Archeometallurgical characterization of Late Roman- and Byzantine-period Samaritan magical objects and jewelry made of copper alloys D. Ashkenazi a, ⁎, I. Taxel b , O. Tal b a School of Mechanical Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, 6997801, Israel b Department of Archaeology and Ancient Near Eastern Cultures, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, 6997801, Israel abstract article info Article history: Received 3 December 2014 Received in revised form 16 January 2015 Accepted 17 January 2015 Available online 17 February 2015 Keywords: Archeometallurgy Samaritans Late Roman Byzantine Copper alloys Microstructural characterization Characterization of eleven copper alloy artifacts, dated between the 4th and 6th (or early 7th) centuries AD, retrieved from archeological excavations of remains associated with Samaritan sites along the central Coastal Plain of Israel, was performed. The assemblage includes three inscribed polygonal finger rings, four finger rings with decorated bezel (of which one bears a legend in the Samaritan script), two inscribed amulet pendants, and two thin cylindrical foils (containers of phylacteries, designated for the safekeeping of a magical or religious text written on papyri or parchment). The aim of this research is to use archeometallurgical non-destructive and destructive methods in order to determine manufacturing processes of the objects, and if possible their produc- tion place, their origin of ore and their use. The results indicate that the three polygonal rings were prestige objects made of gunmetal and manufactured by lost-wax casting followed by heat-treatment probably at the same workshop. Among the four finger rings with decorated bezel, the two with incised motifs were made of gunmetal alloy, while the one with eye-shaped bezel was made of relatively pure leaded-copper, and the other ring, with the inscribed bezel, was made of brass. These rings were manufactured by using dissimilar techniques; the two with decorated bezel by casting and then shaped by hammering and annealing cycles; the eye-shaped bezel ring by casting with no further treatment; and the inscribed bezel ring made of brass by manufacturing two different parts, hoop and bezel, that were brazed together, and then hammered and annealed. Both amulet pendants were manufactured by lost-wax casting and given their shape and composition they were probably manufactured at two different workshops. Both cylindrical foils were made of leaded-copper that was first cast into an open mold, then hammered into a thin foil and folded at a later stage, probably at the same workshop. All the examined gunmetal and brass artifacts contained 4–20 wt.% Zn, indicating that their alloys were originally manufactured by cementation, produced of recycled metal, probably due to economic considerations. The present study indicates the existence of a limited number of local metal workshops which specialized in the manufacture of copper alloy jewelries and related objects; some were apparently operated by Samaritans. © 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction 1.1. The copper alloy artifacts In this article, eleven Late Roman- and Byzantine-period (4th to 6th or early 7th centuries AD) copper alloy objects were studied under archeometallurgical methods. The objects were retrieved from con- trolled archeological excavations of sites identified as inhabited by Samaritans. All are located in the southern Sharon region (Fig. 1) within the central Coastal Plain of Israel (mostly at the northern fringes of the city of Tel Aviv; see [1,2]). The first group of objects is represented by three polygonal finger rings (A, B, C), that bear short legends in the Samaritan script on each of their edges (Fig. 2). Ring A, heptagonal in shape, and ring B, octagonal in shape, were found in a burial cave at Khirbet al-Ḥadra (HaGolan Street, Tel Aviv); ring C, octagonal in shape, was found in a large refuse dump at the eastern outskirts of the ancient harbor town of Apollonia-Arsuf (Sozousa). Ring A is badly pre- served, covered with brown–green oxide and only partial readings could be made. Rings B and C had two lines of legends on each of their edges; they were also covered with brown–green oxide, but their state of preservation is relatively good. The examined objects also in- cluded two broken decorated finger rings (rings D and F), which were Materials Characterization 102 (2015) 195–208 ⁎ Corresponding author at: Faculty of Engineering, Tel Aviv University, Ramat Aviv, 6997801, Israel. E-mail address: dana@eng.tau.ac.il (D. Ashkenazi). http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.matchar.2015.01.019 1044-5803/© 2015 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. Contents lists available at ScienceDirect Materials Characterization journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/matchar