Recent and ancient copper production in the lower inn valley . an overview of prehistoric mining and primary copper metallurgy in the brixlegg mining dirstrict

In the Eastern Alps there is widespread evidence for a long tradition of metal ore mining and smelting (HöPPnEr et al., 2005). The first smelting activities or more probably a first “experimental phase” has been documented at the Mariahilfbergl in the Lower Inn Valley near Brixlegg in north Tyrol (BArTELHEIM et al., 2002). This neolithic phase is otherwise characterized by only little archaeometallurgical evidence however local Fe-Zn tetrahedrite-tennantite heating and possible smelting (?) could be shown. The second metallurgical phase during the Chalcolithic and Early Bronze Age is characterized by a small-scale Fe-Zn tetrahedrite-tennantite based copper metallurgy. This metallurgy occurred outside the immediate ore districts in settlements. The Buchberg near Jenbach in Tyrol (MArTInEK, 1996; MArTInEK & SydoW, 2004), the Tischofer Höhle near Kufstein (HArB, 2002) and the Kiechlberg near Innsbruck (KrISMEr et al., 2010; TöCHTErLE et al., 2012; TöCHTErLE, 2015) are well-documented examples of this second phase, where the copper metallurgy suggests the smelting of fahlores from the local mining sites of Schwaz-Brixlegg (KrISMEr et al., 2010). However, the archaeological confirmation of the related fahlore mining in the field is still a desideratum. referring to geochemical analyses performed on copper and bronze artefacts this period of prosperity was interrupted in the late Early Bronze Age and only regained importance in the Late Bronze Age (LUTZ & PErnICKA, 2013). The late Early Bronze Age and Middle Bronze Age copper and bronze artefacts found in the Eastern Alps and in their northern periphery are characterized by a more chalcopyrite-pronounced copper composition (LUTZ, 2016). during this time period the Mitterberg mining area in Salzburg near Bischofshofen rose to become the largest mining district in the Eastern Alps (STöLLnEr et al., 2006). Large scale mining and smelting was carried out within the mining districts where specialised workshop settlements and smelting sites were established. In the Kitzbühel-Jochberg-Kelchalm region (chalcopyrite + pyrite occurrences) Middle to early Late Bronze Age chalcopyrite smelting is also evident (GoLdEnBErG, 2004; KoCH-WALdnEr & KLAUnZEr 2015). during the Late Bronze Age and till the Early Iron Age (1200 – 700 MITT. ÖSTERR. MINER. GES. 163 (2017)