Archaeometry最新文献

The research focuses on jewellery finds uncovered in the region of today's Czech Republic dated to the Great Migration Period. The metals and garnet inlays detected were examined with μ-EDXRF, whereas, for glass samples, LA-ICP-MS was used. The paper presented is supplemented with data concerning the technological processing of the jewellery (documented with optical microscopy) and information dealing with analogies to the artifacts studied. Based on the chemical composition combined with the results of Raman spectroscopy, the study has identified several types of garnets with varying geological origins. The occurrence frequency of the types represented differs from previously published data.

As an important provenance indicator, trace element profile has been widely used to reveal the origin and mixing history of archaeological bronzes. However, due to the lack of chemical characterization of raw copper from smelting sites, there has been little understanding about the variation of trace element concentration within one copper source. This has significantly confined discussion on copper circulation in prehistoric societies. This research developed a method to analyze copper prills embedded in smelting slag based on laser ablation–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). A series of tests have proved that a relative error of less than 20% can be achieved for most elements with appropriate choice of analytical parameters and reference materials. This method is then used to analyze the Early–Middle Shang (1500–1200 BC) period copper smelting slag from the site of Tongling in northern Jiangxi province, China. The results show that the copper smelted from different ores of the same site has systematically different trace element characteristics, and copper prills of this site are highly varied in terms of Ag, Ni, Co, As, and Bi content. When plotting Tongling prills together with the bronze artifacts from the Panlongcheng site, also in the Middle Yangtze River valley, it is found that the trace element concentration of these two sites correspond well with each other, and the Panlongcheng bronzes with highly varied trace element profile could have been manufactured with copper from one source. This analysis demonstrates the potentially heterogeneous nature of the copper trace element profiles produced at one smelting site, and calls for more analysis of copper prills using LA-ICP-MS to establish a new foundation for future discussions on copper provenance based on trace element data.

Early Byzantine marble objects from Porphyreon and Chhim (Lebanon) were studied to assess the source of raw materials. In all, 66 artefacts, including elements of liturgical furnishings, architectural elements and daily use objects, were examined using optical, cathodoluminescence and scanning electron microscopy, X-ray diffraction, and δ¹³C, δ¹⁸O, ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotopic analyses. The results indicate that the marbles came mainly from the Prokonnesos and Dokimeion (Turkey). A distinct preference for specific marbles was observed in the production of particular object types and forms, such as chancel screens, table tops and mortars. This study offers the first insights into the specialisation of marble object production during the early Byzantine period.

Dating techniques in archaeology have undergone considerable development in recent decades. Today, the major challenge for archaeologists remains the reliability and precision of the date attributed to an artefact or an archaeological event. To this end, it is essential for archaeologists to cross-reference information from different sources (absolute dating, relative dating, typo-chronology, historical texts, etc.) The development of statistical models that are as close as possible to archaeological reasoning is necessary for efficient data processing. Research published over the past thirty years has shown that statistical models based on the Bayesian statistical approach are ideally suited to the construction of chronologies. Indeed, Bayesian modeling makes it possible to combine the chronometric measurements produced in dating laboratories and the expertise of archaeologists. Moreover, Bayesian statistics are also well suited to small samples (i.e., few dating data). In this article, we are interested in the event date model proposed by Lanos and Philippe in 2017. It is a hierarchical Bayesian model that allows combining chronometric dates assumed to be contemporaneous to estimate the date of a target event of historical interest. Irreducible errors between the chronometric dates and the event of interest are modeled with individual random effects, which makes it a model robust to outliers. However, the introduction of individual random effects can lead to imprecision of the posterior density of the event date. The aim of this article is to correct this imprecision by making the event date model conservative.

In this article, we first calculate the theoretical posterior densities of the parameters of the event date model proposed by Lanos and Philippe for two cases, namely the processing of chronometric measurements and the processing of typo-chronological observations. Secondly, we propose an improvement to this model by assuming randomness in the precision parameter, which we model here by a prior inverse-gamma distribution whose parameters are defined under the constraint of conservation of the event date distribution when it contains a single chronometric date. We illustrate this improvement by applying it to synthetic examples (usual distributions and calibrated distributions), then to data from various archaeological structures that have already been published.

Human genealogies serve multiple functions beyond documenting one's pedigree. They operate as complex social frameworks that structure knowledge, delimit group membership, explain historical causation, are political tools, and provide chronological foundations for understanding past events and processes across diverse knowledge systems. Archaeologists, ethnologists, and historians have long related historical information from genealogies and associated histories to solar calendar years. However, unsystematic methodologies, contrasting ontologies, and ethical issues have limited these approaches. In this paper, we review previous attempts at relating human genealogies and associated histories with calendar years. We explain the chronological network approach as a new alternative, including maximum and minimum Gregorian calendar year limits for each event's date estimate. We consider this method capable of greater transparency, adjustment with new information, hypothesis testing, and internally consistent models. The efficacy of the chronological network approach is demonstrated with a case study of Māori genealogies (whakapapa), oral histories (kōrero tuku iho), and radiocarbon dates. Example genealogical date estimates are interfaced with radiocarbon dates of the initial settlement of Aotearoa New Zealand and the advent of fortifications (pā) in the Waikato region. We conclude by discussing the implications and significance concerning Indigenous research methodologies, priorities, and data sovereignty principles.

Archaeological pottery from ancient civilizations, particularly the underexplored South Indian ones, provides crucial insights into past societies and holds the potential to reshape our understanding of Indian history. The current work is therefore aimed at characterizing such an underexplored archaeological site in Tamil Nadu, South India, named Keeladi. A comprehensive analysis was conducted using Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, X-ray powder diffraction and X-ray fluorescence spectroscopic techniques. These techniques revealed valuable insights into the sample's elemental composition, mineralogical composition, and firing temperatures. According to spectroscopic measurements, the pottery samples were fired at temperatures between 600 and 900°C. Analysing the spectroscopic patterns, minerals such as quartz, calcite, hematite, and magnetite were detected. This multidisciplinary approach sheds light on the technological skills and cultural practices of the skilled artisans who crafted these ceramics.

The Church of St James in Toruń is one of Poland's most valuable Gothic monuments. According to the inscription preserved in the presbytery, the commonly accepted date when construction began is AD 1309. However, another hypothesis can also be found in the literature stating that the first brick temple in the location of the present church was built at a much earlier time. In this study, we apply luminescence dating to more than 30 bricks to support that supposition. Our age results suggest that a brick temple was erected on a plan corresponding to the present one in the 13th century.

The decorated caves contain the earliest artistic expressions of humankind and represent a major cultural heritage. Their significance has been recognized by UNESCO, which has declared them a World Heritage Site. However, they are extremely fragile environments, exposed to various factors of deterioration that threaten their conservation. To implement appropriate protective measures, it is essential to understand the dynamics of these underground systems by analyzing both the processes that shaped the current landscape and those actively altering them today. This task is complex, as each cave is subject to a unique combination of environmental parameters and intrinsic processes, which, in turn, overlap with broader conditions and global changes that tend to affect caves within the same region in similar ways.

In this research, three caves were selected for study (Santimamiñe, Altxerri, and Lumentxa), where environmental conditions were monitored, active processes were described, and past events were identified. Based on these data, macro-level (entire cave) and micro-level (specific decorated panels) cartographies were developed, identifying areas that require closer monitoring. This assessment was complemented by a digital colorimetric analysis using microphotographs. The results were compared with previously identified active processes to better understand the dynamics of these caves, highlight the most vulnerable areas, and propose solutions to existing conservation issues. Finally, these data were cross-referenced with previous records of the caves' environmental parameters to identify possible correlations.

In summary, an analysis of past and present dynamics was conducted in three caves with Palaeolithic art in the Basque Country to anticipate potential future scenarios and design specific protocols to ensure optimal preservation. As a result, new interdisciplinary programs have been developed, which can be extended to other decorated caves and implemented by the relevant authorities.

In the Sobolów area, three hoards of the Hallstatt period were discovered, containing ornaments, waste and scrap of tin–lead–bronze alloy, with iron objects in close proximity, possibly indicating the existence of a foundry workshop. They were accompanied by glass beads, an indicator of the settlement of the Lusatian EB-Ha Culture, found together with amber beads, and fragments of composite bracelets made of narrow ‘scapes’ tightly clamped on a wooden hoop. Macro- and light microscopy chemical composition analysis by X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and, for the glass bead, scanning electron microscopy with X-ray microanalysis were used.

The Jundushan cemetery, located on the northern boundary of the present-day Beijing, sits at a crucial nexus between the Yan and Taihang mountains linking northern and central China. This strategic location provides an interesting case for examining interactions between pastoralism and agriculture around the early half of the first millennium BCE. Under this light, this paper aims to illustrate the local metallurgical development, exemplified by the key metal assemblage discovered at the Jundushan cemetery of the Yuhuangmiao culture. It contains wider social implications on the unique aspect of the Jundushan people and their broader communication network. The new alloying and lead isotopic analyses of 39 bronzes reveal a series of changes in both metallurgical practice and metal supply network. Jundunshan is characterized by the use of both high-tin and high-lead bronzes, with tin playing a particularly essential role. They are probably the result of two different alloying processes, one with almost pure copper being alloyed by pure tin, the other with pure copper combining with a specific tin-lead mixture (Sn: Pb ≈ 45:55). Lead isotopic data reveal a clear change during the transition between the mid and late stage of Jundushan. The major type of lead used in the last stage at Jundushan (ca. 6th–5th century BCE) appears not widely circulated in the states of central China, indicative of a local lead source accessed by Jundunshan. The new data bridge an important gap in our knowledge of the metallurgical practice and flow of metal around the early first millennium BCE in northeastern China, a region where agriculturalists and pastoralists were interacted.