Abstract
The manufacturing and corrosion properties of metal artefacts are significant for archaeologists and conservators. In this study, non-destructive neutron-based techniques are applied on ancient copper-iron arrows. The archaeological samples were excavated from a Western Han tomb (202 BC - AD 8) near the Han Chang’an city site (the capital of Western Han dynasty) in China. This is the first time that the combination of neutron resonance capture analysis, neutron diffraction, neutron tomography, and Raman spectroscopy has been used in Chinese cultural heritage to obtain useful information about the arrows. The results indicate that one arrowhead is made of low-Sn, high-Pb bronze, while the other is composed of high-Sn, low-Pb bronze. These analyses also reveal the production method of these arrows, with the iron tangs likely being cast first and then connected to bronze arrowheads through casting. Furthermore, due to the variations in materials used, certain parts of the arrows were more susceptible to corrosion than others; specifically, those made of pure iron were more prone to corrosion than their bronze counterparts. Additionally, it is confirmed that the iron inside the arrowhead corroded less than the visible iron tang at its base. The corrosion products include cuprite, goethite, hematite, magnetite, cerussite, azurite, malachite and lepidocrocite. These findings are highly beneficial for understanding the making techniques, as well as conservation state and corrosion products associated with archaeological arrows.
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No datasets were generated or analysed during the current study.
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Acknowledgement
The authors gratefully acknowledge the Science and Technology Facilities Council (STFC) for access to neutron beamtime at ISIS, as well as the provision of sample preparation, INES and IMAT facilities. We would like to express our gratitude to the Xi’an Academy of Conservation and Archaeology for the great support and funding (2021ZDLGY15-06), and the National Social Science Foundation of China (22FKGB010). We would also like to acknowledge Dr. Anna Fedrigo, Dr. Yun Zhang and Dr. Zhou Zhou for their assistance in neutron experiments.
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F.Z., M. S. and P. L. wrote the main manuscript text. A. S. and W. K. performed the neutron experiments, and the data were processed by A. S. and F. Grazzi. F. Guo, C. W. and Y. W. prepared samples and performed Raman spectral analysis.
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Zhao, F., Sun, M., Li, P. et al. Revealing the manufacturing and corrosion characteristics of Chinese archaeological metal arrows by non-destructive neutron techniques. Archaeol Anthropol Sci 16, 50 (2024). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-024-01957-y
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-024-01957-y