Prehistoric Metallurgy at Tell Abraq, U. A. E.

Abstract

This article presents the results of an investigation into the production of copper and bronze objects at the prehistoric site of Tell Abraq, United Arab Emirates (Fig. 1). During the course of four seasons of excavation since 1989, over 550 metal objects have been unearthed from all occupational phases at Tell Abraq. These objects were made of copper and copper alloys, and consist not only of completed objects and recognisable fragments of such, but also amorphous 'blobs' or droplets of metal, ceramic fragments with copper adhering and a copper ingot. Such discoveries led the excavators of Tell Abraq to suspect that copper and bronze may have been worked at the site in antiquity (2).