Chemical analysis of bronze votives from the Minoan peak sanctuary at Ayios Yeoryios Sto Vouno, Kythera

• Published in: Journal of archaeological science, reports reports, 2024-02, Vol.53, p.104314, Article 104314
• Main Authors: Panagopoulou, Aik, Karydas, A.G., Banou, E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Bronze votives; Kythera; Minoan sanctuary; SEM/EDS analysis; XRF analysis
• ISSN: 2352-409X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2023.104314

•Archaeometric investigation of bronze votives from the Minoan peak sanctuary at Kythera.•Alloys with a high copper content or unalloyed copper had been used.•The presence of arsenic, tin and lead is discussed in relation with the manufacturing technique.•Lack of any precise recipe for the manufacture of the objects.•Particular care was taken to choose alloys according to the processing technique. The Minoan peak sanctuary at Ayios Yeoryios sto Vouno, Kythera, was founded in the MMIB period and reached its acme in the MMIIIB-LMIA period. Its special character is confirmed by the number and the variety of its bronze finds, which outnumber all similar finds made on Minoan peak sanctuaries. For this reason, a systematic study of the techniques used for their construction is being carried out, aiming at clarifying issues of bronze provenance, circulation and use during the apogee of Minoan civilization. The paper presents the preliminary results of micro-XRF and SEM-EDS techniques applied on two categories of bronze finds from the sanctuary, namely 48 figurines and 59 blade cut-outs, in order to clarify their chemical composition and the type of the alloy used for their manufacturing, and also to examine possible particularities of their technological characteristics. It was revealed that alloys with a high copper content or pure copper with a small amount of impurities had been used in the production of bronze votives. Although copper is the dominant component, tin, lead, arsenic and iron are also present in various concentrations; elements such as nickel, cobalt, zinc, selenium, bismuth, silver and antimony are recorded in minor or trace amounts, as detected in areal or linear analyses. Different alloys depending on the manufacturing technique had been used. Leaded copper and ternary copper alloys of Cu-Sn-Pb were identified in the figurine category, while in the blade category the examined objects were mostly manufactured of pure copper, of about 98%wt and above. Binary copper-tin alloy has been used only in few objects. Copper containing minor constituents may be due either to recycling or to their initial presence in the ore.