Iron Age Metalworking at Masafi-1? A Reconsideration of the Metal Hoards Discovered in the Collective Buildings

Abstract

Excavations in a series of superimposed Iron Age II collective buildings located at Masafi (Fujairah, UAE) by the French Archaeological Mission in the UAE allowed the discovery of two deposits of copper-base metal items buried in two jars. Copper smelting played a major role in the economy and the society of the region and consistent evidence suggest that it also had a symbolic importance. A summary of the archaeometallurgical study of the items discovered at Masafi is presented here and the context of the two deposits is discussed, in order to reconstruct the nature of these two hoards and the function of the buildings.

Keywords

• Iron Age
• metallurgy
• UAE archaeology
• copper working