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Refining gold with glass - an early Islamic technology at Tadmekka, Mali

Rehren, T; Nixon, S; (2014) Refining gold with glass - an early Islamic technology at Tadmekka, Mali. Journal of Archaeological Science , 49 (1) 33 - 41. 10.1016/j.jas.2014.04.013. Green open access

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Abstract

We describe two crucible fragments from an early Islamic context at the West African site of Tadmekka, in the Republic of Mali. They are made from a very sandy fabric and contain numerous gold particles and mineral grains in a matrix of lightly-coloured glass-based crucible slag. We interpret these as remains of a process separating freshly-panned gold concentrate from residual mineral inclusions, by melting the concentrate together with crushed glass beads. The process has similarities in modern artisanal practice, and shows the versatility of craftspeople in this major urban trading centre famous for its gold wealth. © 2014 The Authors.

Type: Article
Title: Refining gold with glass - an early Islamic technology at Tadmekka, Mali
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1016/j.jas.2014.04.013
Publisher version: http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2014.04.013
Language: English
Additional information: Copyright © 2014 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY license
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology > Institute of Archaeology Gordon Square
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/1431639
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