Chemical Composition: ICP-MS/AAA data from sample, Leaded Bronze:
Cu, 75.21; Sn, 9.23; Pb, 13.99; Zn, 1.18; Fe, 0.18; Ni, 0.03; Ag, 0.08; Sb, 0.11; As, less than 0.10; Bi, less than 0.025; Co, less than 0.005; Au, less than 0.01; Cd, less than 0.001
J. Riederer
Technical Observations: The patina is dark green with spots of red. Although areas of green and red appear as a layer on top of copper alloy, there is evidence that underlying red corrosion products in some locations penetrate deep into the metal, which is probably an indication of long-term burial. Three of the legs and the tail are lost.
The bull is a hollow cast. The breaks at the legs reveal openings to the core, as does a casting flaw below the tail. There is no evidence of the position of the lost portion of the tail, including whether it touched the bull’s flank. Iron corrosion products at the stomach and at a corresponding spot on the back fill a hole (c. 4 mm in diameter) in the metal. This is larger than most core pins and could be related to some kind of mount. File marks related to the finishing process are visible in the corrosion products. There is no obvious evidence of decorative cold working.
Henry Lie (submitted 2001)
