Copper, like many aspects of modern
civilisation, originated in the Middle East. The earliest known copper items,
including needles, hooks and jewellery, date to around 8800BC and were
discovered at Çayönü, a settlement around 50
miles from the temple site of Göbekli Tepe
and dating in its earliest form to around 10,000BC.
The workable properties of copper, known
as firestone in Broken Skies, were discovered by the Anunnaki and
its magical properties are a key part of the story.
The copper was found in natural seams
which could be worked directly, and was hammered into shape without heat. Later
came the use of malachite (copper ore) which was heated and smelted and could
be poured into moulds to create a variety of objects. The start of the Copper
Age or Chalcolithic Period is dated to around 6000BC in the Middle East, when
copper became widely used, and the technology rapidly spread across Europe and
the East. The mixing of copper and tin to make the far superior bronze soon
began to change the world beyond recognition.
Copper ore (malachite). Rob Lavinsky, Wikicommons,
The first appearance of metal objects,
entirely unprecedented in the ancient world, was likely greeted with wonder and
reverence for the people producing or owning them. Metal soon became a
statement of wealth and power, and then came a new social order based on a few
individuals, typically men, who controlled land, people and wealth. This was
reinforced by the greater possibilities of metal: swords, daggers, shields,
armour, and of course money. The vicious circle – wealth leads to danger and
greed and fear, so the wealthy amass more wealth and armies and slaughter their
rivals for fear of attack, while the poor grow poorer and become little more
than pawns – is one which still governs our world today.
This will be a theme in the next book of
the Ouroboros series.
Some of the Hittite-period jewellery and
ornaments, found in Turkey dating to c1500BC.
No comments:
Post a Comment