Neolithic long-distance exchanges in Southern Arabia: A supposed road for the ‘Jade’ axes

The Importance of Multidisciplinary Analytical Strategies to Solve Identification and Characterization Challenges in Gemology: The Example of the “Green Stones”

“…can generate Raman fluorescences. Moreover, as previously mentioned, a potential difficulty could emerge in jadeitepumpellyite identification, considering prudential tolerance of about 2 cm −1 Raman shift Moreover, as previously mentioned, a potential difficulty could emerge in jadeitepumpellyite identification, considering prudential tolerance of about 2 cm −1 Raman shift for the spectrum interpretation, correlated with possible substitutions and/or crystal lattice defects, which are very common in natural phases [90]. In fact, these two phases diverge for only a 3 cm −1 Raman shift on the main vibrational bands.…”

“…Traces of the same therapeutical application are reported by Salviati [89] regarding the Medici family of Florence during the Renaissance. Although there are not previous etymological clues on the western side of the world, and though the Romans did not appreciate the jades from what we know because they considered them to be unlucky, it is a fact that objects man-made in "jade" materials, such as ceremonial insignia and weapons, objects symbolizing the social status of their owners, and ritual and funerary artifacts, have been found in a different part of the world since the Neolithic Age [85,[90][91][92][93][94][95], attesting the high level of consideration for this material in ancient civilizations.…”

“…In the case of regional metamorphism, they can be associated with vesuviana and diopside and, finally, grossular can be associated with serpentine and found in rhodingite rock (Figure 3b,c). This example can help to understand why the determination of geographic origin in Green Stones is so complex: not only different mines can produce similar materials, but also differences in terms of chemical and mineralogical distribution can be found within the same vein [90]. Moreover, from a multidisciplinary point of view, the knowledge of the geological process and the petrographic identification of the mining areas are necessary information for the geographic origin hypothesis [115].…”

“…Indeed, in recent decades, several micro-Raman mapping systems have been developed, allowing the complete spatially resolved interpretation of the data, particularly suitable for uneven samples. In other words, regarding Green Stones, the micro-Raman tool results in a suitable technique for testing phase distribution and homogeneity [90]. In Figure 7, an example of micro-Raman mapping on a green stone is reported.…”

“…Unfortunately, a set of standards of referent materials/stones are not always available. Al Kindi [90] reported the study of several neolithic nephrite axes, discovered in Dhofar governorate (Sultanate of Oman), where the elemental characterization was performed by ED-XRF. In this second case, the data obtained for the samples have been compared by a semi-quantitative method, with the data obtained in one sample collected from the nephrite veins of Lawdar District (Yemen).…”