The composition of metal items from the early medieval Kurilovka hoard (the results of x-ray fluorescence analysis)

The Kurilovka hoard belongs to a group of Early Medieval hoards discovered in the Dnieper region. The chemical composition of the metal objects was investigated using X-ray fluorescence analysis. Totally 19 samples were analysed. The chemical composition of some objects was also investigated with application of optical-emission spectral analysis (9 samples). Samples for analysis were selected after the metals and alloys had been arranged in accordance with specially chosen parameters. There were 37 samples altogether, obtained using the two above-mentioned methods. The range duly obtained revealed that the majority of the samples could be classified as multi-component alloys (22 samples), triple brass (10 samples), easily fused alloys (3 samples), tin-lead bronze (1 sample) and lead bronze (1 sample). In the multi-component alloys from the Kurilovka hoard fairly high levels of zinc, tin and lead were recorded. Another group was identified with lower tin and lead contents, but with high zinc concentration. A significant ratio of the zinc-containing alloys in the sample indicates the possible direction from which metals and alloys may have been imported, namely from the Balkan region. In the Early Medieval period in this territory widely circulated zinc-containing alloys obtained as a result of fusion of bronzes and Roman brasses and also due to the intensification of mining ore sources exploited in the Roman period.