The knowledge and dissemination of the Iberian culture (6th to 1st century BC) have made great progress within the last three decades, so much so that it is now one of the main fields in the study of the Protohistory of the Iberian Peninsula. Even so, certain topics remain which need further research in Iberian Archaeology, such as the processes of manufacturing and decoration of various kinds of materials, and the choice of raw materials, including pigments. This piece of research presents micro-Raman spectroscopy analysis of a set of materials dated between the sixth and the third century BC. The typology of these materials includes ceramics and coverings with and without decoration. All of them are located in various archaeological sites of the Spanish provinces of Jaén, Granada, Málaga and Ciudad Real. The use of micro-Raman spectroscopy together with energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence and X-ray diffraction helped identify gypsum as the main raw material used for the inside coverings of houses and tombs, as well as for storage structures. Less frequent raw materials are calcite, dolomite and quartz. As to decoration in ceramics, the origin and elaboration of black decoration are here identified for the first time in the history of Iberian culture. Black decoration can be classified as two periods: the older period used manganese oxide and the later period used magnetite. Cinnabar has also been identified in the red decoration of ceramics retrieved as grave goods.

An in situ archaeometrical campaign was organized in 2018 for the physicochemical analysis of the exceptional Mosaico de los Amores of the Cástulo archaeological site (Linares, Spain). Several mobile instruments were brought on the field to investigate the colourful tesserae of the mosaic. The main aim of the current research paper is the comparison of different mobile instruments and their applicability on measuring in open air environments. In this study, the comparison of four mobile Raman instruments, using different excitation lasers and technologies, is discussed. Three portable, the EZRaman‐I dual Raman analyser from TSI Inc. (USA), the i‐Raman® EX from BWTEK (USA), and the BWS445‐785S InnoRam™ Raman spectrometer from BWTEK (USA), and one handheld system, the Bravo Raman spectrometer from Bruker (Europe), are compared in terms of their characteristics, applicability, and performance when conducting non‐invasive and non‐destructive analysis.

Micro Raman spectroscopy (MRS) and energy dispersive x-ray microfluorescence (mEDXRF) analysis of pigments in the Iberian cemetery of Tutugi (from the fourth to the third century BC, Recent archaeological research on the Iberian cemetery of Tutugi (from fourth to third century BC), in the administrative term of Galera (Granada, Spain), has granted access to a range of materials revealing major features of Iberian culture. The only information available on pigments in the Iberian culture refers to domestic ceramic and the inside covering of burials. This paper expands on the previous discussion by incorporating pigment studies of the decoration of highly symbolic ceramic vessels, a funerary urn and a glass paste vessel of three burials of the cemetery of Tutugi.Regarding the method, the pigment study relied on the mineralogical and elemental analysis using non-destructive spectroscopic techniques such as micro Raman spectroscopy (MRS) and Energy Dispersive X-Ray Microfluorescence (mEDXRF). These studies are used more and more frequently for research on archaeological items for their advantages over other techniques.The results obtained indicate the use of hematite, cinnabar and gypsum in the decoration of ceramic vessels. The pigments used for the urn were made with hematite, gypsum and amorphous carbon. Naples yellow and Egyptian blue were used as pigments in the fragment of glass paste vessel.Overall, joint use of MRS and mEDXRF provides highly valuable data on the processes used for pigment-making, on the use of certain minerals that are highly symbolic among Iberians, such as cinnabar, and provides new evidence for the preservation of archaeological items retrieved from the burial site.Sample 11023 belongs to a well-known Iberian pattern: a bowl with red decoration both on the inside and the outside. The MRS and mEDXRF analysis of pigments

No abstract

No abstract