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The significance of the ingots in the Bronze Age has long been recognized in the development of metallurgical technology, social organization and the primary focus of this research, the Mediterranean trade industry.

The metal ingots, particularly those made from copper and tin became an important aspect in the Bronze Age trade, as they were the bulk of the ship's cargo. Furthermore the location of these metal ores occur in geographically localized areas, which would have limited access of prehistoric communities to metals, which therefore encouraged long distance trade between them. (Jones, 2007, 1) Copper was especially an important raw material as it was used for making tools, weapons and status-enhancing luxury goods. Moreover, copper was the main component within the sea trade. Evidence found on Mesopotamia and Dilmun, Egypt, Levant, the Aegean and later the central Mediterranean suggests cargoes were much easier to transport by sea than by overland. The shipwrecks at Uluburun (c.1300B.C) and Cape Gelidonya (c.1200B.C) provide direct evidence for the transport of copper ingots by sea. This has therefore influenced Mediterranean cultures to increase maritime trade and established interregional contacts for copper and tin access. This also applies for metals such as gold, https://www.51lunwen.org/uk/ silver and led which also played a role in long-distance trade, thought not in the same quantities as copper.

There have been many debates for the exact nature of this trade. Muhly mentions that the metal ingots would provide us "a proper understanding of the nature and the scope of this trade." (1977, 73) However, we cannot base our hypothesis on understanding Bronze Age trade on the metal ingots alone as "The metals trade would have differed considerable in volume and organization in different regions, depending on locally available resources, geography, established trade routes, local metallurgical technology, and various social and political factors." (Jones, 2007, 3) The most direct evidence for an analysis of early trade comes from Tell el Amarna.The three-hundred-eighty-two clay tables found within the city, where records of subtle communication with foreign powers. These clay tablets provide evidence that the role of the metal ingots in the development of long-distance trade in metals varied over time. However they provide no evidence for the sources of tin and copper which suggest that they must have been imported from countries such as Cyprus.

Cyprus is generally known for its dominance within the copper production. "This historical situation is well-known among Cypriot and Mediterranean archaeologists, and the copper ingots represent the end product of a complex process involving the mining, smelting and casting of copper."(Knapp, Kassianidou, Donnelly, 2001, 204) However this 'historical situation' was very complex and poorly understood. Nevertheless the evidence shows that the Cypriots played a dominant role within the copper industry. Sites, such as the Troodos Mountains in western and central Cyprus, contained the largest quantity of copper ore in the Mediterranean; thus becomes an important source within the copper metallurgy in the Late Cypriot societies.英语论文网，代写英语论文，留学生作业

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