Sources of Galena, lead and silver in predynastic Egypt

Galena has been reported from several Predynastic sites in burial contexts for use as a black eye-shadow. Lead is known certainly from only one Predynastic site, whilst about 26 silver artefacts are known. These 4th mille- nium artefacts are amongst the earliest uses known of these materials, and it is of interest to know whether they were of local origin or are to be regarded as foreign imports. Lead isotope analyses have been made of eleven Predynastic burial galenas, one Predynastic lead and one Predynastic silver object, and they are compared with lead isotope analyses of galenas from Eastern Desert and Arabian deposits. The archaeological and geological literature provides little hard evidence to decide whether Egyptian galena deposits are argentiferous or not ; this could provide important extra evidence of provenance. Consequently neutron activation analyses have been made of the same lead ores together with analyses of predynastic burial galenas and lead artefacts. The implications of these analyses are discussed.