Earliest evidence of lead pollution uncovered in the Balkans
5/31/2018 06:00:00 PM
New research from Northumbria University has revealed that metal-related pollution began in the Balkans more than 500 years before it appeared in western Europe, and persisted throughout the Dark Ages and Medieval Period, meaning the region played a far bigger role in mineral exploitation than previously believed.
The study provides a new perspective on both the timing and extent of metallurgy – the technique of extracting metal from ores prior to heating or working with metals to give them a desired shape – in the Balkans, and the associated economic change this brought to the region, such as the inception of the Metal Ages.
Read more at
https://archaeologynewsnetwork.blogspot.com/2018/05/earliest-evidence-of-lead-pollution.html#j7g6afzwBtiI22HD.99
