Composition of Non-Ferrous Metal from the Varni Burial Ground on the Example of Dated Burial Assemblages

Abstract

The paper presents the results of elemental analysis of non-ferrous metal items from the Varni burial ground of dating from the late IV – X centuries (Polom archaeological culture). The site is located on the right bank of the Cheptsa River in its upper reaches (Udmurt Republic). The aim of the study is to examine a cross-section of contemporaneously used non-ferrous alloys across different chronological stages of the Polom culture's development. For this purpose, materials from five closed burial assemblages were selected from the array of analyzed finds (150 items). The work uses the technique of non-destructive electron microprobe microanalysis of the surface of samples. The research revealed the greatest diversity of non-ferrous metal alloy compositions during the early (V – first half of the VI centuries AD) and late (late VIII – IX centuries AD) stages. This correlates with the intensity of trade-economic and cultural contacts among the population during these periods. The composition of early finds correlates with the range of materials from the Kama and Vyatka regions dating to the mid-I millennium AD. The middle stages are distinguished by a high tin content in the alloys. A distinctive feature of the late stage was the appearance of silver in significant concentrations within multicomponent alloys..