3,000‑Year‑Old “Silver” Secret of Peebles Hoard Unearthed

Conservation work on the Peebles Hoard (buried between 1000 and 800 BCE and discovered in the Scottish Borders) has found that many of the bronze artefacts have a silvery sheen, though silver was unknown at the time.

This effect turns out to be the result of a deliberate surface enrichment, with high levels of tin driven to the exterior of the metal.

The hoard, comprising over 500 bronze and organic items, was removed intact in a single block and is being carefully cleaned and studied under laboratory conditions. The work is expected to take three years.