The Circulation of Metal in the British Bronze Age: The Application of Lead Isotope Analysis

Abstract

• The results of the first major lead isotope analysis of British Copper and Bronze Age artefacts, and an attempt to relate the artefacts to their source. The authors outline the evidence for early mining, and the principles of lead isotope analysis, before presenting lead isotope analyses for British ores, and applying the results of the analysis of 460 artefacts to this dataset.