Middle Bronze Age copper smelting in the Wadi Arabah: filling the gap

During the 3rd millennium BCE, major copper smelting activities using wind-powered furnaces took place in the Wadi Arabah, particularly in the Faynan region of Jordan. In the second half of the 2nd millennium BCE, smelting operations at Timna and Wadi Amram, and later in Faynan, employed a different smelting technology, using an artificial air source. Copper smelting and overall settlement activities in the first half of the second millennium BCE (The Middle Bronze Age) were scarcely attested. This study shows that copper smelting technology continued from the 3rd to the 2nd millennium BCE, filling this alleged gap. Here we present the study of copper slag collected from two hilltops in the southern Arabah, Be'er Ora Hill and Tell Hara Hadid, dated through radiocarbon dating to the late 3rd and first half of the 2nd millennium BCE. Metallurgical analyses focused on the characterization of the slag, the question of tapping, and the efficiency of smelting. Results were compared to slag samples from two 3rd millennium BCE sites in the northern Arabah and Lead Isotope Analysis was also employed for provenancing. While the overall continuity of the smelting technology is indicated, changes in the organization of production and the source of copper ore are suggested.