Special alloys from remote frontiers of the Shang Kingdom: scientific study of the Hanzhong bronzes from southwest Shaanxi, China

More than 200 bronze objects found in Hanzhong, southwest Shaanxi Province, China, a frontier region of the Shang Kingdom during the Shang dynasty, have been analysed for their composition and microstructure. Forty-three typologically distinct, and probably culturally indigenous, items have been found to be compositionally distinctive as well. This paper presents analytical results of the two types of local Hanzhong bronzes, namely the sickle-shaped and sceptre-shaped objects. Three special alloys, arsenic bronze, antimonial bronze and copper–nickel–arsenic ternary alloy, are particularly emphasized and discussed. The archaeological context of Hanzhong bronzes and their significance for the archaeometallurgy research of the Shang period are discussed as well.