Browsing by Subject "Metalwork"

Now showing 1 - 3 of 3

Open Access
Master and apprentice some thoughts on Anatolian Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age metalwork and the many dimensions of communicating skills and expertise
(Trnavska Univerzita * Filozoficka Fakulta, 2021) Zimmermann, Thomas
This contribution first challenges the traditional view of a linear, gradually advancing, and unbroken development of metalwork in Anatolia, with the simple mechanical treatment of solid copper as an indispensable precursor for complex extractive metallurgy. The present evidence rather testifies to a “second coming” of metalwork in the second half of the 4th millennium BC, after metallurgical activities remained largely idle after their inception around 5.000 BC. In the second part, phenomena like the absence of founder’s burials in Bronze Age Anatolia are reviewed, to deliberate about the communication of skill and knowledge for smelting, casting and refining metal.
Open Access
Priesterkönigs-schmiedemeister? Zur (un)sichtbarkeit von metallhandwerkern im grabritus der anatolischen frühbronzezeit
(Slovak Academy of Sciences, Archaeological Institute, 2021) Zimmermann, Thomas
This article discusses the visibility of founders or metal craftsmen in the graves of Early Bronze Age Anatolia (ca. 3000–1950 BC). The examination of relevant burials from the 3rd millennium BC cemeteries in Central and Western Turkey did not produce any assemblages containing diagnostic items like crucibles, cushion stones or other casting equipment, which is noteworthy given the abundance of metalworking features from domestic Early Bronze Age contexts. ‘Showcase’ inventories from Troia or Alaca Höyük, although said to contain metallurgical items, in fact do not support this peculiar type of burial group, which at present seems not to occur in Anatolia.
Open Access
Western Anatolian metalwork and (the self-image) of metal workers in the later ist millennium BC: a historical-archaeometrical approach
(2023-06) Kayaalp, Aziz Cem
This thesis displays the level of metalworking technologies utilized by ancient smiths in western Anatolia during the 1st millennium BC. Metalwork in western Anatolia during the 1st millennium BC is an unexplored field of study. Due to certain historical biases and the relatively new emergence of the archaeometrical techniques, there stands a gap between the history of Late Bronze Age and Hellenistic-Roman metalwork in western Anatolia. In contrast to the previous assumption that most of the metallurgical procedures arrived in Ancient Greece through Cyprus and the Levant, the archaeological evidence from western Anatolia demonstrates that those techniques were already present in the Aegean. Several ancient sites with both Bronze Age and Iron Age layers in western Anatolia, including Gordion, Klazomenai and Sardeis, offer a rich source of material for establishing links between metalworking techniques between the two periods due to the uninterrupted connection their materials present. By exploring the folk tales from Lydia, Mysia, and Phrygia, regions often associated with the origins of certain metalworking technologies and even elements, this thesis aims to uncover the inhabitants' perception of mineralogy. Consequently, the traces of the deliberations of western Anatolian philosophers and mythology are visible in Ancient Greek scientific legacy as seen through Aristoteles. This research highlights the significant influence of western Anatolian metalwork on the scientific legacy of Ancient Greece, both in theory and practice. Additionally, it suggests that western Anatolian metalworkers possessed a theoretical understanding of their work, potentially portraying themselves as keepers of knowledge through their craft.