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Neutron Activation Analysis of Microgram Samples from 364 Gold Objects from a Sican Burial Site in Peru

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  26 February 2011

Adon A. Gordus  and
Izumi Shimada
Adon A. Gordus
Affiliation:
The University of Michigan, Dept. of Chemistry, Ann Arbor, MI 48109
Izumi Shimada
Affiliation:
Southern Illinois University, Dept. of Anthropology, Carbondale, IL 62901
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Abstract

872 metal rubbings, each weighing about 10 micrograms, were taken from 364 gold objects from an unlooted Middle Sicin (ca. 1000 A.D.) Peruvian burial site and the gold, silver, and copper contents were determined by neutron activation analysis. Almost all objects have contents that are in the range: 35-65% gold, 25-45% silver, and 10-30% copper. Objects of similar style were more uniform in content; for example, the 28 bangles and 90 feathers from the main headdress have gold contents that range only from 46-56% and 37-45%, respectively. Some objects have contents markedly different from the rest of the objects; ear-spools, for example, have very low copper (1-6%) and high gold (56-75%). A high degree of control of the alloy content is evident, with each alloy mixture probably being chosen to have desired color and mechanical properties. The data indicate that very consistent 1.0-1.1 mixtures of gold:silver were used for 136 of the 142 feathers whereas gold:silver mixtures closer to 1.3-1.9 were used for most of the 96 bangles.

Type
Research Article
Information
MRS Online Proceedings Library (OPL) , Volume 352: Symposium – Materials Issues in Art and Archaeology IV , 1995 , 127
Copyright
Copyright © Materials Research Society 1995

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References

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