Studies of Coins of Medieval Volga Bulgaria by Neutron Diffraction and Tomography

Abstract

© 2020, Pleiades Publishing, Ltd. Abstract: The phase composition and spatial distribution of chemical components in the volume of coins of medieval Volga Bulgaria are studied using the neutron-diffraction- and neutron-tomography methods. Two coins belonging to different time periods of this medieval state are studied: a Samanid multidirham dating from the first half of the 10th Century and a silver dirham dating from the period of the reign of the Bulgarian emir Bulat-Timur. It is established that both coins consist of a copper-silver alloy. In the Samanid multidirham, the average volume contents of copper and silver are found to be about 50%. Minor spatial variations in the chemical composition are found in the volume of the multidirham under study. It is established that the volume average silver content in the Bulat-Timur dirham is about 95%.