Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Leaded Bronze:
Point 1: Cu, 81.31; Sn, 5.72; Pb, 12.27; Zn, 0.01; Fe, 0.08; Ni, 0.05; Ag, 0.07; Sb, 0.15; As, 0.26; Bi, 0.026; Co, 0.039; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Bronze:
Point 2: Cu, 85.63; Sn, 13.45; Pb, 0.24; Zn, 0.024; Fe, 0.05; Ni, 0.02; Ag, 0.17; Sb, 0.18; As, 0.24; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, less than 0.005; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
Point 3: Cu, 86.85; Sn, 12.44; Pb, 0.15; Zn, 0.027; Fe, 0.04; Ni, 0.02; Ag, 0.03; Sb, 0.14; As, 0.31; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, less than 0.005; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
J. Riederer
Comment: Curatorial has recorded a note that said: “Use old data for other sample analysis” but has no indication which sample is the old data.
Technical Observations: The patina is greenish brown with large patches of bright green and tannish brown. The patina of the interior is less corroded and shows hammer marks from fabrication. Large losses to the mid-section suggest the metal was thin, heavily worked, and therefore more prone to corrosion. A modern strip of copper was used to reinforce the weakened midsection.
The pitcher was fabricated by a combination of casting and then raising by hammering and annealing. The mouth shows a cast design in a relatively thick wall, with the neck and shoulder formed by hammering the metal down from below the mouth to the middle of the pitcher to form the upper half of the pitcher. The lower half was raised from a disc. Centering marks are still visible on the interior and exterior of the bottom. The interior of the lower half shows well-preserved facets from hammering. A ring around the outer portion of the bottom was raised from the central portion of the bottom, and engraved turn lines were done on the lathe. The upper and lower halves were possibly joined mechanically with square, alternating, tooth-like cuts (crenelation) hammered together on either side of the join. There is only a trace of this type of join visible; most of the join is opened up by a large area of loss. A crack near the bottom may indicate another join, but it may also be a result of the very thin metal in the turned and engraved line. The handle was cast. It is attached with modern pins—one rod at the top which does not go through the pitcher, and two threaded pins at the lower end of the handle—and may not be related to the body.
Carol Snow and Nina Vinogradskaya (submitted 2002)
