Non-ferrous metal of the burial grounds of the Chepetsk culture (Kuzminsky, Kushmansky I, Idnakarsky I)

The authors continue a series of publications devoted to the study of the composition of non-ferrous metal products of the Chepetsk archeological culture. The article presents the results of the X-ray fluorescence analysis of the finds from three burial grounds: Idnakarsky I, Kushmansky I and Kuzminsky. The authors identified the main groups of metal alloys of each of the burial grounds. The results were compared with the available data from the settlements of the Chepetsk culture. A wide distribution of copper-zinc alloy (brass) was recorded for the manufacture of various decorations and household items of the Chepetsk culture. The number of products from high-zinc brass is very high among analyzes. This fact proves the use of pure metal from billets in metalworking production. Analysis of the composition of metals in neighboring regions made it possible to suggest that the Chepetsk culture was included in the distribution zone of the use of brass, which included the north of European Russia, the modern territory of the Baltic states, and the Scandinavian countries. The steady trade and cultural contacts of the population of the Cheptsa basin with the western Finno-Ugrian peoples and Slavs during the Middle Ages manifested themselves not only in the exchange of items, but also in the borrowing of metal processing technologies. The authors suggest that the source of copper zinc-containing alloys in the Kama region at that time could be Old Rus. Thanks to trade, the large administrative center of Old Rus - Novgorod - imported large volumes of brass from the European mines. This is confirmed by written sources and analysis of non-ferrous metals products from the excavations of the city of Novgorod. The researchers doubt the hypothesis about the production of brass in the Perm Cis-Urals and the export of brass along the Kama River to the Volga Bulgaria. A promising task of further research is an in-depth study of the composition of non-ferrous metal products of the Chepetsk archeological culture. It is interesting to study the alloys of the previous Polomsk archaeological culture. This will help in clarifying the question of alternative ways of importing brass to the Kama region during the Middle Ages.