AN ELEMENTAL AND LEAD-ISOTOPIC STUDY ON BRONZE HELMETS FROM ROYAL TOMB NO. 1004 IN YIN RUINS

Lead isotope and element composition analyses were performed by thermal ionization mass spectrometry (TIMS) and inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) on bronze helmets from royal tomb No. 1004 at Yin Ruins, the last capital of China's Shang Dynasty (17th to 11th centuries bc). The data show that the copper-based alloy helmets can be divided into two categories: tin bronze and leaded tin bronze; and the lead isotope ratios for both categories are in the range of highly radiogenic lead (HRL). This result offers some important clues to answering questions concerning the provenance of raw metal materials, as well as the chronology of this famous royal tomb.