Archaeometry into archaeology

Application of Forensic Science Techniques to Trace Fossils on Dinosaur Bones From a Quarry in the Upper Jurassic Morrison Formation, Northeastern Wyoming

“…Modern etching patterns on fossil bone produce haloes of chemical activity that appear as white, yellow, or gray discolorations on the bone surface (e.g., Stewart, 1979). If this continues, shallow grooves are produced on the surface of the bone (Binford, 1981;Ehrenreich, 1995). Sometimes roots are associated with these types of grooves.…”

“…We interpret these shallow, branching groove patterns as the chemical etching activity of roots on bone surfaces, based on comparisons to similar morphologies ascribed to roots (e.g., Binford, 1981;Ehrenreich, 1995;West and Hasiotis, 2007); herein, these are referred to as rhizoetchings. Modern roots chemically etch bone to obtain calcium, iron, and phosphorous-nutrients that are necessary for plant growth (Fig.…”

“…The gray mudstone transitions upwards into a purple mudstone with rhizoliths and carbonate nodules ϳ96 cm above the base of the unit. Sauropod bones on the eastern side of the quarry are commonly encased Gabel, 1955 Coleoptera: Dermestidae: D. maculatus Damage to bone Feeding Hefti et al, 1980 Coleoptera: Dermestidae: D. maculatus Damage to bones in dermestid colony Feeding and pupation Timm, 1982 Coleoptera: Scarabaeidae: Anoplognathus Damage to buried skeletons Unknown Haglund, 1976 Isoptera Bone erosion with plugs of stercoral filling openings of a skull Dwelling Wood, 1976 Isoptera: Termitidae: Nasutitermes Enlargement of foramina and excavation of marrow cavities under stercoral Dwelling Thorne and Kimsey, 1983 Isoptera: Mastotermes Paired scratches on bone surface Unknown Watson and Abbey, 1986 Isoptera: Termitidae: Nasutitermes Destruction of bones underneath stercoral covering Dwelling Wylie et al, 1987 Isoptera Grooves etched into bone under stercoral Unknown Haynes, 1991 Isoptera Pits along a stercoral-covered gallery on the underside of bones Unknown Tappen, 1994 Isoptera: Mastotermes Paired scratches on bone surface Unknown Kaiser and Katterwee, 2001 Lepidoptera: Tineidae Grooves in antelope horn cores Dwelling McCorquodale, 1898 Lepidoptera: Tineidae: Tinea deperdella Etched 2 mm-wide grooves in horn cores Dwelling Behrensmeyer, 1975 Straight-sided, cylindrical boring in astragulus Pupation Hill, 1987 Lepidoptera Grooves and chambers on horn core Pupation Gautier, 1993 Insects, likely Isoptera, Coleoptera, or Lepidoptera Cylindrical holes in bone Unknown Newman, 1993 Insect Cylindrical pits Pupation Gautier, 1993 Insects, possibly Binford, 1987;Ehrenreich, 1995 Fungi Tunnels and grooves with U-shaped cross sections 1-100 m in diameter Extraction of nutrients Sognnaes, 1955;Hackett, 1981;Piepenbrink, 1986;Davis, 1997 in carbonate nodules. The gray mudstone overlies a well-cemented, goldcolored sandstone bed.…”

Archaeometry: changes and current trends

“…Esa información resulta básica en la demostración y clarificación de las hipótesis arqueológicas. Por tanto y en definitiva, el futuro más inmediato de la Arqueometría va a depender de la actitud más o menos crítica que la propia comunidad arqueológica tome hacia las aproximaciones de base experimental, la cual va a decidir en buena medida la clase de datos que se van a generar y el valor de los mismos en las interpretaciones y sínte-sis arqueológicas de las próximas décadas (Ehrenreich 1995).…”