EVIDENCE FOR THE MIXING OF FATS AND WAXES IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL CERAMICS

Lipid residues from two Late Saxon/early medieval ceramic vessels recovered from excavations at West Cotton, Raunds, Northamptonshire, U.K., have been investigated by high-temperature gas chromatography (GC) and GC/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The solvent extracts of sherds sampled from different points on each vessel (i.e., base, body and rim) were analysed quantitatively and qualitatively and compounds were identified which were characteristic of beeswax and animal fat. Furthermore, by determining the sites of accumulation of the specific lipid types and their concentrations in different parts of the vessels it can be inferred that the beeswax was added to the vessels prior to the addition of the fat. It was concluded that the two vessels performed different functions in antiquity.     

AN EARLY CELTIC POTTERY WORKSHOP IN NORTH WESTERN HUNGARY: SOME ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND TECHNOLOGICAL EVIDENCE

Summary. Excavations at the settlement site of Krautacker in the outskirts of Sopron (NW Hungary) have produced evidence of pottery manufacture from LT B to LT C. Three kilns of updraught type were discovered. Their technology is discussed. Stamp-decorated wheel-turned ware was produced throughout. The contexts and distribution of these vessels are considered.     

THE OLIVE IN THE PREHISTORIC AEGEAN: THE EVIDENCE FOR DOMESTICATION IN THE EARLY BRONZE AGE

Summary. In 1972 Colin Renfrew suggested that the rise of Mycenaean civilization may have been made possible by the development of a polycultural triad of wheat, vine and olive in the Early Bronze Age. A careful examination of the botanical and archaeological evidence for the domestication of the olive lends little support to this aspect of the thesis. The palynological evidence from various points in Greece is inconclusive, but for most areas it would seem to suggest that the intensive cultivation of olive began in the Late Bronze Age or even later.
No conclusive archaeological evidence for processing or storage of olive oil exists for any period in the Bronze Age. The question of when olive domestication took place must remain unanswered until more data are available from Early and Middle Bronze Age contexts and more conclusive botanical data have been collected.     

THE ROLE OF DAGGERS IN EARLY BRONZE AGE BRITAIN: THE EVIDENCE OF WEAR ANALYSIS

Summary. This paper examines the detailed condition of 55 Early Bronze Age daggers from central southern England. It appears that the more elaborate weapons had remained in circulation for a longer period than other examples.     

DIRECT EVIDENCE OF PRIMARY GLASS PRODUCTION IN LATE BRONZE AGE AMARNA,EGYPT

This paper presents direct archaeological evidence for the primary production of glass at the LBA site of Tell el‐Amarna, in the form of numerous finds of semi‐finished glass. The diagnostic microstructural and chemical composition of these finds is presented alongside macroscopically similar finds, of shapeless lumps of finished white glass. The semi‐finished glass was found to contain numerous inclusions of residual quartz and newly formed lime‐rich crystal phases, but no added colorant. However, several samples of semi‐finished glass have antimony oxide levels comparable to those of finished white glass, suggesting that the opacifier was added to the initial glass‐making batch. The results are discussed in comparison with the evidence for glass‐making from Qantir – Pi‐Ramesse, identifying some close technical similarities, which indicate that the same technological processes were used at both sites for the production of glass.     

GONE, BUT STILL RESPECTED: SOME EVIDENCE FOR IRON AGE HOUSE PLATFORMS IN LOWLAND ENGLAND

Summary. This paper considers the apparent absence of house or settlement platforms in Iron Age lowland England. It demands that lowland sites be interpreted using criteria derived from suitable (lowland) contexts. The dangers of using upland-derived explanatory models are illustrated with selected examples. The Cat's Water subsite, Fengate, Peterborough provides examples of probable house-platforms, protected from plough-damage by alluvium; these, in turn, are used to provide criteria to recognise similar features on poorly preserved sites. Comparisons are drawn with recently excavated sites in the Netherlands. The paper concludes with some general observations on the nature of once-wet sites and the dangers inherent in their interpretation.     

ANALCIME CRYSTALLIZATION AND COMPOSITIONAL PROFILES—COMPARING APPROACHES TO DETECT POST‐DEPOSITIONAL ALTERATIONS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL POTTERY*

The approaches of comparative studies and profile measurements, often used in order to detect post‐depositional alterations of ceramics, have been applied simultaneously to two sets of Roman pottery, both of which include altered individuals. As analytical techniques, Neutron Activation Analysis and X‐Ray Diffraction have been used. Both approaches lead to substantially different results. This shows that they detect different levels of alteration and should complement each other rather than being used exclusively. For the special process of a glassy phase decomposition followed by a crystallization of the Na‐zeolite analcime, the results suggest that it changes high‐fired calcareous pottery rapidly, and so fundamentally that the results of various archaeometric techniques can be severely disturbed.     

PERCEIVING COMMUNITIES: EXCHANGE, LANDSCAPES AND SOCIAL NETWORKS IN THE LATER IRON AGE OF WESTERN BRITAIN

Summary.   In recent years British Iron Age studies have focused on regionality whilst critiquing the hierarchical model of Iron Age society. Despite the success of these approaches there has been little detailed replacement of previous social models with an understanding of how Iron Age societies worked. Looking at the later Iron Age of western Britain this paper combines examination of the exchange of material culture alongside study of the landscape to explore the nature of Iron Age communities. It is argued that Iron Age societies in the region used material culture to construct and maintain social relationships, while using visual landscape references allowed groups to engage in larger perceived communities.     

EVALUATION OF BINDER/AGGREGATE RATIOS IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL LIME MORTARS WITH CARBONATE AGGREGATE: A COMPARATIVE ASSESSMENT OF CHEMICAL,MECHANICAL AND MICROSCOPIC APPROACHES*

This paper reports on the comparative evaluation of traditional and innovative methods for the investigation of mortar technology. Preliminary results of various approaches to determining the mix proportions in lime mortars with carbonate aggregate are presented. Quantitative analysis was tested on ad hoc prepared mortars of known composition containing carbonate aggregates of different origin (travertine and Bath limestone). Wet chemical methods, manual disaggregation and Digital Image Analysis of thin sections and cross‐sections stained with Alizarin Red S were tested. The advantages and drawbacks of the different approaches are discussed, and applications to the analysis of archaeological mortars and plasters are highlighted.     

ROCK SURFACE HARDNESS AS AN INDICATION OF EXPOSURE AGE: AN ARCHAEOLOGICAL APPLICATION OF THE SCHMIDT HAMMER*

A Schmidt Hammer was employed in evaluating the surface hardness of rocks which line ancient anthropogenic pit features, known as Pukaskwa pits, on the north shore of Lake Superior, Canada. This technique offers a possible new method of producing relative ana absolute dates for such exposed stone features Analysis of the data has provided a relative chronology for the pit features, representing two distinct construction phases. The range of absolute dates generated from the data indicates that the pits were likely constructed by Blackduck peoples c. 900 to 400 years BP.     

ORGANIC RESIDUE ANALYSIS IN ARCHAEOLOGY: THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL BIOMARKER REVOLUTION*

Organic residue analysis utilizes analytical organic chemical techniques to identify the nature and origins of organic remains that cannot be characterized using traditional techniques of archaeological investigation (because they are either amorphous or invisible). The field is founded upon the principle that the biomolecular, or biochemical, components of organic materials associated with human activity survive in a wide variety of locations and deposits at archaeological sites. The archaeological information contained in organic residues is represented by the biomolecular components of the natural products that contribute to the formation of a given residue. By applying appropriate separation (chromatographic) and identification (mass spectrometric) techniques, the preserved, and altered, biomolecular components of such residues can be revealed. Once identified, the Archaeological Biomarker Concept can be applied, wherein the structure and even isotopic composition(s) of a given biomolecule or suite of biomolecules (the ‘chemical fingerprint’) can be related to the compositions of organisms exploited by humans in the past. As the organic residue field emerges from its pre‐paradigmatic phase, and the organic residue revolution gathers pace, the way is open for challenging many long‐held archaeological hypotheses and offering new perspectives on the study of human activity in the past.     

PHOSPHATES IN ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS: IMPLICATIONS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONDITIONS OF BURIAL*

The occurrence of coarse‐grained vivianite and mitridatite aggregates in a potsherd, a grand ring and a timber imprint from the Second Iron Age site of Adria (Rovigo, northeastern Italy) suggest contrasting environmental conditions of burial. In particular, bone fragments were replaced by vivianite at relatively low pH and Eh, due to the presence of deteriorating organic matter, together with slag and iron flakes. Subsequent interactions with Ca‐rich groundwater characterized by higher pH and Eh determined the growth of mitridatite after vivianite. Although phosphates crystallized after burial, the examined samples were not involved in pervasive chemical contamination.     

IRON AGE DIET AT GLASTONBURY LAKE VILLAGE: THE ISOTOPIC EVIDENCE FOR NEGLIGIBLE AQUATIC RESOURCE CONSUMPTION

Summary.   The British Iron Age site at Glastonbury Lake Village in Somerset is well known for the extensive and prolonged excavations, the comprehensive publications and the superb preservation of organic remains. The environmental material recovered has led to detailed discussion about the nature of the inhabitants' diet. In particular, the recovery of fish and bird bone has led to speculation about the consumption of foods from the wetlands. Previous carbon and nitrogen isotopic analysis of British Iron Age skeletal material has failed to detect significant levels of aquatic resources in the diet during this period, even where sites are located directly on the coast or close to river systems. There is also very little archaeological evidence to suggest that fishing was a major subsistence strategy. The isotopic analysis of skeletal material from Glastonbury Lake Village was undertaken with the hypothesis that if aquatic resources were to be found at significant levels in the diet of a British Iron Age community, this was a site which might reveal it. The results suggest that such consumption is not visible isotopically and was negligible.     

BEYOND THE ROMAN EMPIRE: ARCHAEOLOGICAL DISCOVERIES IN GUDME ON FUNEN, DENMARK

Summary. More than one hundred years ago in the Gudme area on Funen, Denmark, Frederik Sehested carried out probably the earliest regional survey in world archaeology. This was subsequently published in two magnificent volumes. Today the Gudme-area is the focus of the main research project of Danish archaeology, investigating a truly massive 'royal' settlement of some two hundred hectares near Gudme with the adjacent emporium at Lundeborg on the nearby coast of the Greater Belt. The settlements, cemeteries, and hoards of precious metals of the region date in the main from 200–600 A.D., the late Roman and migration periods of European history. The royal settlement is seemingly made up of farms with longhouses of ordinary type, but with very rich finds, including many Roman and Frankish imports, and remains of luxury crafts. The emporium antedates the well-known Carolingian and Viking establishments by several centuries and was founded when Roman cities still flourished, e.g., in the Rhinelands.     

PARALLELS and CONTRASTS IN the BRONZE AGE of the PELOPONNESE

Summary: The provinces of the north-east Peloponnese, Laconia, and Messenia are chosen for comparison, as likely to have been always the most significant in the Peloponnese. Differences in the observable patterns of site-distribution are pointed out, which seem to conflict with the models suggested in Bintliff 1977 and to suggest a degree of local variation. the histories of the three provinces through the Bronze Age, so far as they can be outlined, have features in common but can be shown to vary at several significant points, strengthening this suggestion.     

USING AND ABANDONING ROUNDHOUSES: A REINTERPRETATION OF THE EVIDENCE FROM LATE BRONZE AGE–EARLY IRON AGE SOUTHERN ENGLAND

Summary.   It has recently been demonstrated that a number of roundhouses of the early first millennium BC in southern England show a concentration of finds in the southern half of the building. It has thus been argued that this area was used for domestic activities such as food preparation, an idea which has formed the basis for discussion of later prehistoric 'cosmologies'. However, reconsideration of the evidence suggests that this finds patterning does not relate to the everyday use of the buildings, being more likely to derive from a particular set of house abandonment practices. Furthermore, evidence can be identified for the location of domestic activities within contemporary roundhouses that appears to contradict the established model.