QUANTITATIVE ANALYSIS OF COPPER-TIN BRONZES BY MEANS OF GLOW DISCHARGE OPTICAL EMISSION SPECTROMETRY

Glow discharge optical emission spectrometry (GDOES) has been used for obtaining calibration curves for copper, tin, lead, silver, antimony, arsenic, zinc and iron from standards including copper-base alloys (Cu 61.33-99.95%) and from bronze Punic coins. The GDOES results were calibrated using atomic absorption spectroscopy with inductively coupled plasma atomization (ICPAAS) to analyse the standards and coins. For all these materials, the results show that via GDOES it is possible to obtain reliable and reproducible calibration curves for copper, tin, lead, zinc and iron with a linear behaviour as a function of the content. The quantitative GDOES and ICPAAS data for the coins have been also compared with those obtained via X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and it is shown that GDOES, ICPAAS and XRF agree well with one another considering that the bronze coins are inhomogeneous to some degree. As an example of GDOES analytical features, a depth concentration profile through a thin bronze patina is shown and briefly discussed.     

Archaeomagnetic data from three Punic sites in Tunisia

Archaeomagnetic analyses on bricks and slag fragments from kilns have been undertaken. Four new archaeomagnetic directions and two new archaeomagnetic intensities have been reported for three Punic sites in Tunisia. The SCHA.DIF.3K archaeomagnetic model gives the most consistent age estimates, in agreement with the archaeological ages for three of the four analyzed kilns. The archaeomagnetic models appeared to be surprisingly proficient both using archaeodirections and intensities for El Maklouba. The existence of kilns from different chronological archaeological phases (4th–3th century BC and 2nd–3rd century AD) has been confirmed for this site. The archaeological hypothesis that associates the kiln in El Gaala with the neighboring Punic necropolis is compatible with the archaeomagnetic data obtained from the kiln, though a modern use or remagnetisation of the kiln cannot be excluded.     

Chronological discrimination of silver coins based on inter‐elemental ratios using laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA‐ICP‐MS)

This paper details the application of a statistical method for the chronological discrimination of silver coins using counts per second trace elemental, inter‐elemental ratios. The statistical method described is based on a method that has been applied to similar archaeological materials to determine their provenance. The method makes use of the inter‐element association patterns of multi‐element analytical data determined using laser ablation‐inductively coupled plasma‐mass spectrometry (LA‐ICP‐MS). The majority of the 266 coins analysed for this study have already been successfully identified by their mint markings. The data from LA‐ICP‐MS analyses, together with what is known about the coins through visual identification, were used to discriminate the reigning sovereign, and in the case of Mexico, the year of minting, of individual coins within the elemental fingerprint of different mints. Subsequently, unidentified coins can be placed in the confusion matrix, and their trace element information used to identify their year of minting when compared with other, identified coins from the same mint. The interpretational statistical technique linear discriminant analysis (LDA) was used to explore an identification of year of minting of coins that have previously not been identified by other means based on a statistical comparison against a database of compositional analysis of silver coins of known year of minting.     

Direct evidence of the use of beehive products in pre-Roman Sardinia

Written sources and iconographic evidence suggest that honey and beehive products, used in culinary, medicinal, and technological functions since pre-Neolithic times, were likely known and used in Phoenician and Punic Sardinia. The role of these resources is nonetheless poorly understood because no direct evidence survives on a macroscopic level. Significant advances in the knowledge about beeswax and beehive products processing in the past have been offered in recent decades by organic residue analyses (ORA), an approach that enables the characterisation of surviving chemical compounds or suites of compounds that provide information relating to human activity in the past. The relatively recalcitrant nature of lipid compounds comprising beeswax means that this commodity is among the products that can be unambiguously identified through ORA. Here we present and discuss the results of analyses undertaken on 368 pottery sherds from Phoenician and Punic Sardinia (eighth to third century BCE). These analyses offer direct evidence for the presence of beehive products on the island, suggesting the use of honey for culinary purposes in pots, and possibly connecting one specific vessel category with beeswax decanting during beekeeping and honey production processes. Our results also now clearly illustrate the widespread use of beehive products in pre-Roman Sardinia.     

The early roman imperial AES coinage II: Tracing the copper sources by analysis of lead and copper isotopes—copper coins of Augustus and Tiberius*

Lead and copper isotopes of Roman Imperial copper coins (denominations as and quadrans) were analysed by MC–ICP–MS. We concentrated on well‐dated coins minted at the official mint of Rome under the Emperors Augustus and Tiberius (between 16 bc and ad 37). The lead isotope results were compared with published lead isotope data of ore bodies from the Aegaean, Cyprus, Italy and Spain, in order to fingerprint the sources of Roman copper. During the Augustan period the main copper supply, as judged from the copper coins, is from Sardinia and south‐east Spain, with minor contributions from Tuscany. Except for Tuscany, this continued into the Tiberian period, when Cypriot copper also appears. Augustan quadrantes and late Tiberian asses came solely from the Rio Tinto area in south‐west Spain. Copper isotopes were applied here for the first time to systematic archaeometric studies. They are supplementary to lead isotopes and allow further grouping and classification of the copper coins.     

汉代平板陶范竖式浇铸法铸钱工艺的研究

平板范竖式浇铸工艺是我国早期铸钱的基本形式,根据材质的不同,可将平板范分为石范、陶范和金属范.由于与平板陶范竖式浇铸法铸钱相关遗物出土数量少,该方法不是汉代铸钱工艺中的主要方法,故目前还未对其开展系统的研究.本工作对平板陶范竖式浇铸法铸钱相关遗物进行了归类分析.表明该工艺不仅在西汉早期一直在使用着,到东汉时期,仍然被用于铸钱.通过模拟实验对汉代的平板陶范竖式浇铸法铸钱工艺进行了研究,其工艺过程为:铸造金属制范模,在模上翻制陶范,陶范经阴干焙烧后铸造钱币.金属制范模的制作,提高了陶范制作的效率,同时也保证了钱币在型腔尺寸和文字上的一致性.     

The Evolution of Pre‐Islamic South Arabian Coinage: A Metallurgical Analysis of Coins Excavated In Sumhuram (Khor‐Rori,Sultanate of Oman)

The present paper deals with compositional and microstructural features of 26 pre‐Islamic, South Arabian coins recently unearthed during archaeological excavations. Most of the investigated coins come from Sumhuram (Khor Rori, southern Oman), and were minted by the Hadramawt kingdom (fourth century bc to third century ad ); only a few of them belong to the Himyarite kingdom's coinage (first to fourth centuries ad ). In addition, some coins of both the Hadramawt and the Himyarite kingdoms found at Qani' (B'ir ‘Ali, Republic of Yemen) have been analysed for comparison. Our main focus was to provide new hints towards the comprehension of the chronological evolution in South Arabian coinage in terms of both metal composition and minting techniques. In addition, some melting crucibles found at Sumhuram have been examined in an attempt to make a comparison with the coins’ composition and to test the hypothesis that they were used for minting operations.     

Phoenician–Punic amphorae in northern coastal Etruria: New evidence from Pisa (Italy)

This study outlines the circulation of Phoenician–Punic amphorae in northern coastal Etruria, with a particular focus on Pisa (Italy), where their presence has been attested since the mid-eighth century BCE. A set of specimens from Piazza del Duomo was analysed by minero-petrographic and geochemical techniques. The results were compared with literature data from Mediterranean production areas. The research allowed a better definition of the role of Etruscan Pisa in the frame of commercial and cultural routes in the Mediterranean, specifically in the Tyrrhenian area, also providing the opportunity to review the attestations of Phoenician–Punic amphora on a regional scale.     

IDENTIFICATION OF STONE BLOCKS USED FOR THE BUILDING OF THE THYSDRUS AND THAPSUS AMPHITHEATRES IN TUNISIA

In Tunisia, the largest amphitheatre (known as the Coliseum) at Thysdrus (El Djem), with some parts of the second amphitheatre, and the Thapsus amphitheatre have been built with squared stone blocks (opus quadratum). The petrographic and geotechnical analyses of the samples taken from the amphitheatre blocks show that these blocks belong to the Tyrrhenian and to the Mio‐Pliocene age. Ancient quarries have been found on the Tyrrhenian dune line between Hiboun and Al Alya, at a distance of 30 km from Thysdrus, from which the Tyrrhenian blocks have been extracted. Concerning the Mio‐Pliocene blocks, they have most likely been cut from just one ancient quarry found in the hill of Ksour Essaf. The height of almost all of the measured blocks from the Thysdrus Coliseum is equal to the Punic cubit used at Carthage (50 cm), and the height of the measured blocks from the Thapsus amphitheatre is also equal to the Punic cubit (50 cm), or very close to the Roman cubit (45 cm).     

Colonial Representations and Carthaginian Archaeology

In spite of the interest generated by Phoenician‐Punic Archaeology, this area of study has always been underestimated by comparison with Classical Archaeology. One of the main reasons for this is the persistence of a colonial representation of the ancient Mediterranean which assumes Greek culture to be the supreme expression of civilization. Other groups may imitate it through an acculturation process: Hellenization. As we shall see, this representation pervades even the Phoenician‐Punic history and archaeology university textbooks. Starting with the various reasons leading to this situation, I aim to focus on the interpretation given to the ancient excavations at Carthage and, specifically, to its architectural and urban record, since this was the area of study where the prejudices about the Phoenician‐Punic culture found an (albeit misunderstood) archaeological proof. I shall argue that the misinterpretation of these excavations is the key to understanding later developments and the general underestimation of Phoenician‐Punic Archaeology.     

NEUTRON ACTIVATION ANALYSIS OF ANCIENT BURMESE SILVER COINS WITH A LOW FLUX AMERICIUM/BERYLLIUM NEUTRON SOURCE

Nondestructive neutron activation analysis is by now a well-established technique for the analysis of ancient silver coins. The high activation cross-section of silver for thermal neutrons makes it possible to also use this method with the low neutron fluxes available from an isotopic neutron source. In this case due consideration must be given to minimize the self-shielding effect which is encountered with coins above a few tenths of a millimetre thickness. A simple method for the determination of the silver, copper and gold content in silver coins based on the self-shielding properties of silver alloys of different fineness is described. The method has been found to be useful for the quick routine assay of silver coins for the purpose of their classification. Seventeen ancient Burmese silver coins from three different cultural periods of Burma, and two British coins for comparison have been analyzed by this method.     

BEYOND COPPER: COMMODITIES AND VALUES IN MIDDLE BRONZE CYPRO‐LEVANTINE EXCHANGES

During the transition from the Middle to Late Bronze Age, Cyprus became a full participant in the Levantine maritime interaction sphere. This is reflected in the archaeological record by a dramatic increase in the Cypriot pottery found in the surrounding region, widely assumed to be the by‐product of an (archaeologically invisible) external demand for Cypriot copper. On the receiving end of this relationship, small numbers of imported ‘luxury’ goods appear on Cyprus. This paper discusses one aspect of exchange that has received little attention in the literature, the presence and significance of quantities of imported transport amphorae (Canaanite jars). These vessels have only rarely been recognized from excavations on Cyprus but recent examination of material from several sites reveals that they are more common than previously assumed. The Canaanite jar evidence may go some way towards redressing the apparent imbalance in goods exchanged and also to illuminate the processes through which Cypriot populations first engaged with the materiality of urban ways of ordering the world.     

DETECTION OF NEAR-SURFACE SILVER ENRICHMENT ON ROMAN IMPERIAL SILVER COINS BY X-RAY SPECTRAL ANALYSIS*

A collection of 218 Roman imperial silver coins, covering three centuries, was analysed non-destructively by two variants of X-ray spectral analysis. Electron beam excitation and energy-dispersive spectrometry was used for the analysis of the uppermost thin layer (3 μm) of each coin, while X-ray tube excitation and wavelength-dispersive spectrometry was applied for the analysis of thicker layers (30 μm), Ag and Cu as major constituents and 18 minor elements were determined quantitatively. Comparing the silver content of the obverse and the reverse of a coin, inhomogeneities could be identified. By comparison of the silver content of the upper thin and the thick surface layers, near-surface silver enrichment could be detected. Inhomogeneities and enrichments increase in the second and more so in the third century. A large scatter of the silver content and silver enrichment for coins of the same emperor was attributed to varying abrasion of Ag-enriched layers of the individual coins during decades of circulation.     

Average and core silver content of ancient-debased coins via neutron diffraction and specific gravity

The measurement of the fineness of debased ancient silver coins has proven to be a very difficult issue, which has been studied for a long time. In this paper, this subject is analysed, and the various consequences of the silver surface enrichment (SSE) are discussed exploiting the most recent investigations. A new model is proposed for the complex object that is an ancient-debased silver coin, based on the silver profiles measured on some sectioned specimens. The model is applied to a sample of 43 coins, mainly Roman victoriati, Cisalpine and Illyrian drachms (from late III to I century B.C.). The coins are investigated in two different ways: neutron diffraction (ND) and specific gravity (SG). The results of the two measurements are combined via the proposed model to provide a more complete numismatic information of the original fineness of the monetary alloy. As a result, a relation between SSE thickness and SG is derived, which, for these coinages, allows to estimate the original alloy silver content from a simple SG measurement; the same method can be used to study other debased coinages, provided that all the procedure (ND and SG) is applied.     

Enhancing Understanding of the Emergence of Global Trade: Analysis of 17th‐ to 19th‐Century Spanish Coins Recovered from Western Australian Shipwrecks Using Laser Ablation – Inductively Coupled Plasma – Mass Spectrometry (LA–ICP–MS)

This research uses legacy data from shipwrecks to further our understanding of global silver movement in the 17th to 19th centuries by analysing a collection of silver coins held by the Western Australian Museum. Three hundred and eighty‐nine silver coins were analysed for their trace element fingerprint in order to identify provenance. The coins are a selection from the ships Batavia, Vergulde Draeck, Zuytdorp, Rapid and Correio da Azia, all wrecked off the coast of Western Australia between 1629 and 1816. Analysis was undertaken using laser ablation – inductively coupled plasma – mass spectrometry (LA–ICP–MS), a relatively non‐destructive technique with a sensitivity of parts per million to parts per billion. Data were interpreted using linear discriminant analysis (LDA), which allowed the coins of known provenance to be sorted into identifiable subgroups on the basis of their trace and minor elemental fingerprints, while 27 unidentified coins were compared with this database and their mint of origin predicted. These results have implications for the provenance determination of archaeological artefacts of many materials.     

MULTICOIN: A TOOL FOR CLASSIFYING COINS IN A MULTIMEDIA ENVIRONMENT

Classifying coins found during excavation is a challenging task for the archaeologist. This paper describes a multimedia system designed to assist the archaeologist by enabling him either to classify coins based on a pre-existing catalogue or to draw up his own catalogue for specific purposes. The system can also be used to train novices in the field: following an initial screening, the archaeologist only has to examine coins specifically requiring his expertise. A case study uses coins minted in Salerno 800–1200 AD, but the system has been designed to classify any set of coins by simply changing the underlying knowledge base. Very little training is required to operate the user-friendly system, which runs on multimedia PCs, as it is written using the C++ language and makes full use of the advanced features of Windows 3.11.     

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE ‘BEST RELATIVE FIT FACTOR’ WHEN EVALUATING ELEMENTAL CONCENTRATION DATA OF POTTERY DEMONSTRATED WITH MYCENAEAN SHERDS FROM SINDA,CYPRUS

Neutron activation analysis of pottery was established at Bonn in 1983 and has since become one of the primary archaeometry‐based analytical techniques at the facility. A brief history of the laboratory and a discussion of the best relative fit procedure for pottery is provided. When comparing concentration data for pottery, a best relative fit should always be considered. This mathematical procedure generally results in ‘sharper’ concentration patterns and improves the separability of chemically not very different compositional groups. This is demonstrated for a set of 30 Late Cypriot (Myc. IIIC1) pottery samples from Sinda, Cyprus, which allow formation of a good reference pattern for this site. Applying factors in the range of 0.82–1.43, a number of samples from Egypt and Palestine can be assigned with high probability to a Cypriot origin.     

NON-DESTRUCTIVE RADIOISOTOPE X-RAY FLUORESCENCE ANALYSIS OF OLD SILVER COINS

The paper presents the results of a feasibility study of the application of X-ray fluorescence analysis to nondestructive analysis of coins. Radioisotope sources ⁵⁵Fe, ²⁴¹Am, ¹⁰⁹Cd and ²³⁸Pu were used for excitation and a Si/Li detector with a multichannel analyser for the measurement of characteristic X-ray lines. Silver and copper in Polish renaissance coins have been analysed. Analysis using Ag K and Ag L lines allows one to distinguish between blanched and unblanched coins. The accuracy of the silver determination using Ag K X-rays is claimed to be ± 0.5% Ag for homogenous coins and ± 1.0% Ag for blanched but well-preserved uncorroded coins.     

Plated Iron Age Coins: Official Issues or Contemporary Forgeries

This paper discusses different explanations that have been proposed to account for the existence of plated Iron Age coins, some of which appear to have been struck from the dies used to produce solid metal coins. Evidence occasionally preserved on plated coins proves that at least some of them were struck from dies which had been hubbed from solid metal coins, and it is these solid metal coins that were struck from the dies which the plated coins appear to have been produced from. It is argued that this evidence demonstrates that plated Iron Age coins are merely contemporary forgeries.