James D. Muhly, "Copper and Bronze in the Late Bronze Aegean,"
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metal and thus that the ingots were made from remelted copper.
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In the early 1950s, divers found the remains of a shipwreck in
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516:. Nicosia: Department of Antiquities, Cyprus. pp. 55–6.
132:. Complete or partial oxhide ingots have been discovered in
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Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research
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Sardinia in the Mediterranean: A Footprint in the Sea
683:. Montagnac: Éditions Monique Mergoil. p. 336.
543:. Montagnac: Éditions Monique Mergoil. p. 307.
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108:are heavy (20–30 kg) metal slabs, usually of
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376:. It is made of fine-grained "ramleh", a
27:Mediterranean Late Bronze Age metal slabs
965:Craddock, Paul T.; et al. (1997).
703:Cemal Pulak, "The Uluburun Shipwreck,"
595:. Sheffield: Sheffield Academic Press.
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295:of gases as the molten metal cooled.
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967:"Casting Metals in Limestone Moulds"
212:are now part of the exhibits of the
1001:"A Bronze Ingot-bearer from Cyprus"
319:Controversy has swirled around the
888:10.1111/j.1475-4754.1997.tb00792.x
323:of the copper oxhide ingots. Lead
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1057:in the shape of an oxhide at the
847:Studies in Sardinian Archaeology
94:Protector of the ingot, bronze,
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722:American Journal of Archaeology
78:Heraklion Archaeological Museum
282:Composition and microstructure
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924:Archaeometallurgy in Sardinia
680:Archaeometallurgy in Sardinia
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184:and one in Cape Gelidonya).
214:Numismatic Museum of Athens
56:Numismatic Museum of Athens
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266:Cape Gelidonya shipwreck
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1100:History of metallurgy
911:The Ship of Uluburun
832:The Ship of Uluburun
705:The Ship of Uluburun
401:Egyptian connections
164:capital), Qantir in
54:, displayed at the
46:Copper ingots from
1038:Uluburun shipwreck
276:Radiocarbon dating
260:lost-wax technique
236:Uluburun shipwreck
230:Uluburun shipwreck
72:Copper ingot from
1090:Bronze Age Europe
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1079:Categories
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321:provenance
315:Provenance
983:138087661
808:163526572
750:192966981
353:corrosion
330:Paleozoic
249:pottery.
247:Canaanite
243:Mycenaean
168:(ancient
156:(ancient
98:, Cyprus.
1061:website.
1032:See Also
435:Alashiya
218:Uluburun
204:Purposes
182:Uluburun
178:Bulgaria
134:Sardinia
800:1357777
659:1005978
424:chariot
325:isotope
301:smelted
210:Mycenae
188:Context
174:Sozopol
172:), and
162:Hittite
158:Hattusa
52:Mycenae
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416:Karnak
412:Keftiu
195:Minoan
160:, the
154:Turkey
150:Sicily
146:Cyprus
110:copper
96:Enkomi
74:Zakros
33:Ingots
1004:(PDF)
979:S2CID
821:2008.
804:S2CID
796:JSTOR
746:S2CID
738:JSTOR
655:JSTOR
408:Retnu
374:Syria
360:Molds
340:, or
166:Egypt
138:Crete
125:ingot
48:Crete
852:ISBN
685:ISBN
597:ISBN
545:ISBN
518:ISBN
492:ISBN
366:mold
338:Iran
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