Event under the auspices of the President of the Republic of Cyprus Nicos Anastasiades
1°st Stage of Experimental Archaeometallurgy

Materials

All the structures, implements and instruments utilized are replicas of the evidences and objects found at Pyrgos/Mavroraki (Lm) including:

1. Pit furnaces coated with basalt pebbles and pottery sherds
2. Holed stone support for nozzles
3. Reeds of Arundo Donax
4. Bellows of leather and wood
5. Moulds of clay and stone
6. Crucibles and nozzles of clay
7. Copper minerals such as chalcopyrite, bornite, chrysocolla supplied by the “Hellenic Mining Company” operating at Skorioutissa. Cyprus

Methods

• Day 1. Spatial organization of the atelier
• Day 2. Construction of furnaces, clay tools, bellows pipes and stone tools
• Day 3. Baking of clay artefacts and drying of the furnaces with fire
• Day 4. First experiment to control functionality of furnaces and bellows
• Day 5. Mineral treatment, crushing, roasting and smelting
• Day 6. Crushing copper nuggets and melting copper in crucibles
• Day 7. Casting of objects in moulds and refining on anvil
• Day 8. Experiments review: roasting, refining of the matte and casting Pyrgos