Archaeometry最新文献

It is well understood that archaeologists, by definition, always strive to assess time as precisely as possible. However, the lack of efficient temporal data interoperability limits our understanding of cross-cultural historical evolution. This Special Issue of Archaeometry on chronological modelling features nine contributions which, while not covering all existing methods, provide a useful snapshot of current research on formalisms, methods, and standards. We hope it will help spark a ‘temporal turn’ in archaeology, much like GIS initiated a ‘spatial turn’ in the field more than 30 years ago.

The Abbey of Saint-Maurice d'Agaune in Switzerland exceptionally accorded access to its treasure pieces for conservation purposes. The restoration of the Great Shrine of Saint Maurice (13th century) gave us the opportunity to examine the gemstones set into this remarkable object made with older replacements. Among sapphires, emeralds, garnets, pearls, glasses and others, we discovered two pierced quartz beads coated with blue-coloured glass. Microscopic observations, Raman and chemical analyses led us to determine the nature of this cobalt-coloured, lead-rich, silica glass covering the natural quartz beads. To the best of our knowledge, these two coated beads are the oldest examples of glass coating on a gemstone for jewellery purposes. They raise numerous questions about the technique employed to produce this exceptional coating, giving two beads which thus look like sapphire. This technique combines advanced glasswork, glazing technics and gemmological knowledge.

The jades from Ulucak Höyük (İzmir, Turkey) are green-colored in hand specimen, and combined petrographic, XRD, and whole-rock analyses indicate that they mainly comprise jadeitic clinopyroxene, characterizing them as jadeite-bearing jades. Primitive mantle (PM)-normalized multi-element patterns reveal two distinct chemical groups. Both groups display depletion in Th and U; however, Group 1 shows a narrower elemental range and marked positive Pb anomaly. The second group, on the other hand, displays a wide elemental range in most elements and strong negative anomalies in Zr and Hf ([Nd/Zr]_PM = 1.6–4.2; [Sm/Hf]_PM = 1.8–3.5). Regarding REE systematics, both groups are characterized by weak positive slopes ([La/Yb]_Ch = 1.7–5.3). However, whereas Group 1 shows coherent LREE-enriched trends, Group 2 displays flat- to LREE-enriched patterns with a wide range in Eu. When the geochemical features of Ulucak jades are compared with the high-pressure (HP) metamorphic rocks from Turkey and Greece, the similar multi-element patterns of Syros eclogites (Greece) to Group 2 Ulucak jades make Syros a possible source area for the Ulucak artefacts. On the other hand, the geochemical resemblance of the Sifnos jadeite-bearing gneisses to Group 1 Ulucak jades may raise the possibility of this island being another source for the Ulucak jades.

This article discusses the results of analytical work on wall and floor plaster from a secular monument excavated on the plateau of Palaepaphos–Hadjiabdoullah (Cyprus). Excavated within the frame of the Palaepaphos Urban Landscape Project (PULP), funded by the University of Cyprus since 2006, the monument is an extensive multifunction workshop complex dated to the Cypro-Classical period when the plateau served as the citadel of the city-state of Paphos. Samples from various units associated with different functions were collected and underwent systematic laboratory analysis (Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, scanning electron microscopy combined with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy). The results reveal a multifaceted reality reflecting diverse lime plaster production traditions. Locally available geological and biogenic resources, along with a variety of aggregates, were employed in plaster manufacture. This diversity points to multiple architectural practices coexisting on the citadel and contributes to a broader understanding of how local communities engaged with and adapted to their environment through material choices and construction techniques.

In a recent paper in this journal (Hancock et al. (2024) Stonehenge revisited: A geochemical approach to interpreting the geographical source of sarsen stone #58. Archaeometry https://www.doi.org/10.1111/arcm.12999), Hancock and colleagues present a reanalysis of the geochemical dataset used to identify the likely source for the majority of the sarsen megaliths at Stonehenge as West Woods, Wiltshire, UK. This comment discusses the analytical approach used by Hancock and colleagues, and evaluates its conclusions. In our view, there are three significant methodological issues with the study: (i) the use of absolute element concentration data (as opposed to normalised ratio data) as the basis for much of the analysis, which is inappropriate for a material like silcrete with variable proportions of introduced silica, both between and within outcrops; (ii) the choice of highly mobile elements (specifically Si and Fe) to discriminate between potential source areas, which is inappropriate for many geochemically altered sediments; and (iii) the comparison of data from single samples rather than multi-sample ranges, which fails to capture the inherent geochemical variability that may be present within an outcrop area or set of samples. There are other sections of the paper that demonstrate a lack of understanding of sarsen formation and the geological and geomorphological history of the British and Irish Isles. We conclude by urging that future studies employing sarsen/silcrete as a material for source provenancing are grounded in the now extensive literature on sarsen/silcrete properties, mode of formation and geochemistry, and reflect this body of knowledge in their research design.

This research paper investigated whether elemental analysis can differentiate leather manufacturing from soil contamination and whether soil hydrology and elemental composition impact degradation of leather. Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) is a quick method for monitoring large-scale changes and groupings of aggregate inorganic elemental signatures, as well as influx of soil-based elements into the leather samples. Soil elements appeared to leach into vegetable-tanned leather within 2 months of burial, following pathways that are primarily dictated by soil hydrology (acidity, redox and saturation). Leather stability was also traced to elemental concentrations prior to burial, most likely introduced through the tanning liquid, and via a contributory factor of perimineralisation in the soil.

Data complexity is one of the most formidable problems facing modern chronology. Chronologists in the past have attempted to mitigate the problem through reducing the amount of math needed by curating the data set. However, evaluating the significance of curated data can be subjective and often incorrect because choosing the most significant synchronisms is not always intuitive. For better chronologies, new methods and tools are needed that retain complexity and interdependence with cross-cultural data but eliminate the subjectivity of human data curation. The consequence of these needs would be that constructing a chronology requires not just hundreds of thousands of calculations but also an additional number of calculations to show that a chronology is potentially valid. This paper posits that one can craft better, more accurate historical chronologies using a tool such as the Groundhog Chronological Laboratory, which was specifically designed for that purpose. Groundhog is uniquely designed to help historians and chronologists design new chronologies and test them for internal consistency.

Architectural and engineering elements of the Roman civilization constitute an important cultural heritage. Nevertheless, not all ancient Roman cities and the roads connecting them have been found, mainly because classical geographical sources show a significant lack of precision. A more precise identification of archaeological findings is necessary because sometimes different archaeological sites are proposed as the same Roman city. The geographical reliability of some of the most controversial locations assigned in the literature to Roman settlements of the southern sub-plateau of the Iberian Peninsula is discussed here by means of a multidisciplinary study.

Quiroga Rodríguez argues in favour of a medieval creation of the Shroud of Turin. His reasoning is based on historical interpretations and alleged anatomical anomalies. We address several critical issues undermining the reliability of his conclusions.

This article presents a new typology of temporal relations suited for archaeological use. It discusses the properties and advantages of the proposed system and compares it with three other typologies of temporal relations: Allen's relations, Holst's relation, and the CIDOC-CRM. It is argued that a more detailed typology of temporal relations in archaeology than currently available is called for, such as the one proposed in this paper. A final synoptic table is provided to help users navigate among the different typologies.