Bronze was a great improvement on copper. The oldest real bronze found in Egypt dates to the 4th dynasty and consists of 90% copper and 10% additional metals, which is about the best combination. Brittler than pure copper, it was easier to cast and could be hardened by repeated heating and hammering.
The first bronze tools were not the result of a deliberate attempt at improving the metal, but of the natural mix of copper and other metals in the smelted ore, in Egypt mostly arsenic. This poisonous metal was replaced during the second millennium by tin. [3] Adding more tin results in a harder alloy which cannot be worked cold, but has to be heated to temperatures of between 600 and 800 °C. Tools and weapons were generally made of this harder bronze, while softer metal was preferred for casting statues and vessels which were subsequently hammered and engraved.
Bronze tools found at Gurob
1 Chisel with tang
2, 3, 4 Chisels
5 Adze blade
6 Hatchet [11]
7 Rasp
8 Hatchet
9, 10 Nails
11 Arrow head
12 Lance head
16 Knife of unknown use
17 Switching blade
18, 19 Fishing hooks, barbless
