# Bronze Age copper supply in Mediterranean France: first results from lead isotope and chemical analyses of hoarded metalwork

Thibault Lachenal, Sandrine Baron, Cécile Le Carlier de Veslud, Gaëlle Meynieux, Charline Dallard, Xavier Gutherz, Florent Mazière

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## To cite this version:

Thibault Lachenal, Sandrine Baron, Cécile Le Carlier de Veslud, Gaëlle Meynieux, Charline Dallard, et al.. Bronze Age copper supply in Mediterranean France: first results from lead isotope and chemical analyses of hoarded metalwork. Journal of Archaeological Science, 2026, 185, pp.106432. 10.1016/j.jas.2025.106432. hal-05386745

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# Bronze Age copper supply in Mediterranean France: first results from lead isotope and chemical analyses of hoarded metalwork

Thibault Lachenal<sup>a,*</sup>,<sup>†</sup> Sandrine Baron<sup>b,1</sup>, Cécile Le Carlier de Veslud<sup>c</sup>, Gaëlle Meynieux<sup>d</sup>, Charline Dallard<sup>e</sup>, Xavier Gutherz<sup>a</sup>, Florent Mazière<sup>a</sup>

## ARTICLE INFO

Keywords:

Archaeometallurgy

Bronze age

Metal hoards

Southern France

Chemical analyses

Lead isotope analyses

Exchange networks

## ABSTRACT

Copper supply networks in southern France are analysed on the basis of a study of five hoards of metal objects dating from the end of the Early Bronze Age (c. 17th-16th BCE) to the end of the Late Bronze Age (c. 9th BCE). A total of 73 inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectroscopy elemental analyses were performed and 48 objects belonging to the different groups that could be identified from the elemental compositions were targeted for lead isotope analysis (multicollector-inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry). The results clearly show that the same source was used for the various objects in each hoard, but that copper from different origins was used depending on the period. This reveals evolving supply networks that can be linked to the cultural interactions observed during this period. Towards the end of the Early Bronze Age or the beginning of the Middle Bronze Age (c. 17th-16th BCE), axe-ingots were imported into southern France along the Rhone corridor. The origin of the copper from which they are made could potentially be the Vosges massif. On the other hand, one of the major contributions of this study is to have demonstrated the use of copper originating from the Southeastern Alps during a late phase of the Middle Bronze Age and up to the Late Bronze Age (c. 14th-11th BCE). A form of packaging for this Alpine copper was as pick-ingots, and it was probably in this form that it arrived in southern France. This network was interrupted around the 9th century BCE and the populations of southern France returned to the exploitation of local minerals (Cabrières-Péret district). This research highlights the link between trade networks and cultural dynamics, showing that the circulation of raw materials also helps strengthen relations between communities.

## 1. Introduction

During the Bronze Age, with the spread of alloy-based metallurgy, metal-trading networks became established throughout Europe. Several studies employing elemental composition and lead isotopic analyses of copper alloy objects, especially over the last ten years, have shown the scale of this phenomenon, which extended from Cyprus to the Nordic countries and from southern Spain to the Balkans (Ling et al., 2013, 2014, 2019, 2023; Pernicka et al., 2016; Melheim et al., 2018; Canovaro et al., 2019; Kmosek et al., 2020; Berger et al., 2022; Gavranović et al., 2022; Nowak et al., 2023; Bruyère et al., 2024). This interconnectivity

across the European continent has been compared to a phenomenon of pre-modern globalisation, for which the term ‘bronzization’ has been proposed (Vandkilde, 2016). The Languedoc region in the south of France occupied a key position within these networks, being situated at the intersection of the Mediterranean and continental worlds. The region lay at the crossroads of four of the five main “cultural complexes” (Brun, 1987) recognized in Western Europe: the Italian, North Alpine, Iberian, and Atlantic traditions (Kristiansen, 1998). Copper resources were also present, particularly in the south of the Massif Central. The area has also yielded some of the earliest evidence of metallurgical production in Western Europe, with mine workings and copper

<footnote><sup>a</sup>ASM, UMR5140, Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry, CNRS, MC, France</footnote>

<footnote><sup>b</sup>TRACES, UMR5608, Université de Toulouse Jean Jaurès, CNRS, France</footnote>

<footnote><sup>c</sup> CReAAH-Archéosciences, UMR, Université de Rennes, CNRS, 6566, France</footnote>

<footnote><sup>d</sup> LabEx ARCHIMEDE, Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry, France</footnote>

<footnote><sup>e</sup> Université de Montpellier Paul-Valéry, France</footnote>

<footnote>* Corresponding author.</footnote>

<footnote>E-mail address: thibault.lachenal@cnrs.fr (T. Lachenal).</footnote>

<footnote n="1">¹ Present address: IPREM, UMR5254, Université de Pau et des Pays de l'Adour, CNRS, France.</footnote>
<figure><img src="image_3.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 1.** Chronological correlation table between south-eastern France and western Switzerland during the Bronze Age. EBA: Early Bronze Age; MBA: Middle Bronze Age; LBA: Late Bronze Age (after Lachenal, 2022b).</figcaption></figure>

reduction workshops dating from the late 4th and 3rd millennia BCE (Ambert et al., 2002, 2005; Carozza et al., 1997; Tchépémissinoff et al., 2006; Maillé et al., 2019; Costa et al., 2021). While these Neolithic findings have been the subject of analytical research to characterize techniques and workflows, such studies were not done for the Bronze Age in the region. For later periods, research has focused on copper supply. Thus, the phenomenon of the so-called Launacian bronze hoards of the Early Iron Age (7th-6th century BCE) has benefited from research combining chemical and isotopic analyses with typological and cultural approaches. This multidisciplinary work has led to a historical reading of this phenomenon, placed within the framework of the trade and

commerce characterizing the Archaic Mediterranean (Guilaine et al., 2017, 2022; Aragón et al., 2022). For the Bronze Age of southern France, such studies, combining elemental composition and lead isotope analysis, have been very limited. In fact, only three daggers from an early Bronze age hoard and three others from the Pyrenees have been studied in this way (Vital et al., 2014; Guilaine and Cattin, 2015). Although some hypotheses on origins were formulated, they need to be compared with a more detailed reference framework to better characterize the origins and evolution of metal transport and trading. The aim of this article is to fill the existing knowledge gaps in order to provide a first diachronic assessment to Bronze Age copper supply networks in Mediterranean France. Were local resources exploited, or was metal from other sources of production preferred? Were cultural ties with other surrounding regions also reflected in the exchange of metal resources? To provide answers to these questions, we chose copper-alloy objects from well-contextualized hoards and subjected them to multi-elemental and lead isotope analyses.

## 2. The cultural context

In southern France, the Bronze Age developed between the 22nd and mid-8th centuries BCE. Chronotypological studies of metal and ceramic artefacts have identified several phases. Analysis of the associated radiocarbon dates has enabled them to be synchronized with Reinecke's chronology (Fig. 1; Lachenal, 2022b). The components of the material culture also reveals connections with surrounding regions, providing a first glimpse of the networks that succeeded one another during the Bronze Age (Lachenal, 2020). Thus, at the beginning of the Early Bronze Age (EBA 1: 2200-1950 BCE), the ceramic artefacts corresponding to the 'Camp de Laure style' developed from a local Bell Beaker tradition while incorporating forms from the repertoires of the Italian peninsula and the Mediterranean islands (Corsica, Sardinia). The following period (EBA 2-4: 1950-1600 BCE) was marked by stylistic influences from the Rhône region, that spread beyond the Alps to western Liguria. The Middle Bronze Age (MBA: 1600-1300 BCE) and early Late Bronze Age (LBA 1: 1300-1200 BCE) periods correspond to the spread of northern Italian ceramic styles (Mercurago-Monate, Viverone, Alba-Scamozzina, Alba Solero and S. Antonino di Perti). The typology of metal objects confirms these transalpine connections, and more generally with the Po plain, as does the appearance in southern France of a few cremation graves whose practices are similar to those observed in northern Italy. From the second stage of the Late Bronze Age (LBA 2: 1200-1050 BC), links with the Italian peninsula are much less marked in the material culture of southern France. Ceramic and metal artefacts, on the other hand, show connections with the western groups of the Urnfield culture, in particular the Rhine-Switzerland-eastern France style (RSFO) that developed north of the Alps and spread across much of continental France. Contacts with the Italian peninsula nevertheless remain perceptible through certain metal objects from Alpine production centres, as well as the importation of glass beads from the workshops of Frattesina in Veneto. Towards the end of the Bronze Age (LBA 3: 1050-800 BCE), a trend towards the regionalisation of ceramic production took hold. While links with northern Alpine production are still visible, local specificities emerged in Languedoc with the formation of the Mailhac 1 style, characterised by double-line decorations forming geometric, anthropomorphic and zoomorphic motifs. Metal production also reflects this form of regionalisation, although links with Atlantic and northern Alpine production are also visible. This period saw a stronger territorial hold, with the appearance of cremation necropoli that could contain several hundred tombs, and settlement sites occupying larger areas (Garcia, 2004).

Most of the metal objects known from Bronze Age southern France come from hoards. While the nature and interpretation of these contexts remain open to debate, there is general agreement that they result from polysemic actions, which could respond to economic as well as social and ritual needs (Radivojević et al., 2019). A typology of these hoards has been proposed for eastern France, with this being based on the
<figure><img src="image_4.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 2. Location of metal object hoards studied in southern France and nearby copper ores (ProMine database, Cassard et al., 2015) (GIS T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

<caption>**Table 1**</caption>

Table of the number of sampled objects per hoard, and the number and type of analyses carried out.

<table><thead><tr><td>Hoard</td><td>Chronology</td><td>Number of objects</td><td>Elemental composition</td><td>Lead isotopes analysis</td></tr></thead><tbody><tr><td>Montfrin</td><td>EBA 3-4/MBA 1 (1850-1500 BCE)</td><td>25</td><td>25</td><td>19</td></tr><tr><td>Barraca</td><td>LBA 2b-3a (1150-950 BCE)</td><td>42</td><td>25</td><td>15</td></tr><tr><td>La Motte</td><td>LBA 3b (950-800 BCE)</td><td>30</td><td>11</td><td>6</td></tr><tr><td>Puisserguier</td><td>LBA 2b-3a (1150-950 BCE)</td><td>6</td><td>5</td><td>3</td></tr><tr><td>Baume Bourbon</td><td>MBA 2-3 (1500-1300 BCE)</td><td>33</td><td>7</td><td>5</td></tr><tr><td>Total</td><td></td><td>136</td><td>73</td><td>48</td></tr></tbody></table>

frequencies of the functional categories of the objects represented. This highlighted various practices that evolved over time, in the direction of increasing complexity. In fact, during the Early and Middle Bronze Age, hoards generally contained complete objects belonging to only one or two types (daggers, axes, bracelets, pins), whereas during the Late Bronze Age, they could contain objects from a much wider variety of categories, which may have been deliberately broken. The number of objects also increased over time. This work shows that the composition of these hoards was rarely random; depending on the period and region, there was a selection of objects according to their type and state of preservation before hoarding (Lachenal and Piningre, 2021). These contexts therefore represent only a fraction of the metal objects used by the local populations.

### 3. Materials

To assess the evolution of copper supplies in Mediterranean France during the Bronze Age, five hoards were studied. These range from the late Early Bronze Age to the very end of the Late Bronze Age, between the 17th-16th centuries and 9th century BCE, and come from central and eastern Languedoc, in the present-day departments of Hérault and Gard (Fig. 2). These hoards were the focus of multidisciplinary studies by our team in order to produce a monographic publication for each of them. This research included 73 elemental composition analyses, the results of which guided the selection of 48 objects for further lead isotope analysis (LIA: Table 1). We sought to select objects belonging to the different groups that could be identified from the elemental compositions.

The discovery conditions and composition of each hoard are described in the appendix (Supplementary Material 1). The first hoard, found at Romanès in Montfrin (Gard), consists of 25 axe-ingots (Fig. 3) belonging to the Théziers-type defined by Chardenoux and Courtois (1979). Although the flanged axe shapes adopted by these ingots originated in the Early Bronze Age (EBA), a Middle Bronze Age (MBA) date has also been suggested by their association with other objects at Vic-de-Chassenay and Granges-sous-Grignon in the Côte-d'Or (Nicolardot and Verger, 1998; Delrieu et al., 2015; Gabillot, 2021). At Romanès, 14 different moulds were used to produce between one and four axe-ingots. They were crudely cast, as evidenced by their irregular surfaces and the presence of feeders and burrs at the junction of the mould parts. These irregularities, as well as evidence of incomplete castings, suggest that these are more axe-shaped ingots than objects in the process of being made.
<figure><img src="image_5.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 3. Examples of axe-ingots from the Romanès hoard at Montfrin (DAO G. Meynieux).</figcaption></figure>

The Baume Bourbon hoard from Cabrières<fnref n="2" /> (Gard) consists of 35

ring-shaped ornaments dating from the end of the Middle Bronze Age (Fig. 4). For the middle stage of the Late Bronze Age (LBA 2b-3a), two hoards were analysed. The Barraca site at Saint-Victor-la-Coste (Gard) provided 42 objects of varying typology and function, many of which had been deliberately broken (Fig. 5). The same is true of the contemporary hoard at Puisserguier (Hérault), which provides just six artefacts (Fig. 6). Finally, eleven objects dated to the 9th century BCE (LBA 3b)

<footnote n="2">² This commune in the Gard département shares its name with another commune in the Hérault département, known for the presence of copper mines and reduction workshops used since the end of the Neolithic. But they are two different localities, some one hundred kilometres apart.</footnote>
<figure><img src="image_6.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 4. Sampled metal objects from the Baume Bourbon hoard at Cabrières (DAO C. Dallard).</figcaption></figure>

coming from metal deposits around the submerged settlement of La Motte in Agde (Hérault) were also analysed (Fig. 7).

## 4. Methods

The 73 metal samples were taken using high-quality 1-mm-diameter HSS (high speed steel) drill bits. After removing the initial corroded layer, drilling was continued to sample around 40 mg of metal. The samples were weighed using a precision balance sensitive to 0.1 mg, and then sorted using a binocular magnifier to select uncorroded metal. The composition of major and minor elements (Cu, Pb, Sn, Ag, As, Bi, Co, Fe, Ni, Sb, Zn) in the samples was obtained at the Archéosciences laboratory of Rennes (CNRS) by inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry (ICP-OES; Ultrace 138, Horiba). The metal chips were dissolved in 4 ml of concentrated aqua regia (nitric acid trihydrochloride), then 10 ml of 40 % aqua regia was added, and finally 6 ml of ultrapure water, to reach a concentration of 2 g.L⁻¹. Knowledge of the concentration enabled us to perform a calibration range from 0 to 2000 ppm. The uncertainties were 1.6 % for tin and lead, and 2.2 % for copper and all trace elements. Three analysis sessions were necessary to analyse the entire corpus. International standard of known composition (B207) was analysed at the same time as the samples, to check that there was no machine drift during the analysis sessions and that the results obtained in each session were consistent (Supplementary Material 2).

Making reference to the results from the whole elemental analysis of the alloy materials, 48 objects were selected for measurement of their Pb isotope ratios. These aliquots were sent to the SARM laboratory, a National Service of CNRS (https://sarm.cnrs.fr). After digestion and evaporation, each residue was taken back in bromidic acid (HBr) solution and loaded onto anionic resin (AG1X8) to separate Pb from the sample matrix (Manhes et al., 1980). Samples were analysed using MC-ICP-MS equipment (Neptune+ from ThermoFisher). NIST SRM 981 and NIST 997 Tl reference materials (ratio 1/10) were used to correct the instrumental mass bias (White et al., 2000). The values used for both reference materials were taken from Thirlwall (2002). The total procedural blank was negligible across the entire session. The NIST-SRM 981 Pb precision and the accuracy of all the reported isotopic ratios are better than 250 ppm (2SD). The results are reported in Supplementary Material 3.

## 5. Results and discussion

The lead isotope analyses from the five archaeological hoards display

wide signatures ranging from approximately 17.85 to 18.85, 38.10 to 38.90, and 15.58 to 15.68 for ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, and ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb, respectively (Fig. 8). Most of the Pb signatures of ores from Europe and the surrounding Mediterranean area are within these isotopic ranges. Nevertheless, each hoard is characterized by a coherent and relatively homogeneous signature. Although some sites have similar or partly similar lead isotope signatures, the Romanès hoard stands out as being notably different from the others. Isotopic representations normalised to the ²⁰⁴Pb ratio highlight two potential sources: the first represented by the Barraca, Puisserguier, and Baume Bourbon hoards, and the second by the Romanès hoard. However, the La Motte hoard has a Pb signature that lies between those of these two sources. The Pb model ages (T Mod), as well as the ²³⁸U/²⁰⁴Pb (μ) and ²³²Th/²³⁸U (κ) ratios, were calculated according to the method reported by Albarède et al. (2020), which enabled us to highlight the geodynamic areas that hosted the copper mines that produced the metal of the currently studied hoards.

In this analysis, the Pb signatures of materials from the Romanès hoard are characterized by younger ages corresponding to ores from the Alpine orogeny (a mean value of 53 ± 14 Ma). The Romanès hoard is the most homogenous. The objects from La Motte in Agde are characterized by isotopic values that suggest ages between 210 and 340 Ma, which links them to the Variscan/Hercynian orogeny. The other three hoards (Baume Bourbon, Barraca, and Puisserguier) have calculated ages ranging from 339 to 636 Ma.

These differences may correspond to several copper ore supply zones that evolved over time. The oldest hoard (Romanès) and the most recent (La Motte) stand out from the others, while the two hoards belonging to the same chronological phase (Barraca and Puisserguier) have similar values. We have therefore chosen to present and discuss the results according to these groupings. To investigate the potential origins of the metal used, we have compared the results of isotopic and elemental analyses with other published data from Europe. Priority is given to mining areas where there is evidence of contemporary mining at the hoards, but our approach is also guided by the typology and geographical distribution of the ingots present in these hoards. The aim was to determine whether the distribution of these ingots could indicate the transport of metal from the same district in a standardised form.

### 5.1. Between early and Middle Bronze Age: the Romanès hoard

#### 5.1.1. Elemental composition

The compositions of the Romanès axes were found to be very low in
<figure><img src="image_7.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 5. Sampled metal objects from the Barraca hoard at Saint-Victor-la-Coste (DAO T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

tin (0.42 %-2.82 % Sn), which supports the idea that these rough-cast objects, with their many irregularities, were not functional but correspond to ingots (Supplementary Material 2). Their lead content is very low (~500 ppm). As far as trace elements are concerned, silver (Ag) and antimony (Sb) are also present at low levels (<350 ppm) that vary little. However, As, Co, Ni, and Fe contents are higher and show very wide variations. Thus As levels vary from 684 to 4245 ppm, Co from 84 to 3210 ppm, Fe from 68 to 30972 ppm and Ni from 188 to 8288 ppm. In general, a higher iron content is associated with a higher cobalt content.

The content of certain trace elements makes it possible to differentiate three groups in a principal component analysis (PCA) (Fig. 9). Group R1 (for Romanès 1) is characterized by a very high Co content and high levels of Ni, Fe, and even As. Group R2 includes objects with a high Co content, a very high Fe content, a slightly high As content, and a low

Ni content. Finally, the last group, R3, contains the other axe-ingots in the hoard, which have a slightly high As content, low Co and Ni content, and a slightly rich to low Fe content. Some objects fall between two groups, showing that the three groups are not necessarily so independent of each other.

For all groups excluding axe-ingot Ia, tin shows a negative correlation with copper (Figs. 10 and Fig. 11). Although its content is low, it could have been intentionally added. But such low Sn values could also result from repeated recasting or recycling processes, during which tin is preferentially lost through oxidation and volatilization. In groups R2 and R3 copper shows no positive correlation with the other chemical elements, suggesting that most of the copper in these axes contributed very little in the way of impurities. This suggest that it may have been obtained from the smelting of carbonate copper ores such as malachite
<figure><img src="image_8.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 6. Objects from the Puisserguier hoard (DAO T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_9.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 7. Objects studied from the site of La Motte at Agde (DAO T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

(Cu₂CO₃(OH)₂), which are known to yield relatively pure copper (Tylecote, 1987: 92). In all groups lead shows positive correlations with Ag, As, Sb and Zn, suggesting that these five chemical elements are present in the same mineral phase. The lead could therefore be derived

from galena (PbS), a sulfide mineral that often coexists with Ag, As, Sb, and Zn bearing minerals such as sphalerite and tetrahedrite.

A comparison of these results with the data concerning other axe- ingots of the same type discovered in France is instructive. Among the
<figure><img src="image_10.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 8. Lead isotope diagrams for copper alloy objects from the studied hoards in southern France (graph: Sandrine Baron and Thibault Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

seven other hoards recorded (Fig. 12), elemental analyses have been published for the axe-ingots from the Granges-sous-Grignon and Vic-de-Chassenay in Burgundy (Gabillot, 2021). The values obtained are very close, and in the PCA the objects group together with those of group R3 at Romanès (Fig. 9). Only three axe-ingots from Vic-de-Chassenay stand out because of their higher Co, Fe, Ni, or As content, which makes them closer to the R1 or R2 groups at Romanès. Therefore, the very close similarity of the results of the elemental analyses makes it possible to hypothesise that metal from the same sources was used to make the axe-ingots of this type found in the different hoards.

### 5.1.2. Lead isotopes

The other hoards containing Théziers-type axe-ingots similar to those at Romanès are located in the axis of the Rhône valley (Fig. 12). It is therefore likely that the metal used to produce these ingots came from a mining district located close to this geographical area. The morphology of these ingots also seems to resemble the flanged axes corresponding to the Salez, Neyruz, Riquewih, or Grisheim types, which are mainly found north of the Alps and dated from the Early Bronze Age (Abels, 1972; Michler, 2013). These similarities have also been

confirmed by morphometric analysis (Wilczek et al., 2015). Using the discriminant analysis based on Gaussian finite mixture modelling, most of Théziers-type axe-ingots from the various hoards along the Rhone valley fall into a morphometric group that also includes functional axes of the Salez and Neyruz types. The highest density of objects in this group is found to the north-west of the Alps (Wilczek et al., 2015: group 3). Three-dimensional morphometric analyses of axe-ingots of this type from the Loyettes, Granges-sous-Grignon, and Vic-de-Chassenay hoards also show that individuals from different hoards could have been made using the same mould (Gabillot, 2021). This reinforces the hypothesis that axe-ingots from the same workshop were in circulation (Nicolardot and Verger, 1998).

The results of the lead isotope analyses obtained from the Romanès axes were therefore compared with data available from nearby locations. According to the age models obtained (Fig. 8), we can exclude the Hercynian formations of the southern Massif Central. However, two hypotheses are nevertheless worth testing: the western Alps and north-eastern France.

#### 5.1.2.1. *The alpine hypothesis.* In the western Alps, mining activities are
<figure><img src="image_11.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 9. Principal component analysis of the elemental compositions of axe-ingots from Romanès, compared with those from Granges-sous-Grignon and Vic-de-Chassenay. Highlighting of the main groups identified at Romanès (graph: T. Lachenal). The PCA data are available in the supplementary materials.</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_12.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 10. Binary diagrams of the main trace element values of Romanès axe-ingots (graph: C. Le Carlier de Veslud and T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

documented for the end of the Neolithic and during the Early Bronze
Age, as at Saint-Véran (Barge, 2003; Bourgarit et al., 2010), in the
Mercantour-Argentera massif (Bussone et al., 2019), and in l'Oisans in

Isère (Moulin et al., 2019). For the last two, lead isotopic analyses are
still unpublished. But data for the western Alps and Saint-Véran are
available (Artioli et al., 2009; Giunti, 2011; Gabillot and Quentin,
<figure><img src="image_13.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 11.** Correlation matrix of the main trace element values of Romanès axe-ingots. The p values < 0.05 are boxed in grey (graph: T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

2023), and these can be compared with those of Romanès (Fig. 13). In this comparison, the $^{207}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb versus $^{206}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb diagram does not show any mixing line. Moreover, there is no clear geochemical link between the signatures of the Romanès axe-ingots and the Alpine ores, suggesting that there is no genetic link between these data sets.

The model ages calculated from Alpine ores formed at the time of the Alpine orogeny (~65Ma) are paradoxical. Indeed, with the exception of Grand Paradis and a few isolated specimens, the ores all have older model ages, i.e. Hercynian (~400–250 Ma). In terms of the model ages calculated using the isotope ratios measured on the Romanès axe-ingots (41.3 ± 37 Ma), only the ores from the Grand Paradis sector (77.7 ± 15.5 Ma) could be a potential Alpine source (although there is currently no archaeological data concerning former mining operations in this sector). The other sectors show older model ages, i.e. 334.6 ± 151.6 Ma for Saint Véran (this calculated age is debatable because two impending ages, one of which is very high, were removed when calculating this average value), 191.0 Ma for the Salbertrand ore, and 166.7 ± 49.2 Ma for Viafiorcia (Fig. 13). These ‘Hercynian’ model ages can be explained by the significant amplitude of the Alpine orogeny, which produced significant remobilization of the continental crust likely to contain older magmatic sources: the μ and κ parameters are therefore higher, i.e. > 9.8 and > 3.9 (Blichert-Toft et al., 2016). The Romanès’ μ and κ parameters are of the order of 9.54 ± 0.04 and 3.80 ± 0.02 respectively, and do not

therefore seem compatible. These values, particularly those for the μ parameter, are characteristic of source deposits found mainly in massifs located in the upper half of Europe. In France, this means the north-east quarter of the country, with the Beaujolais, Morvan, and Vosges massifs, and part of Brittany (Huston and Champion, 2023). With regard to the distribution of Théziers-type ingots, the geographical area of Brittany is effectively excluded from our discussion because no axe of this type has yet been discovered there.

5.1.2.2. *The Beaujolais, Morvan, and Vosges massifs hypothesis.* Comparisons of the Romanès Pb signatures with those of ores from the north-east quarter of France, i.e. the Beaujolais, Morvan, and Vosges massifs (Marcoux, 1987), highlight this geographical area as a potential source. An important variation in the $^{207}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb ratio and (on a small scale) (Marcoux, 1987) a mixing line formed by certain ores (mainly from the Vosges massif) and the Romanès axe-ingots is visible on the $^{207}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb versus $^{206}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb diagram (Fig. 13). In the diagram reporting the $^{208}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb versus $^{206}$Pb/$^{204}$Pb ratios, these last are much more coherent, with the Romanes Pb signatures and those of many other local ores almost all aligning on a mixing line (Fig. 13).

The calculated model ages are very heterogeneous, i.e. 117.2 ± 161.4 Ma for the Morvan ores, and 160.4 ± 212.8 Ma for the Vosges ores. This heterogeneity of the lead isotope ratios and calculated model
<figure><img src="image_14.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 12.** Distribution of Théziers-type axe-ingots hoards according to the number of objects present and indications of nearby copper resources (ProMine database, Cassard et al., 2015). 1: En Long Genièvre, Vic-de-Chassenay (Côte-d'Or); 2: Granges-sous-Grignon, Grignon (Côte-d'Or); 3: Loyettes (Ain); 4: Ternay (Rhône); 5: Romanès, Montfrin (Gard); 6: Massay, Théziers (Gard); 7: Mas d'Andos, Villeneuve-les-Maguelonne (Hérault); 8: Etang de Mialot, Beaulieu (Cantal). (SIG T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

ages of the ores from these two regions, which are nevertheless very close to each other, can be explained by the occurrence of several phases of mineralization during the Hercynian orogeny (~330 Ma) but also by the remobilization of these pre-existing ore resources during the Neogene period (<25 Ma) (Marcoux, 1987). The model ages for the Beaujolais area are less heterogeneous at 335.6 ± 86.9 Ma (Hercynian-type age). The model ages for Romanès (41.3 ± 37 Ma) are much more within the wide calculated ages of certain Morvan ores and numerous Vosges ones, but do not seem to correspond with those of the Beaujolais area (Fig. 13).

The μ and κ parameters of the ores mirror the complex geological history, with heterogenous values for the Vosges (μ = 9.67 ± 0.15 and κ = 3.87 ± 0.11) and Beaujolais (μ = 9.67 ± 0.16 and κ = 4.00 ± 0.21). In contrast, the μ and κ parameters are much more homogeneous for the Morvan massif (9.78 ± 0.05 and 3.87 ± 0.08, respectively) (Fig. 13). In light of the calculated model ages, the Beaujolais area does not appear to bear consideration as a potential source, unlike the Vosges and Morvan massifs (Fig. 13). The sample closest to the majority of the results obtained for Romanès axe-ingots is a single measurement taken from the Aurora mine in Moosch (Alsace, Vosges), where copper and silver-lead ores were mined since at least the 16th century (Sifferlen, 1908). Although there is as yet no formal record of Bronze Age mining in Moosch, macrolithic miners' tools attributed to the Bronze Age were unearthed in a channel close to the surface of the Grande Montagne mine at Haut-du-Them-Château-Lambert, also located in the southern Vosges (Morin et al., 2019). In addition, a study of a core sample from the Rossely peat bog, still in the southern Vosges area, showed geochemical anomalies with an excessive Pb flux recorded between 2000 and 1500

BCE, which could indicate the presence of mining activity nearby (Forel et al., 2010). The morphology of the axe-ingots is also compatible with a provenance from this sector. We can therefore hypothesise that the objects in the Romanès hoard were ingots destined for the transport of copper from the Vosges region, which was mainly transported along the Rhone. This hypothesis will of course need to be examined in the light of the results of the lead isotope analysis of other hoards of the same type. Setting up a reference system for copper ores from the Vosges would also be extremely useful for verifying their origin.

5.1.2.3. *A Mediterranean origin?*. The lead isotope data of the Romanès axe-ingots are also compatible with those obtained for ores from Cyprus (Gale, 1999; Stos-Gale et al., 1995, 1997). The same applies to numerous analyses carried out on oxhide ingots, for which a predominantly Cypriot origin has been proposed (Gale and Stos-Gale, 1986; Stos-Gale et al., 1997; Gale, 1999, 2011; Artioli et al., 2020). In most cases, these are data obtained several years ago, but we can see that most of the analyses are compatible with the Romanès axes (Fig. 14). The problem is that type of axe-ingot is not known in Cyprus. Oxhide ingots carrying Cypriot copper may have reached the shores of Mediterranean France, as shown by the example discovered at sea off Les Aresquiers, between Carnon and Frontignan (Domergue and Rico, 2002; Lo Schiavo, 2013). However, as both are semi-finished product, it is unlikely that oxhide ingots were remelted to produce other ingots reproducing the locally known axe shapes. Moreover, analyses of the elemental composition of oxhide ingots show that they have very low tin content (<40 ppm) and also a lower content of trace elements (particularly Sb, Ag, Fe and Zn) than present in the axe-ingots from the Romanès hoard, indicating the use of
<figure><img src="image_15.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 13. Lead isotope diagrams for Romanès axe-ingots compared with values for copper ores from the western Alps and lead ores from eastern France (for references, see text) (graph: Sandrine Baron and Thibault Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

different ores (Hauptmann et al., 2002; Domergue and Rico, 2002; Begemann et al., 2001; Athanassov et al., 2020).

## 5.2. From the Middle Bronze Age to the Late Bronze Age: the hoards from Baume Bourbon, Barraca, and Puisserguier

### 5.2.1. Elemental composition

Analyses carried out on the Baume Bourbon bracelets, attributed to the Middle Bronze Age 2–3, show that this assemblage is homogeneous in composition, despite variations in the content of certain elements (Supplementary Material 2). The objects are made from a bronze with a tin content ranging from 7.35 % to 12.16 %. Lead is omnipresent in low concentrations, but can still exceed 1 % (from 0.29 % to 1.16 %). As far

as trace elements are concerned, Ag has a fairly high content of 1217–2190 ppm, As has a slightly high content of 963–1706 ppm, and Fe, Ni, and Sb have low contents of 537–3571 ppm, 663–925 ppm, and 978–1993 ppm, respectively. With the exception of object CBB2, we can see that tin is negatively correlated with copper, and also with lead, whereas lead is positively correlated with copper (Fig. 15; Fig. 16). This implies that tin was added to a metal alloy in which copper and lead were already associated. As far as trace elements are concerned, it appears that Cu shows slight positive correlations with Zn and to a lesser extent with Fe. The other elements, such as Ag, Co, Bi and Sb seem to be correlated with each other, but not with those mentioned above, nor with copper, tin or lead.

The results obtained for objects from the Barraca hoard, attributed to
<figure><img src="image_16.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 14. Lead isotope diagrams for Romanès axe-lingots compared with values for Cyprus ores (OXALID) and oxhide ingots (for references, see text) (graph: Thi-bault Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_17.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 15. Binary diagrams of the main trace element values of the Baume Bourbon bracelets (graph: C. Le Carlier de Veslud and T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

the Late Bronze Age 2b-3a, show significant variations in the content of some chemical elements (Supplementary Material 2). As far as alloying elements are concerned, lead and tin are systematically present, at up to 1.3 % and 12.4 %, respectively. Ag and Sb show very high variations and very high concentrations overall, ranging from 1073 to 9556 ppm and 283–17026 ppm, respectively. As and Ni also show significant variations with high values, ranging from 600 to 11411 ppm and 232–7228 ppm,

respectively. The Co content varies from a low level of 68 ppm to values that can be considered high at 673 ppm. The Fe content is considered to be fairly low overall, ranging from 286 to 17708 ppm. Finally, it should also be noted that the Zn content can be very high, ranging from 603 to 9722 ppm. These variations are also found in objects from the Puisser-guier hoard attributed to the same period. With regard to alloying elements, lead is either virtually absent at 0.04 % or present at up to 3.09
<figure><img src="image_18.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 16.** Correlation matrix of the main trace element values of the Baume Bourbon bracelets. The p values < 0.05 are boxed in grey (graph: T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_19.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 17.** Principal component analysis of the elemental compositions of metal objects from the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards. Highlighting of the main groups identified (graph: T. Lachenal). The PCA data are available in the supplementary material.</figcaption></figure>

>. Tin is consistently present at between 7.48 % and 10.55 %. Ag and Sb show very wide variations and very high concentrations overall, ranging from 1971 to 10930 ppm and 3372–20633 ppm respectively. As and Ni also show significant variations, but to a lesser extent than the previous elements, while still exhibiting high values, ranging from 3226 to 6470 ppm and 623–8377 ppm, respectively. The Co content varies from a low level of 38 ppm to values that can be considered quite high at 270 ppm. The Fe content is considered low, ranging from 107 to 420 ppm.

The identification of composition groups was based primarily on Sb, Ag, and As content, followed by Fe content. This is evident from the principal component analysis carried out on the trace elements (Fig. 17). Ni and Zn also vary greatly, but without any relationship with the levels of the other elements, or with each other. A first group (A), common to both hoards, includes objects with very high levels of Sb, Ag, and As. The second group (B) consists of objects with only a high content of Sb, Ag, and As. The third group (C) contains objects with lower levels of all trace
<figure><img src="image_20.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 18.** Binary diagrams of the main trace element values of the metal objects from the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards (graph: C. Le Carlier de Veslud and T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

elements, and finally, a fourth group (D) is characterised by objects with a low content of all elements, but with very high Fe content. The objects in this last group all come from the Barraca hoard, with four pick-ingots (SVB7, SVB8, SVB9, SVB10) and one cast waste (SVB6).

With regard to the nature of the materials used in each group, it is
rather difficult to give an opinion for group C, although a correlation can
be seen between Sb and As and to a lesser extent between Sb and Pb
(Figs. 18 and Fig. 19). Thus, these elements would come with the lead. In
fact, this group has the highest average lead content. The As, Ni, and Sb
contents, which are lower than in groups A and B, may indicate the use
of a sulphide ore, where the main copper carrier is not a fahlore-type
grey copper, but rather a chalcopyrite-type sulphide. Group D differs
from the previous group only in its high iron content (Fig. 17). It could
be that these two groups C and D are part of a single whole. It is indeed
possible that the higher iron content in group D is due to the presence of
slag inclusions in the objects, in fact they are mainly ingots. Group A has
the highest levels of Ag, As, and Sb. These very high contents seem to
indicate the use of fahlore-type grey copper as ore. Finally, group B
seems to be systematically positioned between group A and groups C and
D (Figs. 17 and 18). It is therefore possible that this group is made up of
alloys produced by mixing metals from group A with those from group C
and D.

5.2.2. *Lead isotopes*

The results of the lead isotope analyses do not allow us to distinguish between the different groups previously established using the elemental compositions of the artefacts from Barraca and Puisserguier (Fig. 20). In the ²⁰⁸Pb/²⁰⁴Pb versus ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb diagram, the isotope ratios of the Barracca, Baume Bourbon, and Puisserguier materials line up on the same mixing line, suggesting a common origin. This line is less clear for the ²⁰⁷Pb/²⁰⁴Pb versus ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁴Pb diagram. The bracelets from Baume Bourbon have similar isotope ratios and are closer to the group B objects from Barraca and Puisserguier (Fig. 17). Nevertheless, the calculated model ages of the materials from these three hoards are relatively consistent, i.e. T mod of 464 ± 124 Ma, μ of 9.87 ± 0.10, and κ of 4.05 ± 0.06 for Barraca; T mod of 497 ± 54 Ma, μ of 9.92 ± 0.00, and κ of 4.07 ± 0.02 for Baume Bourbon; and T mod of 386 ± 57 Ma, μ of 9.90 ± 0.04, and κ of 4.02 ± 0.04 for Puisserguier. Thus, in contrast to the Romanès hoard, for which an Alpine origin was ruled out, the calculated model ages do suggest a source of Alpine origin if we refer to European databases (Blichert-Toft et al., 2016; Huston and Champion, 2023), and potentially with the same mining sector hosting several types of poly-metallic mineralisations in which copper is dominant. Mixing during the smelting of semi-finished copper products or bronze objects is possible in the vicinity of exploited mines. By comparing these results with the
<figure><img src="image_21.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 19.** Correlation matrix of the main trace element values of the metal objects from the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards. The p values < 0.05 are boxed in grey (graph: T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

different European databases, the best isotopic matches can be observed with ore from the Trentino-Alto Adige region in the Southeastern Alps (Artioli et al., 2016). Fig. 20 compares the isotopic data from this sector, the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards, Baume Bourbon, and groups A to D. While there is no overlap with data from the Carnic Alps (Monte Avanza, Casera Pramosio, Comeglians), there are very good matches with ores from both the volcanogenic massive sulphides of Valsugana (VMS) and the South Alpine units of Alto Adige, Trentino, and Veneto (AATV). The former are known to have yielded chalcopyrite, sometimes associated with other minerals, and which was mined in prehistoric times, at least at Vetriolo (Artioli et al., 2016). The second group are sulphide-rich polymetallic ores containing Pb, Zn, Cu, and variable quantities of Ag, Sb, Co, Bi, and As (Artioli et al., 2016). The compositions of these different types of ore may therefore be compatible with the composition of metal objects from the south of France.

The results of lead isotope analyses clearly show that the bronze objects from the Baume Bourbon, Barraca and Puisserguier hoards were made from these ores from the Southeastern Alps. This sector, where smelting site exploited local minerals since the end of the Neolithic period, saw a resumption of mining in the Middle Bronze Age, around the 16th–15th centuries BCE. Extractive activity was particularly important in the Late Bronze Age and seems to have fallen into disuse in the 9th century BCE (Artioli et al., 2015; Pearce et al., 2019, 2021). The chronology of the mining is therefore compatible with the dating of the objects from the south of France, which may have been made using ore

from the Southeastern Alps. This area was a major centre for the diffusion of copper, not only in Italy, but also in part of protohistoric Europe (Artioli et al., 2020). As early as the Middle Bronze Age, around 1500 BCE, the mines of the Southeastern Alps were considered to be one of the main suppliers of metal to northern Europe (Sweden, Denmark), with this being the case until around 900 BCE (Melheim et al., 2018; Ling et al., 2019). Copper from the Southeastern Alps was also used in the western and central Balkans, as early as 1700 BCE, before becoming the main source identified between the 14th and 9th centuries BCE (Mehofer et al., 2021; Gavranović et al., 2022). Objects made from these minerals have also been found as far away as Mycenaean Greece (Jung and Mehofer, 2013). During the Late Bronze Age, the Frattesina site of Fratta Polesine in Veneto (Italy), take part of this vast exchange network. It was a centre of craft production at the heart of international exchanges between Europe and the Mediterranean, and which was active from the 12th to the 9th century BCE (Bietti Sestieri et al., 2015; Pearce et al., 2019). The fragments of objects unearthed in the Barraca hoard are also well represented in Frattesina. These objects are pick-ingots containing copper, which according to the analyses carried out to date, come mainly from the Southeastern Alps (Jung et al., 2020; Villa and Giardino, 2019; Pearce et al., 2019). Fig. 21 compares the lead isotope ratios of artefacts from the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards with those published for Frattesina (Jung et al., 2020; Villa and Giardino, 2019). A remarkable mixing line is formed by the isotopic signatures of the Barraca, Puisserguier, and Frattesina materials, suggesting a common origin
<figure><img src="image_22.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 20.** Lead isotope diagrams for metal objects from the Baume Bourbon, Barraca and Puisserguier hoards compared with values for copper ores from the Southeastern Alps (for references, see text) (graph: Thibault Lachenal and Sandrine Baron).</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_23.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 21.** Lead isotope diagrams for metal objects from the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards compared with values for copper ores from the south-eastern Alps and copper alloy objects from the Frattesina site (for references, see text) (graph: Thibault Lachenal and Sandrine Baron).</figcaption></figure>
<figure><img src="image_24.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 22.** Distribution of pick-ingots and indications of nearby copper resources (ProMine database, Cassard et al., 2015). 1 Caix (France); 2. Larnaud (France); 3. Lagnieu (France); 4. Goncelin (France); 5. Albertville (France); 6. Thénésol (France); 7. Aussois (France); 8. Barraca in Saint-Victor-la-Coste (France); 9. Saint-Sulpice (France); 10. Beuron (Germany); 11. Pfeffingen (Germany); 12. Filisur (Switzerland); 13. Schiers (Switzerland); 14. Frattesina (Italy); 15. Montagnana (Italy); 16. Villamarzana Campagna Michela (Italy); 17. Fra Manciano e Samprugnano (Italy); 18. Piano di Tallone (Italy); 19. Marsia (Italy); 20. Chiuse del Frontone (Italy); 21. Poggio Berni (Italy); 22. Galleriano (Italy); 23. Porpetto (Italy); 24. Redipuglia (Italy); 25. Veliki Otok (Slovenia); 26. Nimis (Italy); 27. Madriolo (Italy); 28. Purgessimo (Italy); 29. Kanalski Vrh I and II (Slovenia); 30. Mehrersdorf (Austria); 31. Dragomelj (Slovenia); 32. Miljana (Croatia); 33. Ivanec Bistranski (Croatia); 34. Kapelna (Croatia); 35. Mosonszentpéter (Hungary); 36. Uzsabánya (Hungary). (GIS: G. Meynieux and T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

for all of them, and highlighting their Southeastern alpine origin. Furthermore, the lead isotopic signatures of most of the other Frattesina ingots are located at both ends of the mixing line, thus representing the two geochemical end-members of the mineral sources mobilised. The least radiogenic pole could correspond to the Valsugana VMS ores, and the most radiogenic to the South Alpine AATV formations. This raises the question of whether the objects were produced by mixing ingots from several production centres. Indeed, this situation is reminiscent of the Eastern Alps, where plano-convex ingots produced from Schwaz-Brixlegg fahlore and Mitterberg chalcopyrite ores were likely mixed by Late Bronze Age metallurgists to make finished objects (Radivojević et al., 2019, Fig. 11). It should be added that the pick-ingots analysed at Frattesina are, like those at Barraca, most often alloyed with tin (Pearce et al., 2019). Some of these ingots also share a fairly high iron content (Jung et al., 2020, Table 1). This reinforces the hypothesis that the copper used to make the objects in the Barraca and Puisserguier hoards was imported from the Southeastern Alps in the form of pick-ingots. The map of the distribution of these objects shows a wide-spread distribution including northern Italy up to the centre of the peninsula, the Danube Valley, and north-west and south-west France (Fig. 22). These ingots were probably used at the receiving sites to produce finished objects according to local taste and style. This is demonstrated by the presence in the Barraca hoard of manufacturing waste whose elemental and lead isotopic compositions are close to those of both the ingots and the functional objects (Fig. 5 n° 6, 12, s8).

## 5.3. In the twilight of the Bronze Age: objects from La Motte

### 5.3.1. Elemental composition

Analyses carried out on objects from the bronze deposits at the La Motte site in Agde, dated to the Late Bronze Age 3b (9th-8th century

BCE), show variations in the content of certain elements, although there is no evidence to support consideration of several different chemical signatures (Supplementary Material 2). Among the alloying elements, lead ranges from a very low value of 0.04 % to a high value of 13.89 %. If we consider the nature of the objects, there is no functional category that can be differentiated by the presence or absence of lead. The tin content also varies from 8.24 % to 14.96 %. As far as trace elements are concerned, Ag and As show a fairly wide variation, while the levels of Co, Fe, Ni, Sb, and Zn are low.

With regard to the major elements, we can see that apart from lead-rich objects, Cu is negatively correlated with Pb and Sn, and Pb is positively correlated with Sn (Figs. 23 and Fig. 24). This would seem to point to the use of a Pb-Sn alloy mixed with copper for the fabrication of these objects. However, the three objects with the highest Pb content (>3 %) appear to have had additional Pb added; these would be deliberately created ternary alloys. It appears that the Ag and Sb contents are positively correlated with Pb in the three most Pb-rich objects, which could imply that they were present together in the same material.

The heterogeneity of the composition of the objects from La Motte can be due to a natural variation in a polymetallic ore as well as the use of several sources of materials, which were maybe mixed together. As we have seen a deliberate addition of lead is also probable for the objects with a high content of this element.

### 5.3.2. Lead isotopes

The isotope ratios of the La Motte artefacts are very homogeneous, despite the fact that half of the bronzes contain added lead (3 %–14 % Pb) while the other half contain less than 0.50 %. The calculated model ages of the La Motte objects are also homogeneous with T Mod of 278 ± 49, μ of 9.78 ± 0.02, and κ of 3.93 ± 0.05, suggesting a Hercynian origin (Fig. 8). Several clusters of archaeological clues lead us to favour the
<figure><img src="image_25.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 23.** Binary diagrams of the main trace element values of the metal objects from La Motte (graph: C. Le Carlier de Veslud and T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

southern Massif Central as the most likely hypothesis of origin, as both the source of the copper (for objects without added lead) and the lead (for objects with added lead). The presence of metallurgical activity at the La Motte site is attested to by the presence of casting moulds (Lachenal, 2022a). Furthermore, the site is integrated into a network of contemporary settlements regularly established along the Hérault valley, stretching as far as the mining district of Cabrières-Péret, some 30 km upstream. This proximity raises the question of the use of copper from this district. The mining district of Cabrières-Péret is especially well known for having been a centre of copper extraction and reduction activities at the end of the Neolithic period (Ambert et al., 2002, 2005). However, the Neuf Bouches mine in the Vallarade/Bellarade area yielded evidence of mining during the Bronze Age and the transition phase to the Iron Age. For example, the walls of two fire-mining vaults contained veneers of thermal breccia that gave radiocarbon dates to the 18th–16th centuries BCE in one case, and the 14th–12th centuries BCE in the other. In the same sector, charcoal taken from the base of mining spoil has been dated to the 12th–10th and 9th–8th centuries BCE (Bouquet et al., 2006; Ambert et al., 2009). Less than a kilometre below, the Neolithic copper reduction workshop at Capitelle du Broum in Péret

has also yielded evidence of Late Bronze Age - Early Iron Age occupation in the form of three converted hearths. Several objects made of copper alloys are associated with them, which raises the question of a facility linked to metallurgical activity. Copper extraction and use have therefore been documented in the Vallarade/Bellarade area at dates contemporary with the occupation of the La Motte site, which spans the 10th to 8th centuries BCE. The lead isotope data for all the artefacts from the La Motte site match those currently obtained for ores from the Cabrières area (Fig. 25) (Prange et al., 2003; Prange and Ambert, 2005; Ambert et al., 2009). They are in the same isotopic field as these ores, in particular Roussignole, and to a lesser extent Vallarade/Bellarade. From these isotope diagrams and the model ages, it appears that the lead-free artefacts from La Motte were produced using a mixture of ores from this mining area. The same is true for the Late Bronze Age copper alloy beads unearthed at the Capitelle du Broum site, the results for which are very similar to those from the objects from La Motte (Fig. 25).

For the lead source, the three lead-alloyed objects from La Motte (LM15, LM17, LM24) deviate the most from the Cabrières ore values, particularly in the representations of $^{207}\text{Pb}/^{204}\text{Pb}$ versus $^{206}\text{Pb}/^{204}\text{Pb}$ and $^{208}\text{Pb}/^{204}\text{Pb}$ versus $^{206}\text{Pb}/^{204}\text{Pb}$ (Fig. 25). This is less obvious for the
<figure><img src="image_26.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 24.** Correlation matrix of the main trace element values of the metal objects from La Motte. The p values < 0.05 are boxed in grey (graph: T. Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

calculated model ages, except for the κ versus T Mod representation (Fig. 25). The added lead nevertheless appears to have a regional origin, as shown by the comparison with Pb isotope ratios and calculated model ages for lead mineralization (galena) in the southern Massif Central. These include the Cévennes in a broad sense (Brévart et al., 1982), and Mont-Lozère to a lesser extent (Baron et al., 2006). The Pb isotope diagrams for these lead mineralisations have signatures very similar to those of the copper mineralisations of the Cabrières sector (Fig. 25). The calculated model ages show the same trend (with the exception of Pioch Farrus), suggesting that the regional source of these copper and lead mineralisations was similar (T Mod of 242 ± 37, μ of 9.77 ± 0.03, and κ of 4.00 ± 0.02 for Mont-Lozère; T Mod of 246 ± 84, μ of 9.75 ± 0.04, and κ of 3.92 ± 0.08 for the Cévennes; T Mod of 208 ± 100, μ of 9.87 ± 0.11, and κ of 3.95 ± 0.14 for Roussignole [at Cabrières]). This may explain why the objects from La Motte, with or without added lead, are so similar to each other, but also to copper or lead mineralisations, depending on the lead content. Nevertheless, this finding does not rule out the possibility of regional-scale mixing, as suggested by the multi-element data from La Motte.

Neolithic metallurgy at Cabrières is known to have produced copper with important quantities of antimony and silver from tetrahedrite ore (Ambert et al., 2013). This composition is not found in the artefacts from La Motte, or indeed in the Late Bronze Age metal objects from Capitelle du Broum. However, following on from P. Ambert, it should be pointed out that these markers are not found in oxide ores, which are also

present in the Cabrières mining district, as shown in particular by analyses carried out on samples from the Vallarade/Bellarade and Roussignole sectors. The same author also hypothesises that ore mixing and the loss of volatile elements during the metallurgical stages could have led to significant variability in the chemical composition of Late Bronze Age artefacts (Ambert et al., 2009). They may have diluted trace element values, particularly in the case of successive recasting (Bray et al., 2015) and the addition of new stocks. A similar situation has been observed for fahlore-type coppers from western Austria (Grutsch et al., 2019).

All of these phenomena of mixing and remelting of metals could therefore have contributed to homogenising the isotopic signals of the productions at the extreme end of the Bronze Age, as has been proposed for the ancient 'bronzes' of Nigeria and for the end of the Bronze Age in the south of the Carpathian basin (Goucher et al., 1976; Bruyère et al., 2024). This results in the isotopic signature of copper objects no longer being attributable to a geographical origin, but rather to a metallic stock produced by mixing, recycling, and intentional addition of lead (Bray et al., 2015). This stock, which formed at the end of the Bronze Age, may have been maintained at the beginning of the Iron Age by the remelting of old metal. In fact, the isotopic signatures of the objects from La Motte are comparable with those obtained for the copper alloy artefacts discovered in the so-called Launacian hoards, and to a lesser extent, with the copper ingots associated with them (Fig. 26). These collections of metal object fragments, found mainly in Languedoc, are dated to the 7th and 6th centuries BCE (Guilaine et al., 2017, 2022; Aragón et al., 2022).
<figure><img src="image_27.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 25.** Lead isotope diagrams for metal objects from La Motte compared with values for copper ores from the Cabrières mining district and lead ores from the Massif Central (for references, see text) (graph: Thibault Lachenal and Sandrine Baron).</figcaption></figure>

The elemental compositions of the constituent objects are very similar to those of the La Motte artefacts, as shown by the As, Sb, and Ni ternary diagrams (Fig. 27). The main difference lies in the tin content, which is much lower in the Iron Age objects. These values, below 10 %, are characteristic of a recycled alloy, in which copper and bronzes with different tin contents have been mixed (Bray et al., 2015). Other European mineralisations with isotopic ratios similar to those of the La Motte objects could be mentioned, such as those from southern Spain (Los Pedroches and Andujar-Montoro districts in the Cordoba region or the Sultana mine in Andalusia; see Aragón et al., 2022), Wales (Great Orme), or the Swiss Valais (Williams and Le Carlier de Veslud, 2019; Cattin et al., 2011). The ores from these different regions show significant overlaps in their isotopic values. Nevertheless, the good isotopic matches between the objects from La Motte and local ores for which we have evidence of exploitation in the Late Bronze Age lead us to favour the hypothesis of the use of these regional resources.

## 6. Conclusions

Taking into account both the typology of the ingots, their elemental and isotopic composition, and comparing these data with archaeological evidence related to mining activities, this study has provided a first

overview of how copper was procured during the Bronze Age in south-ern France. The lead isotopes and chemical analysis shows clearly that the same source was used for the various objects in each hoard, but that copper from different origins was used depending on the period. It should also be noted that taking into account the collections of objects (here in the form of hoards) is an undeniable asset for characterising the copper used. For lead isotopes in particular, given the overlaps that can exist between the various European sources (but also elsewhere), observation of the dispersion of values within a collection is much more appropriate for determining provenance than focusing on measurements taken from a single object. It is also important to note that the groupings established from elemental compositions in a same hoard do not necessarily correspond to isotopic similarities.

This research needs to be extended in the future by analysing other contexts and by compiling substantiated regional mineral references.<fnref n="3" />

<footnote n="3">³ We are currently working on this as part of the project COPPER “Cuivre d'Occitanie: Pister la Production, l'Exploitation des Ressources et les échanges, du Néolithique aux âges des métaux” (“Occitan copper: tracking production, resource exploitation, and trade from the Neolithic to the metal ages”). https://sciencesdupasse.univ-toulouse.fr/projet-copper/.</footnote>
<figure><img src="image_28.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 26. Lead isotope diagrams for metal objects from La Motte compared with values for metal objects from the Launacian hoards, copper ores from the Cabrières mining district and lead ores from the Massif Central (for references, see text) (graph: Thibault Lachenal and Sandrine Baron).</figcaption></figure>

<figure><img src="image_29.png" /><figcaption>Fig. 27. Comparison of trace element values for objects from La Motte and those from the Launacian hoards (graph: C. Le Carlier de Veslud).</figcaption></figure>

The sample taken into account nevertheless allows us to approach the
supply networks and their evolution for the first time (Fig. 28).

Towards the end of the Early Bronze Age or the beginning of the
Middle Bronze Age, the copper of the axe-ingots from the Romanès
hoard may originate from the southern Vosges massif, according to lead
isotope analyses. The distribution of this type of axe-ingot and the
similarities observed in the elemental compositions between the axes
from Romanès and those from other hoards of eastern France indicate
that these objects were widespread along the Rhone corridor, from north
to south. These Rhone connections, once attributed to the "Rhone cul-
ture", are typical of the material cultures of the last phase of the Early
Bronze Age in south-eastern France. Although they show a degree of
autonomy, there are undeniable links with the northern Alpine region
(Hafner, 1995; Vital, 2004). They could go hand-in-hand with imports of
metallic raw materials in the form of ingots.

One of the major contributions of this study is to have demonstrated,
still thanks to lead isotope analysis, the use of copper originating from
the Southeastern Alps in the Baume Bourbon hoard, dating from a late
phase of the Middle Bronze Age. This period also coincided with a
resumption of copper production in the area, with the discovery of
several metal smelting workshops. It has been proposed that the Ter-
ramare culture, and more specifically the *Valli Grandi Veronesi* polity,
controlled the flow of Alpine copper at the same time as traffic with the
central-eastern Mediterranean (Ling et al., 2019: 32; Pearce et al., 2021:
193). It appears that the end of the Middle Bronze Age was a period of
close cultural links between south-eastern France and northern Italy
(Lachenal, 2020). These links are therefore also marked by the transfer
of raw materials, since the styles of Baume Bourbon bracelets are spe-
cific to southern France.

The lead isotope analysis of the objects from the Barraca and Puis-
serguier hoards, dating from the Late Bronze age 2b-3a, also shows that
they were made with copper from the Southeastern Alps. At that time a
vast network spread production from the quarries in Trentino-Alto
Adige to the Balkans and northern Europe. A form of packaging for
this Alpine copper was as pick-ingots, and it was probably in this form
<figure><img src="image_30.png" /><figcaption>**Fig. 28.** The main copper supply networks identified for the Bronze Age in Mediterranean France, with an indication of copper ores (ProMine database, Cassard et al., 2015) and the principal copper mines in activity at the time (GIS Thibault Lachenal).</figcaption></figure>

that it arrived in south-east France, since objects of this type have been discovered in the Barraca hoard. It was then used locally to produce objects in various forms, as evidenced by the presence of casting waste with the same metallurgical characteristics as the ingots. This occurred at a time when the styles of ceramic and metal production in the south of France were disconnected from those of the Italian peninsula (Lachenal, 2020). But exchanges of goods still existed, as evidenced by the many glass beads from the Frattesina workshops discovered in the south of France (Gratuze and Billaud, 2014). This study once again highlights the importance of the spread of copper from the Southeastern Alps to Bronze Age Europe, and for the first time identifies southern France as one of its recipients.

For the extreme end of the Bronze Age, analysis of objects from the La Motte site shows compatibility with locally mined ores. This coincided with an increased assertion of local identities, expressed through the creation of an original ceramic style in Languedoc, the Mailhac 1 facies. This marked the start of a new cultural cycle that would continue into the Early Iron Age. This continuity can also be seen in metallurgical practices, with objects from La Motte showing strong similarities with those from Launacian hoards.

This research therefore highlights the link between trade networks and cultural dynamics, showing that the circulation of raw materials also helped to strengthen relations between communities.

### CRediT authorship contribution statement

**Thibault Lachenal:** Writing – original draft, Visualization, Resources, Project administration, Investigation, Funding acquisition, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. **Sandrine Baron:** Writing – original draft, Visualization, Supervision, Methodology, Investigation, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. **Cécile**

**Le Carlier de Veslud:** Writing – original draft, Visualization, Resources, Methodology, Investigation, Formal analysis, Data curation, Conceptualization. **Gaëlle Meynieux:** Visualization, Investigation. **Charline Dallard:** Visualization, Investigation. **Xavier Gutherz:** Resources, Investigation. **Florent Mazière:** Resources.

### Data availability statement

All data are available in the manuscript and Supplementary Materials.

### Funding

This research was carried out as part of the ThéOREM project ("Thésaurisation, Offrande, Recyclage et Échange de Métaux à l'âge du Bronze en Languedoc: étude de dépôts inédits"), which was supported by LabEx ARCHIMEDE from 'Investir L'Avenir' program ANR-11-LABX-0032-01. All the analyses were funded by this project. The fieldwork at La Motte in Agde was supported by the Ministry of Culture, the Hérault department, the Occitanie region, the town of Agde, the Hérault-Méditerranée urban community, LabEx ARCHIMEDE, the Ibis Association, and UMR 5140 Archéologie des Sociétés Méditerranéennes. The survey at Saint-Victor-la-Coste was supported by the French Ministry of Culture and UMR 5140 Archéologie des Sociétés Méditerranéennes.

### Declaration of competing interest

The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.
## Acknowledgements

We would like to thank Frédéric Faure and his family, Marie Ponteau, and Hélène Breichner for making it possible to study the Barracoa hoard; as well as Didier Delhoume and Cyril Montoya of the Regional Archaeological Service of the Occitanie region for providing access to the objects. We are grateful to Marie Laroche for providing us with previously unpublished analytical data on the ores and artefacts from the Cabrières-Péret sector. We are also indebted to the anonymous reviewers for their valuable comments, which enabled us to improve our article.

## Appendix A. Supplementary data

Supplementary data to this article can be found online at https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jas.2025.106432.

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