Orichalcum or aurichalcum is the metal mentioned in some ancient writings, including the story of Atlantis at Critias from Plato. In the dialogue, Critias (460 - 403 BC) claims that the orichalcum has been considered second only to gold in value and has been discovered and mined in many parts of Atlantis in ancient times, but by Orichalcum itself the time of Critias is known only by name.
Orichalcum may be a precious metal such as platinum, as it should be mined, or one type of bronze or brass or perhaps some other metal alloy. By 2015, metal ingots are found in ancient shipwrecks in Gela (Sicily), made of an alloy consisting mainly of copper, zinc and a small percentage of nickel, lead, and iron.
In numismatics, the orichalcum is a golden bronze alloy used by the Roman Empire for their sestileus and dupondius coins.
Video Orichalcum
Overview
This name is derived from the Greek ?????????? , oreikhalkos (from ???? , oros, and ?????? , chalkos, copper), which literally means "copper mountain".
The Romans translated "orichalcum" as "aurichalcum," which is considered to be literally "golden copper". It is known from Cicero's writings that the metal they call orichalcum resembles the color of gold but has a much lower value.
Orichalcum has been held as a gold/copper alloy, copper-tin or copper-zinc brass, or metal that is no longer known. However, in Virgil Aeneid , the clay of Turnus is described as "stiff with gold and white orichalc".
In the following years, "orichalcum" is used to describe mineral sulfide minerals and to describe brass. However, this use is difficult to reconcile with the claims of Plato's Critias, which states that the metal was "just a name" of its time, while brass and chalcopyrite were very important in Plato's time, as it still exists today.
Joseph Needham notes that Bishop Richard Watson, a professor of chemistry in the 18th century, wrote about the ancient idea that there are "two types of brass or orichalcum". Needham also pointed out that Greeks probably did not know how orichalcum was made, and that they might even have an imitation of the original.
By 2015, 39 ingots are believed to be orichalcum found on a ship that sank on the coast of Gela in Sicily that has been temporarily dated at 2,600 years. They were analyzed with X-ray fluorescence by Dario Panetta from TQ - Technology for Quality; they turn out to be an alloy of 75-80 percent copper, 15-20 percent zinc, and a smaller percentage of nickel, lead, and iron.
Maps Orichalcum
Ancient libraries
Orichalcum was first mentioned in the 7th century BC by Hesiod, and in the Homeric hymn dedicated to Aphrodite, dated 630s.
According to Plato's Critias, the three outer walls of the Temple to Poseidon and Cleito in Atlantis are each lined with brass, lead and third outer walls, encompassing the entire castle, "appearing with red orichalcum lights." The inner walls, pillars and floor of the temple are completely covered in orichalcum, and the roof is varied with gold, silver, and orichalcum. In the center of the temple stands the pillar of orichalcum, where Poseidon's law and the record of the prince of Poseidon's first son were written down. (Criticism 116-119)
Pliny the Elder indicates that the orichalcum has lost the currency because the mine is exhausted. Pseudo-Aristotle in De mirabilibus auscultationibus describes a type of copper that is "very shiny and white, not because there is a mixture of lead with it, but because some of the earth is combined and liquid with it." This may be a reference to the orichalcum obtained during copper smelting with the addition of "cadmia", a type of soil previously found on the shores of the Black Sea, which is considered a zinc oxide.
Numismatic
In numismatics, the term "orichalcum" is used to refer to the gold-colored bronze alloys used for sestertius and dupondius coins. This is considered more valuable than copper, where coins like are made.
See also
References
External links
- Media associated with Orichalcum coins in Wikimedia Commons
Source of the article : Wikipedia
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