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How Leaded Bronze Transformed China, 2000-1000 BCE
Limin Huan
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In China’s Metal Age, which began around 2000 BCE, leaded bronze was widely used. The additional lead distinguishes early Chinese bronze objects from unleaded objects used by most other Metal Age communities in Eurasia. This book focuses on the lead question in early China.By combining the geology and material properties with case studies of early metal-using communities, the research challenges the current hypothesis that craftspeople added lead for technological reasons. Instead, it argues that the widespread usage of leaded bronze objects was mainly due to socio-economic factors and interregional interaction.
Its broad scope and discussion on research methods make the book of interest to researchers concerned with archaeometallurgy, early China, and prehistoric archaeology.
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Front Cover
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Title Page
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Copyright Page
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Archaeology of East Asia
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Titles in the Archaeology of East Asia Subseries
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Of Related Interest
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Dedication
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Acknowledgements
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Contents
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List of Figures
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List of Tables
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Abstract
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1. Introduction
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1.1. China and its early metals
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1.2. The lead problem in Chinese bronzes
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1.3. How this study unfolds
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2. The meaningful metal: leaded bronze in archaeological interpretation
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2.1. Distribution of copper, tin, and lead
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2.2. Creation of copper alloys
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2.3. Properties of leaded bronze
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2.3.1. Castability
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2.3.2. Mechanical properties
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2.3.3. Colour
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2.3.4. Other properties
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2.4. Was leaded bronze a good choice?
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3. East wind, west wind: metals on the steppe frontiers
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3.1. Steppe traditions and local adoptions
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3.2. Northern Bohai Rim
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3.3. Hexi Corridor before 1600 BCE
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3.4. Ordos Plateau
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4. Making vessels with a new material: the leaded ritual bronzes
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4.1. From the frontiers to the Central Plains
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4.2. Erlitou
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4.3. Zhengzhou
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4.4. Middle-Lower Yangtze
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5. Beyond the Central Plains: the spread of leaded bronze
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5.1. Anyang
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5.2. Hexi Corridor after 1600 BCE
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5.3. Guanzhong Basin
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5.4. Lower Yangtze and the eastern coast
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6. Conclusions and discussion
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6.1. Geographical conditions and technological choices
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6.2. Scenarios of using leaded bronze
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6.3. Towards a Leaded Bronze Age
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Appendix 1. Early metal-related sites in China
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Appendix 2. Published chemical analyses of early copper-based objects from China
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Appendix 3. Major metal deposits in the study area
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Appendix 4. Abbreviations of the analytical chemistry methods
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Bibliography
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Back Cover
Citable Link
Published: 2023
Publisher: BAR Publishing
- 9781407315249 (paper)
- 9781407315256 (ebook)
BAR Number: S3147