The Provenance of Copper Materials for Bronze Chariot-horse Unearthed from Yang’an Han Tomb in Qionglai, Sichuan Province revealed by the lead isotope analysis and trace elements analysis

Abstract

Abstract The high-grade bronze chariot-horse was unearthed in Yang’an Han tomb in Qionglai city, Sichuan Province, and its owner may be a vassal. In this study, metallographic microscopy, scanning electron microscope energy dispersive (SEM-EDS), multi-collector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (MC-ICP-MS), and inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometer (ICP-AES) were used to analyze samples from the bronze chariot-horse. The bronze chariot-horse samples were all Sn bronze, and the metallographic structure showed that the bronze chariot-horse was cast. The provenance of the copper material for the bronze chariot-horse was clearly different from that of the late Warring States period and other Western Han period bronzes excavated in the Sichuan area. According to historical documents and archaeological findings, the bronze chariot-horse unearthed in the Sichuan area may be related to the migration of the Liu Yue family, and the analysis of the lead isotope data indicated that the copper material probably came from the southeastern Hebei and western Shandong. This result provided an appropriate evidence for the relationship between the bronze chariot-horse and the family of Liu yue from the perspective of resource circulation.