Prehistoric Native Copper Technology in Northwest North America: Innovation, Diffusion, and Heritage

This dataset consists of the results of compositional analysis of copper and copper allow artifacts using portable x-ray fluorescence. Though the emphasis of this study is on the use of geological native copper prior to the arrival of non-Indigenous (European) metal, the artifacts included in this study are from archaeological contexts spanning the last 2,000 years (AD 1-1900). Data is displayed in tables as weight percent with the first column showing artifact and site number. The artifacts analyzed are from Alaska, British Columbia, Yukon, Northwest Territories, and Nunavut. Included in these data are artifacts made from native copper and industrial smelted trade copper and copper alloys. The artifacts included in this dataset were accessed at the following institutions: University of Alaska Museum of the North (including some material previously accessed at the University of Alaska Anchorage), Royal British Columbia Museum, University of British Columbia Museum of Anthropology, University of Victoria, American Museum of Natural History, Canadian Museum of History, and the Prince of Wales Northern Heritage Centre. These data are currently undergoing analysis and some data are still undergoing conversion from raw data files to weight percent. Additional weight percent results will be added to this dataset once complete.