Researchers at the University of Southampton have uncovered evidence of the ancient gold trade route between the southwest United Kingdom and Ireland.
The findings suggest the regions were trading gold as far back as 2500 B.C. The research team used a new technique to measure the chemical composition of ancient gold uncovered in Ireland, and found the material had been imported and likely came from Cornwall.
"This is an unexpected and particularly interesting result as it suggests that Bronze Age gold workers in Ireland were making [artifacts] out of material sourced from outside of the country, despite the existence of a number of easily-accessible and rich gold deposits found locally," said lead author Chris Standish. "It is unlikely that knowledge of how to extract gold didn't exist in Ireland, as we see large scale exploitation of other metals. It is more probable that an 'exotic' origin was cherished as a key property of gold and was an important reason behind why it was imported for production."
The advanced analyzing technique, called ablation mass spectrometry, was used on 50 early Bronze Age artifacts including basket ornaments, disks, and jewelry. They measured the isotopes in the samples and compared them with what was seen in gold deposits from a variety of locations. The isotope analysis revealed the gold in the objects most likely originated in Cornwall, and not Ireland.
"Perhaps what is most interesting is that during this time, compared to Ireland, there appears to be much less gold circulating in Cornwall and southern Britain. This implies gold was leaving the region because those who found it felt it was of more value to trade it in for other 'desirable' goods - rather than keep it," Standish said.
The findings suggest gold was not considered as valuable during the Bronze Age as it is today.
"The results of this study are a fascinating finding. They show that there was no universal value of gold, at least until perhaps the first gold coins started to appear nearly two thousand years later. Prehistoric economies were driven by factors more complex than the trade of commodities - belief systems clearly played a major role," said Alistair Pike, a co-author from the University of Southampton.
The findings were published in a recent edition of the Proceedings of the Prehistoric Societies.