Early India and Pakistan to Ashoka c8.29

c8.29

Analysis shows the presence of copper and a small amount of nickel and arsenic, in proportions consistent with an Indian origin for the ore. A few of the implements are of bronze; one of the antennae-swords from Kallūr, in Raichūr district in the Deccan, contains 9.5 per cent of tin,* i.e. is of an alloy suited by strength, elasticity and toughness for its martial purpose. The nearest ancient copper-workings to the Ganges basin are in Rājasthān and in Singhbūm, southern Bihar; of these alternatives the latter, in view of the distribution of the hoards, is the likely source.