Lead Isotope Study on the Source of Copper Material for Bronze Vessels in Dongdazhangzi Warring States Period Cemetery, Liaoning Province
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ABSTRACT
BACKGROUNDAs a high-grade cemetery in Liaoning Province and Northeastern Asia in the Warring States Period, Dongdazhangzi cemetery has received a lot of attention since it was excavated. Previous studies mainly focus on the structure of the tombs, the typology of burial objects, and the cultural properties. The provenance studies for bronze objects are lacking.OBJECTIVESTo discuss the provenance of bronzes in the Dongdazhangzi cemetery.METHODSICP-OES, SEM-EDS and TIMS have been used to analyze the chemical and lead isotopic compositions of 7 bronze samples from tomb No.03JDM4.RESULTSChemical analysis revealed that there are 4 lead-tin bronzes and 2 tin bronzes out of all 7 samples, but the alloy type of the rest is yet unknown. The function of the objects is basically matched with the properties of the alloy. Lead isotope analysis indicated that the copper is unlikely to come from copper mines such as Inner Mongolia Linxi Dajing, Liaoning Hongtoushan and Shanxi Zhongtiaoshan. The lead isotope ratios of 5 samples, which contain lead exceeding 2%, range from 17.685 to 17.941 for 206Pb/204Pb, 15.530 to 15.612 for 207Pb/204Pb, 38.080 to 38.404 for 208Pb/204Pb. The lead sources are likely from the Qingchengzi lead-zinc deposit in Liaoning Province.CONCLUSIONSThis study contributes to the provenance study of bonzes in Dongdazhangzi Warring States cemetery in Liaoning Province. At the same time, scientific evidence for the research of the trade and circulation of metal sources between Western Liaoning and Liaodong Peninsula during the Warring States Period is provided, as well as the exploitation history of the metal resources of Liaodong Peninsula.
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