Metal vessels of Mesopotamia from the 4th-3rd millennia BC (production dynamics and the cultural context)

The paper presents result of the research of metalware from archaeological sites of the Bronze Age Mesopotamia dating to the late 4th-3rd millennia BC. The material is regarded to be an indicator of economic, cultural and social processes that took place in the Near East. The research builds on a dataset of 1980 metal vessels. The paper contains their statistical analysis based on a number of attributes. The methods employed include a formal morphological characteristics of the vessels, statistical analysis of their chronological distribution, distribution by types of archaeological sites and material they were shaped from. The author is particularly interested in the archaeological and cultural contexts of the finds. Metalware has been examined from the perspective of its social symbolism. The author suggests a reconstructed practice of using metal vessels in social rituals, first of all, the funerary rite. The occurrence of metal vessels in the elite complexes of Mesopotamia dating to the late 4th-3rd millennia BC reflects the processes associated with shaping of the civilization of the Near Eastern type and serves as one of its attributes. Its study offers an opportunity to understand the dynamics of emergence and development of complex/hierarchical societies in the Near East from the point of view of metal production importance and its role in social development.