| The present study was designed to look at the changing role of metals in the Early Bronze Age economies of North Syria and Anatolia through an analysis of textual, typological, and metallurgical data. This objective is achieved through the study of metal artifacts, specifically tools and weapons. By tracing the various metal types, one can reconstruct the nature and extent of interregional exchange between the metal-producing and the metal-consuming societies. However, metals were more than just objects of utilitarian and prestige value, they were also crucial to the development of economic practices in their capacity as money objects. This facet of metal usage requires some basic understanding of economic theory as it pertains to ancient economies. The physical procurement and processing of metals, specifically alloying, are also relevant to understanding the broader patterns of metal usage, as well as changing perceptions of their value and utility.;The most intriguing and contentious conclusions are as follows. Firstly, there is sufficient evidence that market exchange was extant in the Early Bronze Age, particularly with respect to metals since it had become a commodity even at this early period. Secondly, annaku is a term that refers to a high arsenic master alloy, and it was this alloying additive that was being transshipped by the Old Assyrian trading colony.;The Ebla Archives are particularly useful to this study since they provide valuable information regarding the craft production and distribution of metals. Specifically, the texts reveal that, contrary to expectations, bronze was not being made in Ebla, but rather another common alloy, most likely arsenical copper. This possibility is corroborated through yet another line of evidence---metallurgical analysis. Preliminary analysis of this data indicates that arsenical copper was predominantly a deliberate alloy, but more importantly it suggests that the source of Middle Bronze Age tin was in the west. This issue is deeply entwined with the debate over Anatolian sources of tin, the lexical meaning of the word annaku in the 3rd and 2 nd millennium, and the position of arsenical copper both metallurgically and textually. |
