Archaeometallurgical study of bronze slags from the Yangqiaopan ancient city site in Northern Shaanxi, China

This paper prepared and analyzed a total of 15 slag samples collected from the Yanqiaopan ancient city site of the Han dynasty (the third century BC to the third century AD). According to the SEM–EDS results, these samples are bronze slags, and the lead isotopic results reveal that the ores used during smelting may be imported from Luanchuan and Xiaoqinling. Additionally, the isotopic studies on the metal resources used in bronze metallurgy in Northern Shaanxi changed from the Shang dynasty to the Han dynasty.