Buried Treasure. Excavations by archaeologists throughout the Near East have uncovered many caches of precious metals and stones, either in raw or manufactured form, that were deliberately hidden away in antiquity for safekeeping, but never retrieved by their owners. The contents of some of these "hoards" or "treasures" include heirlooms, objects demonstrably sometimes centuries older than suggested by the contexts in which they were found. In several cases the materials, methods of manufacture, and styles of decoration of the objects in the hoards indicate that these objects were imports from distant lands. Today, such collections are important evidence for reconstructing patterns of ancient long-distance transportation and trade.

Hoards of Silver. Throughout most of Mesopotamian history, silver was the primary means of exchange and payment. The silver might be in the form of rings, wires, ingots, or pieces cut from ingots; all...