Archaeometallurgy on the medieval Iberian frontier: the use and exploitation of metal in a feudal context

International audienceIn this work, we propose characterizing the metallurgical production of the feudal social formation in Medieval Iberia. Playing a leading role in the Middle Ages borders, we study the use and exploitation of metal developed in frontier settlements from an archaeometallurgical perspective.Being part of the Project «Landscapes of (Re)Conquest: Dynamics of Multicultural Frontiers in Medieval South Western Europe» (AH/R013861/1), our interest lies in integrating the study of metal artefacts and slags from border sites by incorporating their archeometallurgical analysis. So, we present the preliminary results of some of the feudal contexts that we are studying through Archaeometallurgy, using techniques such as pXRF, SEM, and metallography. All this will allow us to detect origin, technology or distribution of metal artefacts, as well as documenting the alloying practices and technology developed in some key settlements of feudal colonization.Finally, this means to present new analytical, spatial and socio-cultural results of settlements whose archaeological metallic record has much to contribute to our knowledge of landscape, social dynamics and daily life in the Iberian medieval frontiers