摘要:

AbstractOver a thousand metal finds are now known from Chalcolithic and Early Bronze habitation sites, burial caves, and hoards in Israel and Jordan. To answer the question as to how these artifacts were made, more than 200 objects were sampled for metallographic analysis and for chemical analysis by electron‐probe X‐ray microanalysis and by atomic absorption spectrophotometry.In the Chalcolithic period (4th millennium BC), within a confined zone of southern Israel and Jordan, three entirely different groups of metal objects were found together. Various materials (Cu‐As‐Sb; Au; Cu) from totally separate sources were used in diverse production methods to produce specific classes of objects, of a specific shape and color, totally different from one another.In contrast, the components of Early Bronze Age (3rd millennium BC) metal production indicate a fundamental change in the structure and level of craft specialization. This change may be recognized mainly by the unity of the repertory of objects and the use of the same source‐metal (Ag; Au; Cu) for a wider range of products, as well as by the total technological and geographical separation between extraction and production.The transformation from proto‐urban to urban society documents an important stage of social, economic, and political development in Early Bronze Age Israel and Jordan. Many explanations have been offered for this transformation, most of them based on external intervention or stimulus. This paper adds to the existing arguments for the beginning of urbanization, the missing local socioeconomic factor, based on changes in social complexity as reflected in the first two thousand years of

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500017

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThe high‐performance liquid chromatographic technique is utilized to analyze the dye components of crude “Tyrian Purple” residues obtained from modernMurex (Trunculariopsis) trunculussea snails and from an archaeological source. This is the first time that this technique has been used to analyze these raw pigments. Previously, chromatographic analyses of cloth stains and textile vat dyeings produced from contemporary snails were published. The modern purple pigment analyzed in this study was produced from excised hypobranchial glands oftrunculussnails, and the archaeological purple residue investigated was found on the interior of a potsherd from Tel Kabri, Israel. The two pigments studied showed nearly identical chromatographic fingerprints: The pigments consisted of the same four indigoid components and with matching compositions. The dyes found were indigotin, monobromoindigotin, dibromoindigotin, and a fourth colorant that may be dibromoindirubin. The following conclusions can be made regarding the archaeological sample: (1) the ancient potsherd bearing the purple pigment was from an ancient dyeing vat; (2) the biological provenance of the archaeological dyestuff was most probablyMurex trunculusmollusks; and (3) the Mediterranean snails used for the vat were likely collected at or near the Akhziv beach area in Israel. This study indicates that a biological and geographical chromatographic mapping of the dye components ofporphyrasnails can be developed to assist in provenance determinations of archaeological purple pig

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500018

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractKinetic theory relating to the separation of isotopes in nonequilibrium evaporation, originally developed in the 1920s, is discussed in the context of the possibility of anthropogenic lead isotope fractionation in ancient metallurgical processes. From a consideration of the chemistry of lead and lead compounds and the results of a small trial experiment, it is concluded that any isotopic fractionation of lead is unlikely to be archaeologically significant given current measurement precision. However, application of the same theory to the tin isotope system shows that substantial and measurable isotopic fractionation is likely to result from melting and remelting bronze. Furthermore, recent studies show that tin isotopes do not vary significantly in terrestrial ores. This raises the possibility that tin isotope ratios will be systematically altered by melting, casting, and recycling bronze. This paper discusses the principles of tin isotope fractionation in ancient metallurgy and the potential for tin isotope studies to yield quantitative data on prehistoric metal recycling.

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500019

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThe ratios of the stable isotopes of carbon (13C/12C) and oxygen (18O/16O) in calcite in clays that contain carbonate and that were fired at temperatures between 500 and 700 °C displayed a good correlation with the firing temperature for both isotopes. The isotopic composition indicated that the original carbonate was either completely decomposed or that it exchanged with environmental CO2to obliterate the original isotopic signature. The isotopic effects seem to be kinetically controlled. The isotope thermometer is used to compare refiring temperatures of pottery which was fired under controlled conditions. The differences between calculated and actual temperatures did not exceed 132 °C and in most cases was about 50 °C or less. Isotopic analysis of pottery from Tel Miqne‐Ekron and Deir el Balah, dated to the 13th–12th centuries BC, gave an average ancient firing temperature of about 600 °C. If shown to be of general validity, then perhaps this technique can be used also for estimating preparation temperatures of ancient mortar, especially when preserved in dry climates where later changes would be mi

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500020

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThe thermoluminescence dating of burnt flints has become a major tool in the elaboration of the chronology of human settlements of the last half a million years. The reliability of an age estimate depends to a great extent on the accuracy with which the internal and external radiation dose rates prevailing during the duration of burial can be determined. While determining the internal dose rate is relatively straightforward, the same cannot be said of the external, particularly if the sediment surrounding the flints is mineralogically heterogeneous or has undergone diagenetic changes during prolonged burial. In this article we show some examples of the problems confronted when one attempts to determine the external dose rates experienced by flints buried in a relatively heterogeneous environment of sediments, such as those sampled at the Middle Paleolithic occupation levels at Hayonim (Israel) which show evidence of past mineralogical evolution. The impact of changes produced by leaching and chemical reactions between the components of hearth ashes on the radioisotopic composition of the sediment and consequently the environmental dose rates were examined by subjecting several distinct sediment layers to thorough mineralogical, radiochemical, and dosimetric analyses. The problems of external dose‐rate determinations in mineralogically heterogeneous sediments are examined, particularly in those consisting of variable amounts of siliceous aggregates, apatite, and other phosphorus‐rich minerals produced by diagenetic reactions with bone resid

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500021

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThe mineral assemblages in prehistoric sites can provide essential information on several important topics in archaeology. One of the key analytical tools used is Fourier‐transform infrared spectrometry, which is operated both on‐site during the excavation and in the laboratory. Three topics are reviewed here based on studies of Hayonim and Kebara caves in Israel. (1) Reaction rims form on calcitic and dolomitic rocks buried in the sediments. They are normally the result of interaction of the rock minerals with phosphate‐rich groundwater. The mineralogical nature of these reaction rims can be indicative of prevailing chemical conditions in the sediments, which in turn provide information on whether or not bones are preserved at the site, or are preserved at specific locales within the site. Thus, a survey of reaction rims can be helpful in determining the potential of a future excavation site, or areas within a site, and for optimizing excavation strategies during an ongoing project. (2) The preservational states of the bones themselves, together with information on the mineralogical nature of some of the more labile sediment components, can be used for ascertaining whether or not the bone distribution patterns as excavated represent the original burial locations, or have been affected by secondary dissolution of bones in some areas and not others. (3) The ashes from wood fires are a major component of the sediments in both caves studied. Understanding and monitoring the complex series of diagenetic changes that ashes undergo in these environments can provide invaluable information, not only on the manner in which fire was used by the cave occupants, but also on a series of important processes that affect the depositional history of the site itself. The study of mineral assemblages in prehistoric cave sites, as illustrated here with 3 examples, and possibly in open‐air sites as well, has the potential for contributing significantly to a better understanding of many archaeological p

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500022

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractDuring the last two decades, considerable interest has been expressed in the development of lime and lime plaster products in the Near Eastern Pre‐Pottery Neolithic B. The occurrences of lime products in numerous Levantine sites have raised questions concerning their methods of production, their role in the development of craft specialization, and their social and economic implications. Lime plaster was the first product that entailed the intentional chemical alteration of materials and the complete control over their properties. This was probably the reason for the wide spectrum of uses to which it was put, amongst which “daily” architectural functions appear to coexist with the symbolic or spiritual applications of this material.Amongst the variety of plaster products which appeared in the PPNB, it seems that the practice of skull plastering and sculpture production was the most “socially oriented” one, lacking any apparent relation to daily, functional use. In the present study two modeled skulls and a collection of plaster sculptures from Jericho were examined by means of thin section petrographic analysis, inductively coupled plasma atomic emission spectrometry, scanning electron microscopy, X‐ray diffraction, and Fourier‐transform infrared spectrometry. The results of the mineralogical and chemical analyses, when compared to data obtained from similar artifacts from other sites, demonstrate pronounced intersite variability in the methods of production of the skull and sculpture modeling. The full implications of this issue are discussed in detail

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500023

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThe problem of determining the provenance of the white marble used for antique artifacts has been tackled in different ways. During the past decade it became clear that a multimethod approach is required to solve the problem. In addition, reliable reference material, i.e., samples collected at the ancient quarry sites in an archaeologically and geologically justified manner, turned out to be a prerequisite for reliable provenance determination. A multimethod approach based on petrography, stable isotope analysis of O and C, and trace element analysis yields complementary information. These methods were applied to the same set of 225 quarry samples. When processed with powerful statistical methods, the data thus obtained allowed all major types of marble used in antiquity to be distinguished. Thus, most problems concerning the provenance of artifacts can be solved. This approach was successfully applied to the provenance determination of about 75 artifacts from different museums in Europe and the USA.

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500024

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

摘要:

AbstractThis report concerns the chemical characterization of obsidian sources from Central Anatolia by neutron activation analysis. The sources covered in this study were Göllü Dağ, Hotamiş Dağ, Köru Dağ, Nenezi Dağ, and Çatköy. The study reported here was undertaken with the object of obtaining an accurate “fingerprint” of the compositions of obsidian sources that would permit tracing the origin of archaeological obsidian artifacts to their sources, and in particular, archaeological obsidian recovered from prehistoric sites in Israel. The extent of the sampling within the sources was more thorough than hitherto reported and the results are of high precision

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500025

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY

ISSN:0021-2148    

DOI:10.1002/ijch.199500016

出版商:WILEY‐VCH Verlag    

年代:1995

数据来源: WILEY