A revolutionary dating technique involving Zinc-Isotope fractionation has provided the first absolute dates for the ancient mining shafts at Zawar in the Aravalli Range. The study, published in Archaeometry Today, reveals that the industrial-scale production of high-purity brass was already underway by 1200 BCE, pushing the timeline of Indian zinc distillation back by over five centuries.
Traditional carbon-14 dating of charcoal found in the mines had been inconclusive due to groundwater contamination. However, this new methodology measures the specific isotopic 'fingerprint' of processed zinc ore, allowing researchers to distinguish between various stages of metallurgical evolution. The results confirm that the Aravalli region was a global leader in non-ferrous metallurgy during the late second millennium BCE.