New approaches to the classification, chronology and production of Iberian Bronze Age flat and flanged axes

A still ill-understood issue in Prehistoric metallurgy is the relatively late introduction of clay and stone moulds, which mark the beginning of the serial production of metals. Since the second half of the 4th and throughout the 3rd millennia, moulds were widely used to produce a specific type of hafted axe in in the Circum-Pontic region as well as in Eastern Europe. Some of them were placed in so-called metallurgist graves: male burials with other metalworking tools and, often, with exceptional grave goods. Moreover, the representation of these axes held by soldiers, officers, and rulers on stone stele and on wall decorations of Mesopotamian palaces reveals the use of these mould-made axes as specialised weapons and their central role in the making of the first armies and in early state formation.
Although an exceptional number of Bronze Age stone moulds for casting axeheads have been found during the last decades in the Iberian Peninsula, their matrices have not been analysed from a chrono-typological and economic perspective. The study of the relation of casting matrices with metal axes not only allows to refine the dating of both but also to identify the metallurgical centres and exchange networks. To address these issues, a database has been prepared including all axe moulds published so far (n = 87) and a significant number of metal flat and flanged axes (n = 367) from Early to Late Bronze Age Iberia (c. 2200–1250 BC). It includes materials from 270 archaeological sites from all Iberian peninsular regions as well as the Balearic Islands. Our first analysis has focused on axe morphometry in order to 1) obtain taxonomic types with statistical significance, 2) define the chronology of these taxa, and 3) reveal the relations existing between moulds, metal axes, and their raw materials (arsenical copper as opposed to tin bronzes). Major results can be summarised as follows:
• 12 taxonomic types of axes were determined, not all of which were produced using moulds.
• Close relations were established between some taxonomic types, spatial and temporal distributions, and chemical signatures.
• The spatial distribution of moulds suggests the development of clearly differentiated metal production centres in the Iberian Peninsula.
• The majority of moulds produced only two taxonomic axe types, both of which were related to El Argar, thereby reinforcing their interpretation as weapons.
• The presence of some of these axes and moulds outside the El Argar territory reveal the long-distance circulation and political/military interactions of El Argar with other regions.
In sum, the results of a novel multidimensional methodology will be presented, which allows us to gain a deeper understanding of the organisation and social value of metal axe production and circulation during the Bronze Age of South-Western Europe.