Ceramic studies using portable XRF: From experimental tempered ceramics to imports and imitations at Tell Mozan, Syria

Frahm, Ellery

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2017.12.002

Cited by 41 publications

(8 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…The portable and non-destructive nature of the instrumentation is a major advantage for further field studies with a suitable reference framework in place, however, data analysis needs to be carefully controlled and cautiously interpreted because p-XRF provides semi-quantitative data and it has been the scope of numerous research efforts to ensure reliable data [27,28,29,30,31,32]. In this research, chemical analysis was carried out by p-XRF, which has been used as an explorative and especially non-destructive technique for provenance studies [27].…”

Section: Chemical and Petrographic Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Donner

Casale

Braekmans

et al. 2019

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

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This research characterizes and reconstructs clay procurement and production practices through the integration of insitu portable XRF and petrographic analysis on ancient ceramics and clay materials recovered from the Mayales river subbasin (central Nicaragua). A particular choice for this study was the largest and arguably most significant archaeological site in the area, Aguas Buenas (cal 400-1250 CE), a pre-Hispanic indigenous agglomeration consisting of 371 human-made mounds of various shapes arranged in geometric patterns. Microanalytical approaches were applied to reconstruct the use of raw mineral resources in the production of ubiquitous pottery materials found at this site and in its immediate surroundings. The resulting compositional analysis produced geochemical and mineralogical data allowing for the characterisation of distinct, geologically-based compositional groups throughout the valley, improving on the limited geological data resolution previously available. The integrated microscopic and compositional analysis (through p-XRF) of archaeological pottery materials and raw clay samples, generates a number of hypotheses and insights about the nature of the Aguas Buenas site, and its role as a shared space among groups living in the Mayales river subbasin. Additionally, this study provides a solid research framework of investigation that can be employed for more detailed and extensive future studies on pre-Hispanic human occupation in this research area or elsewhere.

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Section: Chemical and Petrographic Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Donner

Casale

Braekmans

et al. 2019

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

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“…non-destructive nature of pXRF and its capacity to provide quick results are obvious benefits for examining archaeological items that cannot be damaged or are not easily moved. In the study of ancient artefacts, pXRF has demonstrated its potential on potsherds, metals, lithics, and cuneiform tablets [e.g., [49][50][51][52][53][54][55][56][57][58][59][60]. The use of pXRF for archaeological sediments and soils, has also increased in the very last years.…”

Section: Plos Onementioning

confidence: 99%

Identifying anthropogenic features at Seoke (Botswana) using pXRF: Expanding the record of southern African Stone Walled Sites

et al. 2021

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Numerous and extensive ‘Stone Walled Sites’ have been identified in southern African Iron Age landscapes. Appearing from around 1200 CE, and showing considerable variability in size and form, these settlements are named after the dry-stone wall structures that characterize them. Stone Walled Sites were occupied by various Bantu-speaking agropastoral communities. In this paper we test the use of pXRF (portable X-ray fluorescence analysis) to generate a ‘supplementary’ archaeological record where evident stratigraphy is lacking, survey conditions may be uneven, and excavations limited, due to the overall site size. We propose herein the application of portable X-ray fluorescence analysis (pXRF) coupled with multivariate exploratory analysis and geostatistical modelling at Seoke, a southern African SWS of historical age (18th century CE). The aim of the paper is twofold: to explore the potential of the application of a low cost, quick, and minimally invasive technique to detect chemical markers in anthropogenic sediments from a Stone Walled Site, and to propose a way to analyse the results in order to improve our understanding of the use of space at non-generalized scales in such sites.

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“…We have already noted the potential that geochemistry offers for augmenting petrographic data. Ceramic projects utilizing SEM-EDS, ICP-AES and -MS, labbased XRF, portable -XRF ( pXRF) or other forms of elemental analysis are still relatively rare in the Levant, though increasing rapidly (Badreshany 2013;Badreshany et al 2020;Bettles 2003;Burton et al 2018;Frahm 2018;Iserlis et al 2019;Kennedy et al 2020;Schmitt et al 2018). A number of earlier works utilized NAA and PIXE/PIGME (Esse and Hopke 1986;McGovern 2000); as have some more recent projects (Gilboa et al 2015;Zuckermann et al 2010) (see Sowada 2009 for a comprehensive overview).…”

Section: A Cautionary Word On Geochemistrymentioning

confidence: 99%

Ceramic studies and petrographic analysis in Levantine archaeology, the limitations of current approaches

Badreshany

Gibbons

2020

Levant

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By way of an introduction to this volume, we look to provide a brief review of recent approaches to ceramic studies in Levantine archaeology, and to the way that the results of laboratory-based investigations have been integrated within these. As we are interested in using ceramic data to address questions that extend beyond single-site studies, we pay particular attention to the information potential offered by the large-scale integration of ceramic and petrographic data from multiple archaeological projects. We will begin by highlighting some of the weaknesses of traditional approaches to pottery in Levantine archaeology and how these have continued to limit the interpretive potential of ceramic data. The strengths and weaknesses of petrographic research in the region to date will be discussed, and observations made regarding the use of petrography and geochemistry to address wider issues. The question of how new approaches, and the large-scale integration of ceramic data, might be used to address key social and economic questions in Levantine archaeology will form the subject of the concluding paper of this volume.

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Ceramic studies using portable XRF: From experimental tempered ceramics to imports and imitations at Tell Mozan, Syria

Cited by 41 publications

References 45 publications

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Identifying anthropogenic features at Seoke (Botswana) using pXRF: Expanding the record of southern African Stone Walled Sites

Ceramic studies and petrographic analysis in Levantine archaeology, the limitations of current approaches

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Ceramic studies using portable XRF: From experimental tempered ceramics to imports and imitations at Tell Mozan, Syria

Cited by 41 publications

References 45 publications

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Identifying anthropogenic features at Seoke (Botswana) using pXRF: Expanding the record of southern African Stone Walled Sites

Ceramic studies and petrographic analysis in Levantine archaeology, the limitations of current approaches

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Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture

Ceramic comales at the Barillas site (cal 1255–1390 CE), central Nicaragua: Defining a local technical tradition of griddle manufacture