Understanding the nature and origin of iron processed in ancient smithing workshops is essential for unraveling procurement strategies and, more broadly, the circulation of iron. Studying smithing slags traditionally proves complex due to their diverse compositions influenced by hearth substances. Another technique, analyzing slag inclusions in metallic fragments, offers direct insights into the iron's chemical nature. However, the scarcity or absence of these fragments poses challenges in assessing sample representativeness. An alternative approach studies hammerscale, hot iron waste from hammering, providing insights into iron's chemical composition and source. At Weyersheim, an early Iron Age site in France, extensive analysis of 300 hammerscale samples and 77 slag inclusions in 6 iron scraps unveiled a unique geochemical signature. This signature showcases enrichment in Vanadium (V > 800 ppm), Chromium (Cr > 400 ppm), Rare Earth Elements (REE) (∑REE + Y > 1500 ppm), especially Heavy Rare Earth Elements like Yb (>100 ppm), and High Field Strength Elements (HFSE) (e.g., U > 30 ppm). The remarkable chemical uniformity observed in various hammerscale samples, and the slag inclusions indicates that the majority of the processed iron originates from a singular source. Comparison with known iron artifacts, particularly the bi-pyramid iron bars revealed similarities. This source exhibited uncommon enrichment and partitioning patterns of REEs, hinting at a rare geological deposit or a closely associated group of deposits. Plausibly sourced from weathered peralkaline rocks, the iron ore's geological origins potentially link to regions like Vosges and the Black Forest massifs. Nevertheless, identifying the geological formations accountable for these distinctive iron traits remains challenging, as there have been no findings of deposits or iron slag with similar compositions to aid in identification.

了解古代锻造作坊加工的铁的性质和来源对于阐明采购策略以及更广泛的铁的流通至关重要。传统上，研究锻造炉渣是很复杂的，因为它们的成分受到炉底物质的影响。另一种技术是分析金属碎片中的炉渣夹杂物，可以直接了解铁的化学性质。然而，这些片段的稀缺或缺失给评估样本代表性带来了挑战。另一种方法是研究锤鳞，即锤击产生的热铁废料，从而深入了解铁的化学成分和来源。在法国早期铁器时代遗址韦尔斯海姆，对 300 个锤鳞样本和 6 块铁废料中的 77 种炉渣夹杂物进行了广泛分析，揭示了独特的地球化学特征。此签名展示了钒 (V > 800 ppm)、铬 (Cr > 400 ppm)、稀土元素 (REE) (ΣREE + Y > 1500 ppm) 的富集，特别是重稀土元素，如 Yb (>100 ppm)、和高场强元件 (HFSE)（例如，U > 30 ppm）。在各种锤鳞片样品中观察到的显着的化学均匀性以及炉渣夹杂物表明，大多数加工过的铁都来自单一来源。与已知的铁制品，特别是双金字塔铁棒的比较显示出相似之处。该来源表现出罕见的稀土元素富集和分配模式，暗示存在罕见的地质矿床或密切相关的矿床群。这种铁矿石似乎来自风化的过碱性岩石，其地质起源可能与孚日山脉和黑森林地块等地区有关。然而，确定导致这些独特铁特征的地质构造仍然具有挑战性，因为尚未发现具有类似成分的沉积物或铁渣来帮助识别。