Archaeometric data from the Via dei Sepolcri ceramic workshop in Pompeii (Southern Italy)

Multianalytical investigation of wasters from the Tower 8/Porta di Nola refuse middens in Pompeii: Sr–Nd isotopic, chemical, petrographic, and mineralogical analyses

“…More recently, a multianalytic program of archaeometric analysis involving a pottery workshop in the Via dei Sepolcri , immediately outside Pompeii's Porta Ercolano (Herculaneum Gate) that specialized in the manufacture of TWW (distinct from the TWW being analyzed in the program of analysis being reported here) (Cavassa et al, 2013, 2015), provided new and remarkable insights into the ceramic production cycle in the town. The outcomes of this study indicate that this production involved the use of marine clay with a composition strikingly similar to that of the clay from the Rufoli di Ogliara and Montecorvino Rovella sources (Grifa et al, 2021a, 2021b).…”

Curricular Materials on the Chemistry of Pottery, Including Thermodynamic Calculations for Redox Reactions in the 3-Stage Firing Process of Athenian Black- and Red-Figure Vases Produced from the Sixth–Fourth Centuries BCE

“…Indeed, one of my additional goals in revamping The Thacher School’s advanced chemistry curriculum was to introduce students to reading, discussing, understanding, and interpreting primary source science publications, and they are provided with numerous opportunities to do so in the new curriculum described here and in prior publications. , For example, during the winter term of the course, which focuses on chemical archeology, the students read scientific papers on (1) the chemical and mineralogical composition of pottery sherds with implications for the provenance of clay body source materials, the trade network for raw material goods, and the production methods used to make pottery that was buried by the 79 CE eruption of Mt. Vesuvius at Pompeii; , (2) the chemical composition of Roman Imperial coins as reflecting attempts to standardize ancient smelting and minting operations across the Roman empire starting with the reign of Augustus (23–20 BCE); and (3) the chemical composition of ancient Egyptian glass beads as indicating the use of smelting byproducts (metallurgical slags) as coloring agents in the production of early glasses …”

“…1,2 For example, during the winter term of the course, which focuses on chemical archeology, the students read scientific papers on (1) the chemical and mineralogical composition of pottery sherds with implications for the provenance of clay body source materials, the trade network for raw material goods, and the production methods used to make pottery that was buried by the 79 CE eruption of Mt. Vesuvius at Pompeii; 54,55 (2) the chemical composition of Roman Imperial coins as reflecting attempts to standardize ancient smelting and minting operations across the Roman empire starting with the reign of Augustus (23−20 BCE); 56 and (3) the chemical composition of ancient Egyptian glass beads as indicating the use of smelting byproducts (metallurgical slags) as coloring agents in the production of early glasses. 57 Feedback from students on the pedagogical shift and case studies approach in the new course has been very positive.…”

Minero‐petrographic characterization of fine ware from Cales (South Italy)

“…Multivariate statistical analyses were carried out using R (R Development Core Team, 2014) software on chemical data standardized via log10 transformation, omitting some elements (CaO, MnO, P 2 O 5 , Ba) that are more susceptible to post-burial contamination (e.g., Grifa et al, 2013Grifa et al, , 2015Maggetti, 2001). Hierarchical clustering analysis (HCA) was applied to the data set reduced by PCA (principal component analysis) to cluster samples in a dendrogram using an agglomerative clustering algorithm (Euclidean distance and average linkage method).…”