Metal weapons and social differentiation at Bronze Age Tell es-Sultan

The diffusion of copper weapons during the late 4th and 3rd millennia BC in the Southern Levant marks a distinct transformation of the economy and society of this region, as it coincides with the earliest urban experience. This paper provides an overview of copper and copper-alloyed weapons through a study of the technology and functional features of this material at the key site of Tell es-Sultan/Jericho in Palestine. The case of Jericho offers the opportunity to observe weapons in their original contexts, allowing a comparison of their use in the settlement and necropolis, and a consideration of their significance as potential markers of social differentiation. At the same time, it provides a diachronic perspective on changes in weapon type, and the appearance of new forms, which may reflect changing social needs both in the realm of ideology — as symbols of power — and in warfare.