Tracking the routes. Bronze Age copper supply networks between Italy and the Balkans

This project builds upon ground-breaking results from our previous FWF-funded research, revealing a substantial influx of copper from Trentino (northern Italy) into the Late Bronze Age metallurgy of the Balkans (1400-800 BC), while local copper production in Eastern Serbia seemingly ceased around 1600 BC. This follow-up project aims to meticulously investigate communication and trading routes between Italy and the Balkans, specifically focusing on the Adriatic Sea and Sava River Valley.

Employing a comprehensive methodology that integrates typo-chronological analysis, metal analysis (trace elements, lead isotopes), and Least-Cost-Path analysis, we aim to expand our dataset and detect potential copper sources from other European regions.

In particular, we intend to identify the timeframe of Trentino copper's initial appearance, reconstruct distribution networks, and analyze the socio-economic impact of prolonged raw material supply.

This interdisciplinary study represents a pioneering effort to elucidate the transfer of this crucial commodity during the Bronze Age, offering a novel perspective on prehistoric developments in the region encompassing the Alps, Adriatic Sea, and the Balkans, with profound implications for understanding contacts and exchange networks.

The European Bronze Age is marked by the widespread adoption of tin-bronze metallurgy, which played a pivotal role in shaping a new political economy. The procurement and trade of copper and tin, the essential constituents of bronze, facilitated the integration of micro-regions into large-scale trade networks. This dynamic led to the emergence of social stratification based on control over commodity flows. Analytical advancements over the past decade, especially in the study of copper-based objects and ores, have enabled large-scale characterization of artefacts and raw materials. Combining these analytical datasets with in-depth typo-chronological and archaeological analysis holds the potential to unravel comprehensive trade networks and the associated socio-cultural and economic dynamics

Emergence of Monopoly

Research into Bronze Age metal movement across Europe has witnessed a substantial surge in the last decade. Notably, recent discoveries have revealed that the mining region of Trentino in northern Italy has exerted a more substantial impact on Bronze Age metallurgy than previously acknowledged.

Copper from Trentino, initially considered a Late Bronze Age phenomenon, appears now to be attested already during the Middle Bronze Age (16^th-15th centuries BC).

The previous FWF-funded project (2019-2023) identified the Trentino region as the primary copper supplier for the Western and Central Balkans during the Late Bronze Age (1400 - 800 BC), while local copper sources like ore-rich Eastern Serbia ceased production around 1600 BC, signalling a significant cultural and economic transformation.

On the trail of copper

Building upon the findings of the previous project, "Tracking the Routes" aims to delve deeper into the complexities of Bronze Age copper supply networks between Italy and the Balkans by focusing on the Adriatic Sea and the Sava Valley as most likely routes between the regions. The primary objective is to establish a chronological and geographical framework of the initial appearance of Trentino copper and reconstruct the distribution networks of raw material. Through targeted case studies, we will explore the interaction degree between different sub-districts and the impact of long-lasting raw material supply on social transformation.

Methodology

Methods employed include archaeometallurgical, typo-chronological, and geographical distribution analyses, alongside Least-Cost-Path analysis. Around 500 copper-based artefacts from archaeological contexts dating from the Early to the Late Bronze Age will undergo minimal invasive sampling for trace element and lead isotope analyses.  Selected trace elements (e.g., Ni, As, Sb, Ag, Bi, Fe, Co) will define chemical groups and different alloy mixtures. Lead isotope ratios, remaining stable throughout metallurgical processes, help identify specific copper ore sources by comparing artefact data with geochemical deposits' fingerprints.

Least-Cost-Path analysis will create models for the most favourable geographic communication between raw material sources and sites in the study area.