Manufacturing Technique and Chemical Composition of Silver Items from Bоyanovo Burial Ground of Lomovatovka Archaeological Culture

Abstract

The Boyanovo burial ground dating from the IX – first half of the X centuries is one of the most interesting medieval sites of Perm Fore-Urals. At present it is the most studied burial site of Lomovatovka archaeological culture (527 burials have been studied). This paper presents an entirely new results of technological study of silver artifacts from the burials. Based on the collection, visual analysis of sources and their study with the help of different natural scientific methods, a detailed view of the design of items, the features of their manufacture and decoration techniques are given. A total of 236 samples have been studied. It is revealed that the majority of products are accessories which are characteristic of Lomovatovka archaeological culture. During manufacturing most products quite a variety of jewelry techniques was used: soldering, forging, embossing, gilding, inlay, granulation, and filigree. The overwhelming majority of these were made from high-grade silver, alloyed with copper or with copper and lead: Ag-Cu, Ag-Cu-Pb. A smaller quantity consists of artifacts of non-local origin, primarily produced using piece-mold casting. These were also made from relatively high-grade silver, but diluted with brass and multicomponent copper alloys (Ag-Cu-Pb-Zn, Ag-Cu-Zn, Ag-Cu-Sn-Pb, Ag-Cu-Sn-Pb-Zn).