When did the word bronze enter the English language?
The word bronze entered English between 1730 and 1740. It traveled from Middle French, which borrowed it from Italian in the thirteenth century.
Questions about Bronze
Short answers, pulled from the story.
What is the earliest known tin-copper-alloy artifact date and location?
The earliest known tin-copper-alloy artifact dates to approximately 3500 BCE at Pločnik in Serbia. This site belonged to the Vinča culture and archaeologists believe this object was smelted from natural stannite ore.
How much copper and tin does modern bronze typically contain?
Modern bronze typically contains about 88 percent copper and 12 percent tin. Alpha bronze alloys with 4 to 5 percent tin make coins, springs, turbines, and blades.
Who ruled Assyria when Sennacherib cast monumental bronze statues weighing up to 30 tonnes?
Assyrian king Sennacherib ruled from 704 to 681 BCE and claimed to be the first to cast monumental bronze statues weighing up to 30 tonnes. He used two-part moulds instead of the lost-wax method.
When did the Bronze Age begin in western Eurasia and China respectively?
The Bronze Age began in western Eurasia around 3500 BCE. In China, this period started later, near the beginning of the second millennium BCE.