Small gold bells and miniature keros: An approach to understanding the technologies and alloys employed in Pre-Columbian Andes

Guerra, Maria Filomena, Fernández, Soledad, Delaveris, Irene, Encuentra Bardina, Jose Oscar and Villanueva, Juan (2019) Small gold bells and miniature keros: An approach to understanding the technologies and alloys employed in Pre-Columbian Andes. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 24, 967-977. (doi:10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.03.002).

Abstract

Fifteen gold miniatures in the collection of the MUSEF (La Paz) of types and dimensions consistent with bells and ceremonial cups (keros) produced during the Tiwanaku and Inca periods, were analysed in-situ using portable equipment to investigate the technologies and alloys employed. It was shown that at least two techniques of construction were used: one that is expected for Andean bells (by joining two gold sheets) and another that is expected for keros (by raising one gold sheet). One incomplete specimen was shown to be a broken miniature kero. Others, supposedly bells, with the same shapes, dimensions, and elemental compositions could have originally belonged to sets. The bodies and bases of the majority of the objects have different compositions, which are quite variable (10–63 wt% Ag and 0.5–5.5 wt% Cu), but within the range of alloys used by the Incas and of the few gold objects related to the Tiwanaku culture analysed so far. By comparison with gold grains from the Bolivian Cordillera mines, we suggest that the bells and keros containing more than 25 wt% Ag are made from artificial alloys. The others could have been made from either artificial or natural alloys, because only the Ag contents of some specimens match the fineness of gold grains from deposits situated in the Lake Titicaca area. Nevertheless, the Cu contents, being much higher in the objects than in the gold grains, could indicate that artificial alloys were more regularly produced.

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Contributors

Author: Jose Oscar Encuentra Bardina

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