THE METALLURGY of the WILBURTON HOARDS

Summary: The results to date of a programme of research into the metallurgy of the Wilburton hoards of the British Late Bronze Age are described and some interpretations presented. Possible origins for the metal are discussed. the associated technical advances are discussed and an attempt is made to provide a realistic metallurgical context for the hoards. I would like to thank the British Museum, London; the National Museum of Wales, Cardiff; Cambridge Museum of Archaeology and Ethnography; Museum of London; Winchester City Museums; Somerset County Museum, Taunton; Dorset County Museum, Dorchester; Exeter City Museums; Plymouth City Museums; Royal Institution of Cornwall, Truro; Musee des Antiquites Nationales, St.-Germain-en-Laye and Museum fur Vor- und Fruhgeschichte, West Berlin for permission to take samples for analysis. A special acknowledgement must be made to Miss E. Owles and the Moyses Hall Museum, Bury St. Edmunds for immense assistance given in the study of the Isleham hoard. I would also like to thank Mr. D. Britton, Mr. R. Bradley and Mr. S. Needham for several useful discussions, Mr. A. McKnight for photography and Dr. M. Leese, British Museum Research Laboratory, for statistical calculations. Mr. A. McKnight for photography, Dr. M. Leese, British Museum Research Laboratory, for statistical calculations and Dr. N. H. Gale, Department of Geology and Mineralogy, University of Oxford for lead isotope analyses.