History of individuals of the 18th/19th centuries stored in bones, teeth, and hair analyzed by LA–ICP–MS—a step in attempts to confirm the authenticity of Mozart’s skull

Abstract

A cranium stored in the Stiftung Mozarteum in Salzburg/Austria which is believed to be that of Mozart, and skeletal remains of suspected relatives which have been excavated from the Mozart family grave in the cemetery in Salzburg, have been subjected to scientific investigations to determine whether or not the skull is authentic. A film project by the Austrian television ORF in collaboration with Interspot Film on this issue was broadcast at the beginning of the "Mozart year 2006". DNA analysis could not clarify relationships among the remains and, therefore, assignment of the samples was not really possible. In our work this skull and excavated skeletal remains have been quantified for Pb, Cr, Hg, As, and Sb content by laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to obtain information about the living conditions of these individuals. A small splinter of enamel (less than 1 mm(3)) from a tooth of the "Mozart cranium" was also available for investigation. Quantification was performed by using spiked hydroxyapatite standards. Single hair samples which are recorded to originate from Mozart have also been investigated by LA-ICP-MS and compared with hair samples of contemporary citizens stored in the Federal Pathologic-Anatomical Museum, Vienna. In general, Pb concentrations up to approximately 16 mug g(-1) were found in the bone samples of 18th century individuals (a factor of 7 to 8 higher than in recent samples) reflecting elevated Pb levels in food or beverages. Elevated Pb levels were also found in hair samples. The amount of Sb in the enamel sample of the "Mozart cranium" (approx. 3 mug g(-1)) was significantly higher than in all the other tooth samples investigated, indicating possible Sb ingestion in early childhood. Elevated concentrations of elements in single hair samples gave additional information about possible exposure of the individuals to heavy metals at a particular point in their life.

Role of laser ablation–inductively coupled plasma–mass spectrometry in cultural heritage research: A review

“…The analysis of skeletal remains documents the dietary habits of past populations and the exposure to poisons, pollution, disease [84][85][86][87][88]. The elemental composition of bones, teeth, hairs can in fact be considered as bioarchives of information about the day life in the past.…”

“…Samples are usually cleaned with brush and in ultrasonic bath and eventually cut longitudinally in order to obtain cross sections or fresh fragments. Calcium is sometimes used as the internal standard, being at massive level [84,85,88].…”

“…Values were in fact systematically higher than those obtained by liquid ICP-MS analyses, probably due to Ca-P-O isobaric interference on Sr determination. LA-ICP-MS was recently used for a forensic application [88]. A cranium and some hairs from to the Stiftung Museum in Salzburg (Austria), supposed to belong to Mozart, were investigated in order to authenticate the objects and shed a light on the musician premature death.…”

Laser Ablation Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry (LA‐ICPMS)

“…This approach is most often applied when no suitable internal standard is available for quantification and when specific ''fingerprints'' of the intensity ratios are sufficient to discriminate individual samples by means of statistical analysis. Forensic [111][112][113] and authenticity testing [114,115] are prominent fields of application where such fingerprinting is frequently used. The intensity ratios may be calculated from average ion signals, resembling the mean local concentration ratios or as a profile across a sample or in depth.…”

The Applicability of Plasma‐Based Techniques to Biological Monitoring

“…Preparation of hair samples for the determination of elements with ICP-MS was described in detail [136]. Some authors compared the trace element contents of hair determined by ICP-AES, ICP-MS, and LA-ICP-MS with other anthropometric and clinical data [137,138]. Seven elements were determined in mummified individuals exhumed during excavations of cemeteries in Sudan [139].…”