Dawn of the Metal Age

Technology and Society During the Levantine Chalcolithic

Jonathan M. Golden

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• ISBN:
  9781134946778
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Social Sciences
• Subtopic: Archaeology
• Index: Social Sciences

The fifth millennium BCE was a period of rapid social change. One of the key factors was the developments in technology which led to the rise of the metals industry. Archaeological finds from sites dating to the Chalcolithic period indicate the production and use of copper. 'Dawn of the Metal Age' examines a range of sites - from copper mines in Jordan and Israel to the villages of the northern Negev where copper was produced in household workshops, to a series of cave burials where a range of luxury metal goods were buried with the elite members of Chalcolithic society. Ancient technology is reconstructed from the archaeological evidence, which also illuminates the changing economic, social, religious and political environment of the time.

1 The Dawn of the Metal Age

Introduction

This is the story of an ancient society in the throes of rapid social transformation. The changes that occurred involved a great revolution in technology, namely the beginnings of metallurgy in the southern Levant, thus, this is the story as told through the metals. The local advent of metallurgy represents One of the hallmark developments of the age known as the Chalcolithic Period (ca. 4700-3500 bc). The archaeological record, known to us through the excavation of villages, cave sites and cemeteries throughout the southern Levant, reflects significant changes in economic, social, political and religious life during this time. Indeed, when we compare Chalcolithic cultures with those of the preceding Neolithic, the differences are stark.

At the beginning of the fifth millennium BC, the Neolithic way of life persisted in the southern Levant. People generally lived in small villages where most people were engaged directly in food production, though some no doubt dabbled, and perhaps even specialized, in additional activities such as the production of pottery and the carving of stone. The operative working unit was the nuclear family, extended family, or kin group, and labor was organized accordingly. There was certainly some level of economic integration and coordination as certain members of the community had specific jobs (e.g. potters), and thus, inevitably, there were some economic distinctions. In fact, it can be argued that part-time craft specialization was embedded within certain subsistence tasks (Perlès 2001), for instance, horticulture (e.g. olives) and pastoral production would emerge as specialized activities during the Chalcolithic. As for their approach to the technological and material world around them, people were still working largely with the same materials that they had for millennia—stone, bone, ivory, wood and other vegetal materials. The most recent additions to these media had been clay and plaster, which, in addition to their contribution to the material culture of economic and domestic life, also played a part in the rise of public cults as well. Advances in technical skills and methods are especially evident in the area of ceramic production where we will see the earliest production of fine wares as well as an expansion in the use of symbolic ceramic goods. It is also significant, particularly from the standpoint of this book's primary focus—the discovery and production of metals—that both clay and plaster required the application of extreme heat, representing vital steps in the development of pyrotechnology.

In terms of social and political organization during the Neolithic, it is doubtful that society was what anthropologists refer to as 'egalitarian' in the sense of all members of society being equal in wealth and status, for surely some distinctions can be observed. For one, some members of society had exclusive access to ritual goods, which is significant when the cult was one of, if not the most, powerful establishments at the time. However, it is possible to achieve this level of organization without recourse to any institutionalized or formalized hierarchy or control. This is what Perlès has called 'heterarchical organization', meaning a social order 'based on a differentiation of social and economic roles' (2001:305). In other words, certain social distinctions, based on economic tasks and connections with the cult, did exist during the Neolithic, but this did not involve ranking or a permanent hierarchical structure, and there was probably little political power existing beyond the cult.

By the latter part of the fifth millennium with the beginning of the period known as the Chalcolithic (ca. 4500-3500 BC), significant change began to occur in virtually all aspects of Levantine life. Large, well-planned communities were established throughout the southern Levant, including the first significant settlement in the northern Negev desert. New and varied forms of material culture reflect key economic developments, such as the origins of specialized production, in addition to the development of a unique symbolic and artistic tradition. The first pan-regional ritual centers arose in the southern Levant during the late 5th-early 4th millennium BC at sites such as Gilat (Alon and Levy 2006) and Ghassul (Bourke 2002a). Changes in burial practices are also evident in the earliest use of ossuaries, extramural cemeteries and constructed tombs. While the Neolithic was by no means devoid of social competition, a number of developments, especially the proliferation of luxury goods and the use of wealthy cave tombs, reflect meaningful changes in overall social life by the time of the Chalcolithic.

Looking at the material record, one of the most outstanding changes in the archaeological record of the Chalcolithic was the introduction of metal, a new material and technology that would ultimately have a profound and deep impact on society. In addition to the direct effects of this new technology on material existence and economic organization, the evolution of the metal industry can also provide insight into changes in the sociopolitical structure and in religious practice as well. While these changes may have occurred independently of metallurgy, it was not long before this new medium became a forceful vehicle for expressing social relations and political power. Overall, an examination of the rise of metallurgy has great potential for providing insight into many questions about social organization during the late prehistory of the southern Levant.

In the discussion that follows, we will focus On one primary problem: how the inception of metallurgy in the southern Levant relates to the processes of social transformation that took place during the fourth-fifth millennium BC. But in order to answer this extremely broad question, we must proceed by addressing a number of more specific problems. There is, in fact, a number of different issues that figure in the more general topic, and it is therefore useful to divide them into sets, the first set of which concerns questions about when and where metals and metallurgy—these are two separate things—first appeared in the region. This is important because it is necessary to understand the spatial and temporal framework within which the emergence of metallurgy took place if we are to see it as part of a social process.

The second set of questions centers on technical aspects of Chalcolithic metallurgy, for it is critical that we understand how this industry operated, i.e. what goods were being manufactured and by what means. This portion of the discussion will focus on the archaeological evidence for metal production, or rather, archaeometallurgical remains, and the scientific analysis of these materials. Based on this analytical data, we may then go further to address a range of questions about how copper production was organized and how finished products were used. By examining evidence for the distribution of these artifacts within the context of the community, we may gain insight into socioeconomic organization in Chalcolithic society. Finally, drawing on all of this data as a whole, we may begin to answer a number of key questions concerning the ways in which specific developments within the metal industry relate to broader social changes. Thus, it is necessary that we examine a number of different themes, each of which will now be outlined.

Metal and Society

Technology, as a form of knowledge, cannot be abstracted from the social environment in which it evolves. Accordingly, if we are to understand the technological systems of the past, we must also examine how they fit within their own particular cultural historical context; in other words, the practical, social, political, and ideological factors that drove the demand for metal. While the first appearance of more complex social institutions generally coincided with the advent of copper in the southern Levant, the relationship between these phenomena is not so easily understood. Broadly defined, the role of metal in society is twofold: it is the focus of economic activities (i.e. production); and it is a finished good that can be used for a variety of purposes. When studying problems related to metal and society, therefore, it is important to distinguish between production and use. Production refers to all of the activities involved in the manufacture of copper, from the mining of ores to the final hammering and polishing of finished goods, and in some cases the repair and recycling of these goods. As far as the use of metal is concerned, many important questions remain unanswered. For instance, copper was used to produce a variety of items that would generally be regarded as 'utilitarian' forms, but an axe made of the relatively soft 'pure' copper would have been rather ineffective as a tool, and we must at least raise the question of whether such a classification is truly valid. At the same time, multiple examples of elegant and beautifully cast goods made from what we shall call complex metals are also part of the material culture. This term, complex metals, is employed here to describe copper with significant amounts of other materials, such as arsenic and antimony, and to a lesser extent nickel, silver and lead; as it is unclear whether these metals were actually handled separately as distinct metals to be intentionally co-smelted, the term 'alloy' is used with caution. The gold intermixed with silver found only at the cave tomb at Nahal Qanah can also be considered as part of this group. The actual function of the complex metal castings (e.g. prestige goods, weapons) is not clear, and this is a topic that we will explore at length in later chapters.

The Social Organization of Production

A large portion of this study also concerns socioeconomic systems and the social organization of production, in particular, the topic of craft specialization. Broadly speaking, there are two major questions: how did people actually go about producing copper? And, what was their role as producers within the broader economic and social system? A useful body of theory has been developed for the purpose of characterizing the various forms of specialized craft production (van der Leeuw 1977; Brumfiel and Earle 1987; Clark and Parry 1990; Costin 1991), and we will, upon reviewing these models, attempt to adapt a version developed specifically for the purpose of analyzing Chalcolithic copper industries. Many of the copper items represent luxury goods, and we must therefore investigate whether producers were directly tied to more complex sociopolitical entities, an arrangement often called attached specialization (Costin 1991:5; Earle 1991). We must also consider the extent to which trade in both raw materials and finished goods, in some cases involving long-distance contacts, may have also contributed to social change through exposure to new ideas (Renfrew 1982).

The production of metal was a craft that required a substantial investment of resources and energy on a level perhaps unseen prior to this period in the Levant. This in turn, may have necessitated the invention of new ways of organizing production and labor. By the time luxury goods fashioned from complex metals came into use, privileged access to these items may have had the effect of further encouraging social differentiation. Thus, studying the distribution of metal at an archaeological site can contribute to our general understanding of the overall organization of village society.

In the discussion that follows we will track what appears to be a strong and consistent correlation between advances in the metal industry and increases in social complexity, the point being to understand the relationship between the two. Archaeological research, of course, produces a static record to which the archaeologist must try to add life In our efforts to do so, archaeologists often turn to ethnographic studies of living or recently observed peoples whose ways and lives may provide some insight into the dynamics of past societies. When studying social and political organization in pre-state or mid-range societies, archaeologists also find it useful to compare these cultures to the types of societies known in the ethnographic literature as chiefdoms (Carniero 1981; Earle 1987, 1989, 1991, 1997; Gilman 1991; Kirch 1991; Potter 1993). Scholars such as Levy (1986, 1992b, 2003) and Joffe (1991) have applied this term to the Chalcolithic societies of the southern Levant, and though this representation has been disputed (Gilead 1994), acceptance of this approach has grown in recent years. In truth, it is not the actual term that should be at issue, but rather questions about the changing level of social complexity over the course of the entire period, and how we may best characterize social organization. This topic will be explored throughout the course of the discussion.

The Multiple Meanings and Uses of Metal

We must keep in mind that metal at this time represented an entirely new medium, with great potential as a vehicle for making statements about the status and wealth of those who controlled its manufacture and distribution. Luxury goods played a vital role in many early complex societies, especially in those with intense prestige rivalry (Renfrew 1982; Suggs 1961). Metals, particularly the complex metals, were among the key commodities in many early prestige goods exchange systems (Yener 1995; Moorey 1994; Chernykh 1992; Levy and Shalev 1989; Knapp 1988). For example, the elite among the Copper Age societies of the Aegean and southeast Spain converted staple finance wealth (e.g. the accumulation of wealth through a surplus of grain) into the production of status goods which could be more easily displayed (Gilman 1991, 1987). As the evidence will show, we can infer a similar association between the introduction of metals in the southern Levant and the rise of complex social systems where material culture was manipulated as a means of expressing wealth and status (Levy 1995; Levy and Shalev 1989; Moorey 1988). And while a general chronological correlation between the appearance of luxury goods and complex societies in the area has been well documented, the relationship between them remains unclear.

In order to examine this problem more closely, several research questions may be proposed. First, we must ask, was metallurgy initially developed specifically for the purpose of expressing and reproducing existing social relations? Or was it the fledgling metal industries, requiring increasingly complex forms of economic and/or social organization to drive it, that lead to the creation of a non-producing elite, which was supported through access to limited goods? Were social relations then reproduced and maintained through restrictions on access to these goods (i.e. monopolies on prestige goods and/or technologies)? In addressing this issue, we must be careful to avoid simplified models based on a 'hierarchical/non-hierarchical' dichotomy, and as we shall see, the best explanation may reside in an amalgamation of the aforementioned factors.

In recent decades, questions concerning the earliest use of complex metals have been the focus of extensive research (McKerrell 1977; Maddin 1988; Rapp 1988; Northover 1989; Rostoker and Dvorak 1991). In a number of early metal producing industries, including Anatolia (Frangipane 1985) and southeast Spain (Hook et al. 1991), researchers have observed a technological division between 'utilitarian' industries based on 'pure' copper technology and luxury goods industries based on the use of complex metals. A similar 'dual industry' was first observed in the southern Levant by Key (1980; see also Potazkin and Bar-Avi 1980), who perceived a strict division between the 'utilitarian' goods and the luxury/symbolic goods of the Nahal Mishmar hoard. Subsequently, the 'dual industry' model has been noted throughout the southern Levant (Key 1980; Rosen 1984; Shalev and Northover 1987; Northover 1989; Levy and Shalev 1989; Gopher and Lsuk 1991; Tadmor et ell. 1995; Golden et al. 2001). This model can now be re-examined in light of the new data, synthesized with what is already known about the evidence for metal production.

As for the origins of this so-called 'natural alloy' technology, a number of scholars have argued that the first use of complex metals and the technology associated with it (e.g. co-smelting) developed in Anatolia, closer to sources of this material (Palmier et al. 1993; Pernicka 1990; Zwicker 1980). We must note, however, that the number of complex metal goods discovered in the southern Levant in Chalcolithic, pre-Early Bronze Age (EBA) contexts far exceeds those from contemporary contexts in Anatolia. Furthermore, it is not only the number, but also the variety of types found in the metal assemblage of the southern Levant that is so impressive.

In truth, it was not only the use of new materials (i.e. complex metals) but the accompanying advances in production techniques that were conducive to the blossoming of this industry. Whereas in both Anatolia and Iran the proximity and availability of raw materials seems to have led to the expansion of metal technology and the proliferation of the use of complex metals, this was not the case in the southern Levant where complex metals were not locally available. Alternatively, it may be suggested that it was a rich symbolic system, involving a combination of social, ideological, and political factors that fueled the demand for complex metals within Levantine societies. In other words, a unique set of circumstances helped create a socially driven need for complex metal technology. In spite of the more accessible local sources of 'pure' copper ore, people went to great lengths, participating in vast exchange networks and perhaps long-distance expeditions in quest of a more rare and desirable material, which was, no doubt, ascribed great value.

It cannot, however, be assumed that the dichotomy involving 'pure' copper and complex metals existed from the very inception of metallurgy, and it is important that we attempt to establish some sort of chronological framework for this development. For instance, it is necessary to determine if there was an earlier phase when people worked with 'pure' copper alone, after which the complex metals industry branched off as a secondary development. A whole other set of questions concerns whether or not metallurgy developed independently in the southern Levant or was an imported technology. When did both 'pure' copper tools and complex metal castings first appear? And, did the pattern of dual industries first appear as an established phenomenon, or did the latter tradition develop locally out of the former?

One of the most fascinating topics that we will explore in this book concerns technology as a social phenomenon, and it is critical that we learn as much as we can not just about the properties of the metal goods, but about what they can tell us of the people who produced and consumed them. In particular, we will examine the ways that trends in metal production and use correlate with broader cultural trends. Exploring this topic, we will rely on the works of scholars who have discussed ways to study ancient technology and the processes of innovation through archaeological remains (Petrequin 1993; Lemonnier 1993; Renfrew 1984; Spratt 1982). We will also draw from various models that seek to explain the processes by which new ideas are discovered and disseminated (Kuhn 1962; Wallace 1972). When studying ancient production systems, we must also consider numerous social factors that influence the technological choices that producers make (Lemonnier 1993). Furthermore, we must look beyond just our field of primary interest, in this case metallurgy, to examine broad trends in other industries in order to explore what has been called technological milieu (Leroi-Gourhan 1943) and technological style (Lechtman 1988; 1977).

Chronological Sub-Phases and Social Change in the Chalcolithic

Discussing long-term technological change requires that we have a firm grasp on chronology. One way to study the shitting social climate is to track changing patterns in the demand for prestige goods (e.g. complex metal castings), which in turn requires reference to a reliable temporal framework.

The Chalcolithic of the Levant was originally recognized as a distinct archaeological culture preceding the Early Bronze Age by researchers such as W. F. Albright (1932, 1954) and G.E. Wright (1957). Still, despite over 50 years of subsequent r...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• List of Figures
• List of Tables
• Acknowledgments
• Preface
• 1 The Dawn of the Metal Age
• 2 Leaving the Neolithic
• 3 The Northern Negev Copper Boom
• 4 Elite Tombs of the Chalcolithic
• 5 Cornets and Copper— A Metallurgical Perspective on Chalcolithic Chronology
• 6 A Model for Specialized Craft Production
• 7 Copper Production at Abu Matar
• 8 The Seduction of the Industry
• 9 Technology and Society
• 10 Production and Social Organization during the Chalcolithic
• 11 Conclusion
• Bibliography
• Index