Lead isotopes in silver reveal earliest Phoenician quest for metals in the west Mediterranean.

ABSTRACT: When and why did the Phoenicians initiate long-term connections between the Levant and western Europe? This is one of the most hotly debated questions in ancient Mediterranean history and cultural research. In this study, we use silver to answer this question, presenting the largest dataset of chemical and isotopic analyses of silver items from silver hoards found in Phoenician homeland sites. Intertwining lead isotope analysis of silver items with precise archaeological context and chronology, we provide analytical evidence for the onset of Phoenician westward expansion. We suggest that the quest for silver instigated a long, exploratory phase, first in Anatolia (Asia Minor) and Sardinia, and subsequently in the Iberian Peninsula. This phase preceded the establishment of sustainable, flou

SUBMITTER: Eshel T 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC6442568 | biostudies-literature | 2019 Mar

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature