A team of metallurgists and archaeologists has utilized Thulium-169 isotopic analysis to provide the most precise dating yet for the Copper Hoard Culture in Central India. The study, conducted on artifacts recovered from the Ken River Valley, pushes the beginning of high-purity copper smelting in the region back to 3450 BCE, aligning it with the early phases of the Indus-Saraswati civilization.
The research demonstrates that these early smiths utilized specialized arsenical alloying techniques to enhance the durability of ritual celts and harpoons. This discovery refutes earlier theories of a late arrival for advanced metallurgy in the Indian interior, instead suggesting a parallel and highly sophisticated development of metal-working technology that thrived in the mineral-rich zones of the Chota Nagpur periphery.