Archaeometry最新文献

This article examines 10th-century blue and purple glass beads from a Hungarian burial in Lužianky, Slovakia, in order to determine their origin through chemical analysis. The beads are primarily composed of SiO₂, Na₂O and CaO, identified as soda-lime silica glass made from halophytic plant ash. The K₂O content ranges from 2.292% to 3.145%, while the MgO content is between 4.385% and 6.160%. The beads are classified as Mesopotamian type 2. These findings highlight extensive trade between the Near East and Central Europe during the Early Middle Ages, demonstrating the region's integration into broader historical processes through combined archaeological and chemical research methods.

The enduring mystery of the production, trade, and consumption of the prestigious proto-porcelain wares across northern and southern China has abated in the wake of discovery of kilns for such products in the recent decades. A new cluster of such kilns recently discovered in the Wuyishan Mountain, in particular, supplies a promising candidate for provenancing those of the Western Zhou (1045-771 BCE). To test this possibility, however, it is indispensable to investigate a priori the compositional characteristics of the products of this cluster. To this end, the authors analyzed a number of samples of proto-porcelain wares from three sites and porcelain stone near them with ICP-OES and SEM-EDS. They found that the bodies of the samples are made of porcelain stone available in the vicinity. The discrepancies in the bodies and glazes across different production sites are largely derived from deliberate choices of raw materials and firing technologies.

The kiln site in Yaogang village is the location of the imperial glazed kiln in Nanjing, China: the Jubaoshan glazed kiln. It mainly supplied the glazed tiles required for the construction of imperial buildings, such as the Ming Imperial Palace and Bao’ensi. A total of 15 samples of glazed tiles were selected and analysed by optical microscopy (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD), thermal decomposition (TD) and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence (EDXRF) spectroscopy to determine their apparent morphology, phase composition, firing temperature and chemical composition, respectively. Research indicates that the glaze and body of glazed tiles exhibit distinct characteristics, lacking an intermediate layer. The glaze layer is a vitreous phase with excellent meltability and no residual crystals, while the body primarily consists of a matrix, particulate matter and pores. The phase composition of the body mainly comprises quartz and mullite, with some samples also containing trace amounts of rutile, hematite and sanidine. The firing temperature for ceramic body samples of glazed tiles in Yaogang village reaches approximately 1000°C, indicating a relatively high level of firing. The raw materials used for the body differ from those employed in the Ming Imperial Palace and Bao’ensi and Dangtu; their source remains to be explored. The primary chemical components present in yellow and green glazes on glazed tiles in Yaogang village are PbO and SiO₂, respectively. Different colouring elements contribute to various hues observed on glazed tiles: Fe plays a significant role in yellow glaze coloration, while Cu and Fe jointly influence green glaze coloration.

This study presents a comprehensive approach to provenancing ancient silver artefacts, introducing a novel algorithm to correct for mass-dependent isotope fractionation. Applied to a Pb isotope database of 281 Hacksilber samples from southern Levantine hoards (1700–600 BCE) and compared with approximately 7000 galena ores from Spain to Iran, the analysis reveals shifting silver sources over time. Trade of the Levantine merchants with the pre- and early-Celtic societies of the western Mediterranean appears to have followed long-established east-west corridors along the northern Mediterranean coast-routes originally opened during the Neolithic expansion of Anatolian farmers and later reused during the Bronze Age and the Iron Age. The reduction in silver remelting reflects more efficient sourcing and trading practices by the end of the Iron Age.

The Luojiaba site, located in eastern Sichuan Province, unearthed iron smelting-related remains from the Eastern Han Period in 2022, including slag, tuyere fragments, refractory materials, and hammer scales. A comprehensive study of the excavated smelting remains indicates that the site engaged in bloomery iron smelting and forging activities during the Eastern Han Period. By comparing the site with other bloomery iron smelting sites of the Han Dynasty discovered in China, it is suggested that, influenced by social and economic factors, there may have been a tradition of bloomery iron smelting in the southwestern minority regions of China. Additionally, by reviewing the iron artifacts unearthed from the Warring States to the Han Dynasty at the Luojiaba site, the origins and development of the use of iron at Luojiaba are explored.

Gryczewska, N., Sulwiński, M., Chibowski, P., Krajcarz, M. T., Zegarek, M., Kot, M., Pereswiet-Soltan, A., Szymczak, K. & Suska-Malawska, M. (2025). Applying sterols and bile acids as biomarkers for identifying human versus wild animals' faecal traces in cave sediments at archaeological sites. Archaeometry. https://doi.org/10.1111/arcm.13067

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Microblade technology constituted an important element of the lithic assemblages in Northeast Asia during the late Pleistocene. Traditional typological approaches to microblade cores lack objectivity and methodological consistency, which limit cross-site comparisons and in-depth discussions of human behaviour. This study employs a quantitative analysis on microblade cores from Shuidonggou locality 12 (SDG12) to examine core morphology, reduction intensity and scar patterns. The findings reveal that while prehistoric knappers at SDG12 applied similar technological procedures, they modified certain steps to accommodate raw material properties. This research underscores the advantages of quantitative methods for objectively assessing the variability of microblade technology.

Glass finds from the archaeological excavations of the city of Istakhr in the Fars province (actual Iran) have been subjected to archaeometric analysis. Based on their archaeological context, these pieces were dated to the fifth century CE. The glass fragments were analysed using environmental scanning electron microscopy combined with synchrotron-based X-ray fluorescence to accurately assess their chemical composition and fingerprint. Based on the results, the objects are categorised as high “sodium-lime-silica” with plant ash used as a flux. Based on the chemical composition, which reflects the production of glass, the objects were divided into three separate groups; however, the raw materials remained almost the same during the heyday of Istakhr.

The ancient Loulan state, located in the Lop Nor region of Xinjiang, was historically known for its iron production, as documented in Chinese historical texts. This paper studies iron artefacts from the ancient Loulan LA site, dating from the third to the fourth centuries CE, with a focus on their metallographic features and the chemical composition of slag inclusions. The analytical results reveal that iron objects from the site were made from cast iron, malleable cast iron and bloomery iron. Based on the observation, it is suggested that while cast iron was used, bloomery iron still played an important role in the region. The technological profile in the ancient Loulan state was different from inland China of the same period, which highlights regional characteristics. Based on the observation, we focus on environmental and cultural factors that could have been contributed to this situation.

An in-depth archaeometric study was undertaken on the Monument to Augustus (Saint-Bertrand-de-Comminges, Occitanie, France), focusing on both the provenance of the marble and the analysis of the pigments in order to answer questions about the original layout of the Monument and the quarry(ies) that supplied the marble used to create it. A multi-method protocol including petrography, cathodoluminescence, isotope and elemental analyses, as well as nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) was applied to identify the marble provenance. The results indicate that the marble used to sculpt the whole ensemble came from the same quarrying site, one of the Saint-Béat quarries, as suggested by the strong homogeneity in most of the isotopic and elemental data. Pigment analysis using hyperspectral imaging and portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF) revealed that red ochre was widely used, sometimes combined with Pb-based pigments to produce various shades. Overall, this archaeometric study suggests that the different elements of the Monument were created within the same time period and by the same craftsmen, although some questions remain regarding its exact location and the nature of its original structure. However, the question of whether or not all the pieces studied belongs to the same monument remains unanswered.