Suchergebnisse

This paper presents the results of an archaeometric analysis of pre-Roman and Roman ceramics from the Vaccean Iron Age hillfort of Pintia (Valladolid, Spain). The study assesses degrees of romanization and hybridization by investigating changes in local ceramic production and the dissemination of new technologies with the arrival of Roman rule. Thin-section petrography, XRD, and geochemical analyses (using XRF) have been utilised on a selection of pre- and post-conquest vessels from habitation contexts. This work goes beyond traditional typological analyses to shed light on the resilience of 'Second Iron Age' communities, who's ceramic traditions largely persist into Roman times, albeit with some changes, like shifts in the preferences and location of raw materials. ; Spanish Government FPU15/00897 ; Centro de Estudios Vacceos Federico Wattenberg (CEVFW) of the University of Valladolid ; Universidad de Granada/CBUA University of Granada

Published with the permission of Cambridge Scholars Publishing. ; Basagain is an Iron Age fortified site located on the north-eastern side of the Basque Country (Spain). As is common in other Iron Age sites of the region, evidence has been found of the coexistence and complementarity of two types of pottery production, which can be differentiated by their ownmodes of production and use, even though both were made with the same basic raw materials but with different preparation processes. This contribution presents the results derived from an archaeometric study carried out to determine the clay sediments and the tempers probably used in the making of mainly hand-made pottery from Basagain. A representative set of raw materials from the surroundings of the Basagain site was prepared in the laboratory, with the aim of comparing them with the archaeological material. The same characterization techniques used with archaeological items were applied: petrographic analysis by thin section and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The resulting data suggest that the clays used by Basagain potters were quite similar to clay sediments sampled in this study, as the main characteristics of these clay sediments are shared with archaeological ceramic potsherds previously analysed. ; The authors are grateful for the financial support given by the Heritage Program of the Provincial Council of Gipuzkoa (Spain) to J. López de Heredia. The authors would also like to acknowledge the project Geomateriales 2 (Ref. S2013/MIT-2914, Regional Government of Madrid and EU structural funds). J. Peña Poza acknowledges a job contract from this project. They are also indebted to the TechnoHeritage network on Science and Technology for the Conservation of Cultural Heritage for its professional support. ; Peer reviewed

In this paper, petrographic, mineralogical and chemical analyses have been performed on plain table-ware fragments discovered in the ancient town of Akrai (modern Palazzolo Acreide, Syracuse, Sicily) and dated between the Hellenistic and the Late Roman periods (4th-5th/6thcentury A.D.). The project is developed in the context of the archeological debate on the cultural and political process occurred in Sicily since the 3rdcentury B.C. and known in archaeological literature as Romanization. In this framework, a gradually substitution of Greek-Hellenistic materials with the Roman ones has occurred in Sicilian colonies and the city of Akrai was deepened involved in this process. As the sensitiveness of material culture to cultural and social changes, the archaeometric investigation has been focused on provenance and technological manufacture aspects of tableware production, in order to delineate the eventually changes took place in the area during the investigated period. The comparison of obtained data with numerous references local groups of ceramics allows to identify different highly specialized local productions, drawing-back the commercial movements of potteries in Sicily during Roman Age.

The archaeological analysis of medieval and modern pottery has benefited from the consolidation of archaeometry in the domain of Medieval Archaeology in the past few decades. As part of an ongoing research project devoted to the characterization of pottery production, distribution processes and technological transfer, we deal with a considerable amount of data that are very diverse in origin and nature and must be exploited within an integrated information system in order to provide information for historical knowledge. The Greyware system has been designed to fulfil this goal and provides the main categories for pottery analysis within a shareable and reusable scenario. Its development and application prove that a little semantics goes a long way and that the creation of domain ontologies for archaeological research is an iterative process under development, as long as several projects sharing data, resources and time can develop a collaborative framework to maximize the assets of individual expertise and collaborative work. In this paper, we discuss the requirements of the system, the challenge of developing strategies for normalized data management and their potential for exploiting historical vestiges from an integrated perspective ; This paper is an outcome of the GREYWARE research project (grant number PID2019- 103896RJ-I00) funded by the Spanish Ministry of Science and Innovation (MCIN—Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación). The Government of Catalonia (Generalitat de Catalunya) also contributed to the funding of this research as part of an Archaeology and Paleontology 4-year-long research project (CLT009/18/00036—DGPC/exp. 35). A PhD grant is supported by the Secretariat for Universities and Research of the Ministry of Business and Knowledge of the Government of Catalonia and the European Social Fund (2021FI_B00094). Part of this work was conducted using the Protégé resource, which is supported by grant GM10331601 from the National Institute of General Medical Sciences of the United States National ...

Hasta los años 90 del siglo pasado, la historiografía arqueológica del Suroeste de la Península Ibérica estuvo dominada por la tradición Histórico-Cultural, basada en el concepto normativo de Cultura, en explicaciones apoyadas en fósiles-directores, en derivaciones difusionistas, en inventarios descriptivos de objetos descontextualizados y en un discurso pautado por un normativismo de corte decimonónico. En este sentido, la cerámica, de lejos el registro arqueológico con mayor presencia, fue presentada en la literatura arqueográfíca como el fósil director más verosímil y como el principal referente arqueológico para la caracterización de horizontes culturales y cronológicos que desde el VI al II Milenio A.N.E. definían arqueográficamente lo que se denominaba Neolítico, Calcolítico y Edad del Bronce. Así pues, se desarrolló una línea de investigación alternativa mediante una propuesta teórica y metodológica que permitiese evaluar el ciclo económico de la cerámica, desde el aprovisionamiento hasta su desecho, en tres formaciones sociales coetáneas del III Milenio A.N.E.: Cabezo Juré (Alosno, Huelva), La Junta (Puebla de Guzmán, Huelva) y Valencina de la Concepción (Valencina de la Concepción, Sevilla). En términos generales, los resultados de la investigación han puesto de manifiesto la existencia de dos modelos autónomos de organización económica y social de la actividad productiva alfarera en el Suroeste de la Península Ibérica durante el III Milenio A.N.E. En Cabezo Juré y La Junta, los datos apuntan a la existencia de un modelo alfarero realizado en el ámbito local, con una producción autosuficiente destinada a cubrir las necesidades básicas, y donde la dedicación al trabajo nunca sobrepasó la esfera del tiempo parcial. La producción alfarera en estos asentamientos debió ser una actividad al alcance de todos los miembros de la comunidad y el acceso a las materias primas no debió estar restringido, formando parte de unos recursos del entorno que serían apropiados de forma colectiva. Ello supone que esta actividad nunca alcanzó niveles de especialización e intensificación y que jamás se organizó bajo una división técnica y social del trabajo. No obstante, por el contrario, en Valencina de la Concepción, el estudio de las diferentes etapas del proceso productivo ha permitido plantear la posibilidad de la existencia de un modelo económico y social alternativo, organizado alrededor de unidades supradomésticas que evidencian ya un cierto grado de especialización económica. El análisis de la cerámica de Valencina de la Concepción muestra una lenta y paulatina tendencia hacia una mayor estandarización y especialización de sus procesos de producción, consecuencia de una mayor inversión de tiempo, trabajo y recursos en las tareas productivas, lo que provocó la homogeneización de los procedimientos técnicos, principalmente en los recipientes de mayor demanda. Asimismo, el surgimiento de la cerámica campaniforme en el repertorio ceramológico del poblado no presenta una ruptura completa en relación a la cerámica común, aunque muestra innovaciones en la tecnología (decoraciones con relleno de pasta blanca) y en el repertorio formal de los recipientes. Su valor social hace pensar que su producción ha obedecido a mecanismos de control político e ideológico, ya que surge asociada a contextos de consolidación y exhibición del poder de las elites que vivieron en Valencina de la Concepción. La existencia de varias tendencias productivas está asociada a la consolidación de un modelo de progresiva complejidad social y económica que adquiere su máxima expresión a partir de mediados del III Milenios A.N.E., caracterizado por el incremento de la producción y consecuente especialización de varios sectores artesanales. ; In order to evaluate the relationship between two complementary economic activities, pottery and metallurgy, we developed a theoretical and methodological approach for assessing the entire economic cycle of ceramic, from their procurement to consumption/use/discard, in three archaeological sites: Cabezo Juré (Alosno, Huelva), La Junta (Puebla de Guzmán, Huelva) and Valencina de la Concepción (Seville). . Methodologically, three complementary techniques from materials science were used: compositional analysis by ICP-MS and ICP-OES, petrographic analysis of ceramic thin-sections and mineralogical analysis by X-ray Diffraction (XRD). In specific cases, scanning electron microscopy (SEM) equipped with system of X-ray Energy Dispersive Microanalysis (EDS-SEM), electron microprobe analyser (EPMA) and porosity analysis were performed. The results of the investigation have revealed the existence of two autonomous models of economic and social organization of the pottery production in the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula during the third millennium B.C.E. Specific data provided by Cabezo Juré and La Junta shows that the whole technological process was done at the local level, with a self-sufficient and expeditious production to meet the basic needs and where labour force never surpassed part-time intensity. The information available seems to indicate that pottery production would be an activity open to all community members and the access to raw materials would not be restricted, as part of the resources of the territory would be appropriated collectively. This means that this activity never reached levels of specialization and intensification and wasn't organized under a technical and social division of labour. This economic and social model of pottery production seems to have been widespread in the Iberian Peninsula from the beginning of the production economy. In Valencina de la Concepción the analysis of the different operational sequences of pottery production have allowed to raise the possibility of the existence of an alternative economic and social model. Apparently, during the first half of the third millennium B.C.E. a technological tradition was consolidated in Valencina de la Concepción that involved the incorporation of new technical innovations. In response to increased consumption demand, the production units had adopted uniform production processes that are reflected in the preferential selection of raw materials, standardization profiles, standardized manufacturing process, surface treatment and firing. The analysis of pottery shows a slow and gradual trend towards greater standardization and specialization of production processes, due to greater investment of time, labour and resources in productive tasks, which caused homogenization of technical recipes, mainly in vessels of greater demand. The emergence of bell beaker pottery in ceramic assemblage doesn't show a complete breakdown in relation to the utilitarian pottery since for its production the same areas of supply are used. However, the minor presence of bell beaker around Valencina de la Concepción leads us to consider that there was not such an intensive and full-time production but rather should be thought of as an extraordinary production, oriented exclusively for use in ceremonial moments. Its social value suggests that production has resulted from political and ideological mechanisms of control sponsored and managed by elites.

El reconocimiento de identidades étnicas y políticas previas a la conquista española en Perú se ha basado tradicionalmente en los estilos cerámicos. En la costa central, aprovechando la existencia de fuentes sobre la cuenca del Lurín, se ha sugerido que los ayllus costeños se servían preferentemente de la cerámica utilitaria de estilo Ychsma, que definiría también a la cultura del mismo nombre; los habitantes de la cabecera del valle (Huarochirí) habrían utilizado recipientes cerámicos del estilo llamado «Serrano». La frecuente aparición de este segundo estilo en los sitios excavados o prospectados en el valle bajo del Lurín, se ha interpretado como prueba de la presencia e importancia política serrana en la costa. El artículo contrasta esta hipótesis mediante el análisis de Espectrometría de Masas por Ablación Láser con fuente de Plasma de Acoplamiento Inductivo (LA-ICP-MS) de 600 fragmentos de cerámica del valle bajo, medio y alto del Lurín y 116 muestras de arcilla de los valles del Chillón, Rímac, Lurín y Chilca, procesando los resultados mediante estadística multivariante y análisis espacial (SIG) con objeto de correlacionar conjuntos de alfares y grupos estilísticos con las áreas de extracción de la materia prima. Los resultados finales muestran que el valle del Lurín y el valle del Rímac tuvieron cada uno su propia tradición estilística y tecnológica en las vasijas de uso utilitario; indican, asimismo, que el hipotético «Estilo Serrano» caracteriza a la producción de alfareros del valle del Lurín, mientras que el estilo Ychsma se produce principalmente en el valle del Rímac. Estas conclusiones obligan a reinterpretar las relaciones entre sierra y costa durante el Horizonte Tardío, incluyendo el comienzo del Periodo Colonial, y a someter a crítica la existencia de la «cultura Ychsma» en el territorio del hipotético señorío del mismo nombre. ; The recognition of ethnic and political identities in pre-Conquest Peru has been traditionally based on ceramic styles. In the Central Coast, taking advantage of the existence of historical sources about the Lurin Valley, it has been suggested that coastal ayllus were using preferably Ychsma Style utilitarian pottery, which would also define the culture of the same name; the inhabitants of headwaters of the valley (Huarochirí) would have used so-called «Serrano» Style pottery. The frequency of occurrence of this style in excavated or surveyed sites at Lower Lurin Valley has been interpreted as evidence for highland presence and political importance on the coast. The article tests this hypothesis by analyzing, through Laser Ablation Inducted Couple Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), 600 potsherds from Lower, Middle and Upper Lurin Valley and 116 clay samples from Chillon, Rimac, Lurin and Chilca valleys; the results has been processed by multivariate statistics and spatial analysis (SIG) in order to correlate ensembles of pottery workshops and stylistic groups with areas of clay extraction. The final results show that the Lurin Valley and the Rimac Valley each had its own stylistic and technological tradition in utilitarian pottery; they also show that the hypothetical «Serrano» Style was characteristic of potters in the Lurin Valley, while Ychsma Style was mainly produced in the Rimac Valley. Such findings force us to reinterpret the relationship between highlands and coast during the Late Horizon, including the early Colonial Period, and to subject to criticism the existence of the «Ychsma culture» in the territory of the hypothetical chiefdom of the same name.

El Cobre Reciente del Cerro de la Virgen (Orce, Granada) destaca no sólo por sus estructuras construidas, tanto en lo que respecta al hábitat (viviendas de adobe) como en lo que se refiere al sistema de fortificación, sino por la abundancia relativa de cerámica campaniforme. En este trabajo se analizan los materiales cerámicos decorados correspondientes a la campaña de excavación que tuvo lugar en el yacimiento en 1986, en el marco del Proyecto Millares. El estudio morfométrico y tecnológico (a través de DRX y estudio por lupa binocular) en combinación con la contextualización cronoestratigráfica de los hallazgos ha permitido señalar que también aquí se puede constatar la evolución de estilos, el carácter autóctono de la mayoría de los materiales decorados recuperados y algunas diferencias respecto al estilo campaniforme del Sudeste tal y como se manifiesta en Los Millares. Además se discute el significado de la concentración (relativa) de estos materiales en contextos domésticos de determinados yacimientos y áreas de éstos, en relación con la creación de verdaderas entidades territoriales en el Sudeste de la Península Ibérica. ; O Cobre Recente do Cerro de la Virgen (Orce, Granada) destacase não só pelas suas estruturas construídas, tanto em termos de habitat (estruturas de adobe) no que respeita ao sistema de fortificação, mas pela abundância relativa de cerâmica campaniforme. Neste trabalho são analisados cerâmicas decoradas correspondentes à campanha de escavações de 1986, no âmbito do Projecto Millares. O estudo morfométrico e tecnológico (através da DRX e lupa binocular) em combinação com a contextualização cronoestratigráfica dos resultados permitiu observar que também aqui se pode ver a evolução dos estilos, o carácter local dos materiais decorados recuperado na excavaçao e também certas discrepâncias com o estilo do Sudeste, como de feito manifesta-se em Los Millares. Além disso, discute-se o significado da concentração (relativa) destes materiais em contextos domésticos de certos jacimentos e áreas, em relação à criação de verdadeiras entidades territoriais no sudeste da Península Ibérica é discutido. ; The Recent Copper Age at Cerro de la Virgen (Orce, Granada) is notable for its built structures, with respect to habitat (mud-brick dwellings) and its fortification system, but also for the relative abundance of Bell Bakers ceramics. In this paper have been analyzed the decorated ceramics corresponding to the excavation campaign that took place at the site in 1986 under the Project of Los Millares. The morphometric and technological study (by XRD and study by binocular magnifying glass) in combination with the chronostratigraphic contextualization of the findings has allowed to note that also here can be seen the evolution of styles, the local character of most decorated recovered materials and certain discrepancies with the Southeast Bell Beaker style as manifested in Los Millares. Moreover, the significance of the (relative) concentration of these items in domestic contexts of certain sites and areas, in relation to true polities formation in the Southeastern Iberian Peninsula, is discussed. ; El presente estudio se inscribe en el desarrollo de los proyectos Dieta y Movilidad en la Prehistoria Reciente de Andalucía. Un estudio de la jerarquización social a partir del registro funerario (P12-HUM-1510), financiado por la Consejería de Economía, Innovación, Ciencia y Empleo de la Junta de Andalucía, y Estrategias agropecuarias y consumo en la Edad del Bronce del Sur de la Península Ibérica. Análisis de Plantas, Animales y Restos Humanos(HAR2016-80057-P), financiado por el Ministerio de Economía y Competitividad.

Editorial for the Special Issue of Archaeometry 'Tackling Recycling in the Past'. The practice of recycling has undoubtedly become one of the most important strategies to build a long-term sustainable society in the modern world. However, both the perception and practice of recycling can be traced back to prehistory through various archaeological records. Objects made of stone, jade, mortar, textiles, pottery and bones display evidence of physical reshaping and repair, as do objects of metal and glass. Metal and glass, moreover, are materials which can be melted and recast, freeing ancient people from the limitations of the physical form of the original object. Illustrating and understanding patterns of recycling and the underlying social organization can significantly advance our knowledge of ancient people, their economic, political and cultural motivations for recycling, as well as the broad interaction between the social and material world. Though the issue of recycling is not novel in the discussions and debates of the archaeological circle, new theoretical frameworks, methodologies and archaeometric data encourage us to revisit the topic in this special issue. In this editorial, we consider what recycling means in the past, and why these papers are vital.

Introduction. Amphorae is a significant part of pottery from the early medieval sites of Pontic region. They are traditionally considered as important source for analyzing the chronology, directions and intensity of ancient trade links. The paper is devoted to comparative analysis of clay raw material used for making medieval pontic amphorae. These ceramic containers are wide spread in the sites of the 8th - 10th centuries in Crimea, Taman, the Don and the Volga river basins and in other areas.

Methods and materials. Two groups of sources were investigated. The first group contains samples from 280 amphorae found on settlement sites of Saltovo-Mayaki times in the Middle and Lower Don basin. These samples have been сollected by the author in the museum funds of Southern regions of Russia. The second group is represented by samples of clay raw material from Southern part of Crimea where pontic amphorae production centers were located (the foothills and Southern coast). We used A.A. Bobrinsky's method for determining different regions for digging of main plastic raw material by analyzing the ceramic under a stereoscopic microscope.

Results. The main result of study is allocation of two kinds of raw materials which were used for pontic amphorae making (about 84 % of studied vessels). After comparing these raw material kinds with Crimean samples, their connection with different areas was clarified. These areas belong to different geological formations. The first area is in the South-Western Crimea, and the second area covers the Southern and South-Eastern Crimean coast, to the South of the ridge of the Crimean mountains. The conducted research allowed obtaining interesting data which need to be further proved by the methods of archaeometry.

Archaeological evidence - i.e. presence of exogenous, foreign material objects (pottery, obsidian and so on) - is used to make inferences on ancient trade, while population movement can only be assessed when the biological component of an ancient community is analyzed (i.e. the human skeletal remains). But the exchange of goods or the presence of foreign architectural patterns does not necessarily imply genetic admixture between groups, while at the same time humans can migrate for reasons that may not be related only to trading. The Prehispanic Maya were a complex, highly stratified society. During the Classic period, city-states governed over large regions, establishing complex ties of alliance and commerce with the region's minor centers and their allies, against other city-states within and outside the Maya realm. The fall of the political system during the Classic period (the Maya collapse) led to hypothetical invasions of leading groups from the Gulf of Mexico into the northern Maya lowland at the onset of the Postclassic. However, it is still unclear whether this collapse was already underway when this movement of people started. The whole picture of population dynamics in Maya Prehispanic times, during the Classic and the Postclassic, can slowly emerge only when all the pieces of the puzzle are put together in a holistic and multidisciplinary fashion. The contributions of this volume bring together contributions from archaeology, archaeometry, paleodemography and bioarchaeology. They provide an initial account of the dynamic qualities behind large-scale ancient population dynamics, and at the same time represent novel multidisciplinary points of departure towards an integrated reconstruction and understanding of Prehispanic population dynamics in the Maya region. Andrea CucinaDoctorate degree in Paleopathology (1998), Catholic University of Rome, School of Medicine, Italy. Laurea(honoris) in Biological Sciences with a major in Physical anthropology, University of Rome La Sapienza. Currently, Full Professor at the School of Anthropological Sciences, Autonomous University of Yucatán in Merida, (Mexico). Member of the National System of Investigators Level II (Mexico). He has carried out field and lab research in Italy, Dominican Republic República, Pakistan, Florida, México and Guatemala. His main interest is in dental anthropology of extant and recent populations. Currently, it focuses on paleodiet, paleopathology, developmental stress and population dynamics of the ancient Mayas (though not exclusively), and the early colonizers on the New World, as well as on biodistance studies of pre- and proto-historic populations in Europe and South America. He is Book Review Editor of HOMO, Journal of Comparative Human Biology, and member of several academic international associations. He has authored or co-authored more than eighty scientific papers in international journals (American Journal of Physical Anthropology, Journal of Archaeological Sciences, Latin American Antiquity, NATURE, International Journal of Osteoarchaeology, HOMO and more), chapter in edited volumes, and has edited six books.