Colouring materials of pre-Columbian codices: non-invasive in situ spectroscopic analysis of the Codex Cospi

Ancient Mesoamerican codices represent the religious and historical legacy of the pre-Columbian people, they were produced to record the historical and religious matters. Codex Cospi, a divinatory book, is one of the fifteen extant pre-Hispanic Mesoamerican books which survived the destruction of the Spanish conquest. Thanks to the use of a set of portable non-invasive analytical techniques it was possible to study the Codex Cospi revealing valuable information on its constituting materials (dyes, pigments and substrates). The analytical results were compared with historical references contained in early colonial Mexican documents showing interesting parallels and providing hints for probable identification of colouring materials.     

Mining Archaeology and Micro‐Raman Analysis Associated with ESEM‐EDX: Toward a Chrono‐Spatial Definition of Ore Consumption in a Pyrenean Medieval Workshop, 14th–16th Centuries

The rapid expansion of non‐ferrous metallurgy in the late Middle Ages (14th–15th centuries) enhanced ore demand, which was supported by mining intensification. Metallurgical workshops developed various supply strategies based on geological, political and economic constraints. This is particularly true for the Pyrenean multi‐metals workshop of Castel‐Minier (Ariège, France), where recent excavations unearthed an exceptional corpus of non‐ferrous ores. A specific analytical methodology combining micro‐Raman spectroscopy and environmental scanning electron microscopy with energy dispersive X‐ray (ESEM‐EDX) was set up to study these artefacts. This composite methodology permitted the fast characterization of both mineral and gangue as well as a discussion of their economic potential. Ores identified were compared with ancient mines in neighbouring mining districts in order to sketch a geography of the mineral resources available to medieval metallurgists. Moreover, a chrono‐stratigraphic study of ore distribution in Castel‐Minier revealed the supply strategies, technological choices as well as spatializing of copper and lead metallurgies.     

FTIR AND SOLID‐STATE 13C CP/MAS NMR SPECTROSCOPY OF CHARRED AND NON‐CHARRED SOLID ORGANIC RESIDUES PRESERVED IN ROMAN IRON AGE VESSELS FROM THE NETHERLANDS*

In this study, solid‐state ¹³C magnetic resonance spectroscopy using cross‐polarization combined with high‐powered proton decoupling and magic‐angle sample spinning and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy using a diamond anvil cell, are employed to give information about the organic functional groups present in charred and non‐charred solid organic residues and to give an insight into the degree of condensation of the chars. Residues were preserved in ceramic vessels recovered from the indigenous settlement of Uitgeest–Groot Dorregeest, dating back to the Roman period. In addition, the application of these solid‐state techniques is used for verification of earlier results obtained in analytical pyrolysis studies and to clarify the relationship between the already thermally degraded charred residues and the controlled heating fragmentation taking place during analytical pyrolysis and direct temperature‐resolved mass spectrometry.     

On the Metal‐Leaf Decorations of Post‐Byzantine Greek Icons

Metal leaves were widely used as decorative materials in post‐Byzantine ritual painting. Fifty‐two icons (mid‐15th to mid‐19th centuries) were studied by means of analytical techniques in order to reveal the materials and techniques encountered in their metal‐leaf decorations. High‐purity gold leaf was used throughout the studied period. Silver was employed rarely and mostly during the latter part of the period in consideration, while metal powders were mostly used from the mid‐18th century onwards. The identification of a gold–silver powder mixture and an ‘electrum’‐type alloy are among the reported findings, which are novel for post‐Byzantine icons. Three micromorphologically distinct highlighting techniques were also documented.     

The ideological roots of failure: the application of kinetic neo‐liberalism to Iraq

This article argues that American policy towards Iraq went through four major shifts between the invasion in 2003 and the announcement of the surge in 2007. The best way to understand the Bush administration's evolving policy towards Iraq is by examining the ideological parameters within which it was made. The article assesses various approaches to understanding the relationship between ideology, policy making and foreign policy, concluding that ideology shapes the paradigm and analytical categories within which foreign policy is made. A major change in foreign policy originates either from the decision‐maker consciously recognizing and attempting to rework the ideational parameters within which policy is made or in reaction to ‘discrepant information’ or ‘anomalies’ that destabilize the paradigm and its analytical categories. The article goes on to examine the extent to which both neo‐liberalism and neo‐conservatism shaped George W. Bush's foreign policy. It identifies a series of major analytical categories that originate from within these two doctrines and shaped policy towards Iraq. The article argues that the four major shifts in Bush's policy towards Iraq were forced upon the administration by the rising tide of politically motivated violence. Ultimately this violence forced Bush to abandon the major analytical categories that, up to 2007, had given his policy coherence. In order to extricate his administration from the quagmire that Iraq had become by 2006, Bush totally transformed his approach, dropping the previously dominant neo‐liberal paradigm and adopting a counter‐insurgency doctrine.     

Devolatilization‐induced pressure build‐up: Implications for reaction front movement and breccia pipe formation

Generation of fluids during metamorphism can significantly influence the fluid overpressure, and thus the fluid flow in metamorphic terrains. There is currently a large focus on developing numerical reactive transport models, and with it follows the need for analytical solutions to ensure correct numerical implementation. In this study, we derive both analytical and numerical solutions to reaction‐induced fluid overpressure, coupled to temperature and fluid flow out of the reacting front. All equations are derived from basic principles of conservation of mass, energy and momentum. We focus on contact metamorphism, where devolatilization reactions are particularly important owing to high thermal fluxes allowing large volumes of fluids to be rapidly generated. The analytical solutions reveal three key factors involved in the pressure build‐up: (i) The efficiency of the devolatilizing reaction front (pressure build‐up) relative to fluid flow (pressure relaxation), (ii) the reaction temperature relative to the available heat in the system and (iii) the feedback of overpressure on the reaction temperature as a function of the Clapeyron slope. Finally, we apply the model to two geological case scenarios. In the first case, we investigate the influence of fluid overpressure on the movement of the reaction front and show that it can slow down significantly and may even be terminated owing to increased effective reaction temperature. In the second case, the model is applied to constrain the conditions for fracturing and inferred breccia pipe formation in organic‐rich shales owing to methane generation in the contact aureole.     

Analysis of a Distribution of Point Events Using the Network‐Based Quadrat Method

This study proposes a new quadrat method that can be applied to the study of point distributions in a network space. While the conventional planar quadrat method remains one of the most fundamental spatial analytical methods on a two‐dimensional plane, its quadrats are usually identified by regular, square grids. However, assuming that they are observed along a network, points in a single quadrat are not necessarily close to each other in terms of their network distance. Using planar quadrats in such cases may distort the representation of the distribution pattern of points on a network. The network‐based units used in this article, on the other hand, consist of subsets of the actual network, providing more accurate aggregation of the data points along the network. The performance of the network‐based quadrat method is compared with that of the conventional quadrat method through a case study on a point distribution on a network. The χ² statistic and Moran's I statistic of the two quadrat types indicate that (1) the conventional planar quadrat method tends to overestimate the overall degree of dispersion and (2) the network‐based quadrat method derives a more accurate estimate on the local similarity. The article also performs sensitivity analysis on network and planar quadrats across different scales and with different spatial arrangements, in which the abovementioned statistical tendencies are also confirmed.     

Misogyny,Jest‐Books and Male Youth Culture in Seventeenth‐Century England

Over the past twenty years, patriarchy has become a vitally important analytical concept for historians of women, gender and masculinity. By contrast, misogyny has been under‐explored, despite being an equally prevalent historical phenomenon. This article offers a cultural history of seventeenth‐century masculinity based on an analysis of the humorous jokes and stories found in jest‐books, a genre that appealed in particular to male adolescents and young men in their twenties. It argues that patriarchy and misogyny should be treated as separate analytical concepts and cultural phenomena that appealed to different sorts of men. While patriarchy offered a code of manly behaviour for middling‐sort married males to aspire to, misogynistic humour appealed predominantly to youthful single males, who were as antagonistic towards patriarchs as they were towards women. In articulating such an argument, this article engages with debates about manhood, misogyny and the reception and creation of everyday culture in early modern society.     

In‐Situ Marginalisation: Social Impact of Chinese Mega‐Projects

This study offers a detailed analysis of an under‐researched social problem of in‐situ marginalisation and its causes by drawing on the concept of state entrepreneurialism. Our empirical data stem from the Lingang mega project in Shanghai and one of its neighbourhoods named Neighbourhood No.57 where we find that the residents have not been relocated but are instead suffering from declining public services and environmental quality from surrounding industrial developments. The root cause of this problem is the municipal government’s prioritisation of its strategic objectives of economic development over the livelihood of local residents. The strategic vision of the municipality has led to mass relocation in its early phases of development but in its later stages leaves many residents waiting for relocation whilst being gradually surrounded by industrial developments. Despite continued residential complaints and petitions, in‐situ marginalisation is not resolved due to the institutional arrangement of Lingang, which has centralised planning and financing powers to newly created project‐oriented state organisation. Social responsibilities have been relegated to lower‐tiered governments in Lingang which have neither planning power nor the financial resources to resolve the problems of residents. By examining the case of Lingang, this paper provides a different analytical framework for explaining the social problems emerging from China’s mega urban developments.     

NEUTRON ACTIVATION PATTERNING OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL MATERIALS AT THE NATIONAL CENTER FOR SCIENTIFIC RESEARCH ‘DEMOKRITOS’: THE CASE OF BLACK‐ON‐RED NEOLITHIC POTTERY FROM MACEDONIA,GREECE

A short history of the application of NAA in the characterization of archaeological materials at the National Center for Scientific Research ‘Demokritos’, Athens, is presented. NAA was first applied in archaeology in 1974 at the Radioanalytical Laboratory, and since 1989 has been one of the primary analytical techniques of the ‘Demokritos’ archaeometry programme. A case study is also presented, concerning chemical patterning of the black‐on‐red Neolithic pottery class from Macedonia. Four chemical groups were identified, each corresponding to a different area of production. It is shown that this standardized concept of pottery technology and style was spread out within at least eastern Macedonia.     

Compositional Analysis by p‐XRF and SEM–EDX of Medieval Window Glass from Elgin Cathedral,Northern Scotland

Thirty shards of medieval window glass from Elgin Cathedral in north‐east Scotland have been subjected to compositional analysis by portable X‐ray fluorescence and scanning electron microscopy – energy‐dispersive X‐ray spectroscopy. Comparison with previous analytical studies suggests that the majority of the glass was probably produced in France, while a smaller group may have been made in Germany. Significant differences in base glass composition were observed between colours. Two distinct blue glasses compositions were identified. The composition of the grisaille paint differs from paint on the continent, providing the first evidence that it was made using local Scottish lead and iron pigments. This work represents the largest analytical study of Scottish medieval window glass yet undertaken and presents insights into the transfer of medieval materials, technologies and trade routes.     

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.     

From British mandate to post Anglo‐American invasion: Reproduction of ethno‐sectarian divides and the breakdown of social cohesion in Mosul

The invasion of Iraq in 2003 ushered in an era of great uncertainty and turbulence that left the country in an economically crippled, politically unstable, and socially desperate situation. While the built‐in ethno‐sectarian divides have been widely used as analytical categories to address the enduring violence in both Mosul and the rest of Iraq, little attention has been paid to the connection between the long‐term Anglo‐American invasion of Iraq and the ethno‐sectarian violence that currently characterizes Mosul. This study argues that while ethnic and sectarian loyalties have historically persisted in their social forms since the rule of the Ottoman Empire, the highly politicized and violent forms of ethno‐sectarian conflict are modern phenomena, produced and reproduced under the conditions of the decades‐long British and American interventions. The study retrospectively evaluates the current dynamics of ethno‐sectarian confrontations in Mosul through two stages in the long historiography of modern Iraq. The first section reveals how Britain’s mismanagement of colonial Iraq set the initial conditions for communal cleavages and instability in today’s Mosul. Later, the second section turns its attention toward the contemporary manifestation of ethno‐sectarian violence, particularly under the U.S.‐led occupation.     

ANCIENT EGYPTIAN BLACK‐PATINATED COPPER ALLOYS*

This analytical study aims to investigate ancient Egyptian black‐patinated copper alloys. The study group was selected from the collections of the Egyptian Museum in Cairo and from the Faculty of Archaeology Museum in Cairo University. Examination and analysis were undertaken using optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), energy‐dispersive spectroscopy (EDX), X‐ray diffractometry (XRD), X‐ray fluorescence analysis (XRF) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The analysis results indicated that the black patina contained mainly tenorite (CuO). The study presents evidence of thermal patination and animal glue coating.     

THE ANALYSIS OF DYESTUFFS FROM FIRST‐ TO SECOND‐CENTURY TEXTILE ARTEFACTS FOUND IN THE MARTRES‐DE‐VEYRE (FRANCE) EXCAVATIONS*

A series of Gallo‐Roman clothes and miscellaneous textile fragments from the first and second centuries from the Martres‐de‐Veyre necropolis (Puy‐de‐Dôme, France) was investigated. The objects studied were excavated between 1851 and 1923, during successive rounds of archaeological work. Since that time, they have been conserved in the Barguin Museum at Clermont‐Ferrand. The target of our research was dye identification, as it gives very interesting and useful information regarding the ancient technology. This approach has until now not been considered to be relevant and, unfortunately, is not systematic. The analysis was carried out by high‐performance liquid chromatography with photodiode array detection (HPLC–PDA). The small samples (threads up to 0.6 mg, less than 1 cm long) of coloured textile fibres were submitted to this technique. In one case, X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis was applied. According to the analysis, the dyeing sources proposed are the Rubiaceae family for red, a luteolin ‘base’ for yellow, ellagitannins for brown and indigo for blue colours. Several samples did not seem to contain any dye. We point out possible factors for the partial dye source determination: instrumental limits, sample size, low dyestuff content in analysed samples and the dyes’ decomposition during ageing. Some improvements of dye analysis in archaeological samples by separation techniques based on recent analytical instrumentation and combined approaches are proposed.     

Between‐group Differences in the Patterning of Musculo‐skeletal Stress Markers: Avoiding Confounding Factors by Focusing on Qualitative Aspects of Physical Activity

This paper presents a method for studying between‐group differences in physical activity patterns through the analysis of musculo‐skeletal stress markers (MSM). The specific aim was to develop a method that could overcome the problems related to confounding variables such as body size by shifting the analytical focus from the comparison of differences in intensity to the comparison of differences in kinds of activity. Instead of testing whether there are differences in the measures of central tendency of MSM scores between two groups, we proposed looking for differences in MSM covariation patterns. Formally, this is achieved through the statistical comparison of group‐specific MSM intercorrelation matrices. The null hypothesis is that the matrices are equal, and the statistical significance of the test statistic is obtained with a permutation test. In this way, the problem of confounding variables such as body size is mostly avoided because the procedure is based on the comparison of group‐specific sets of correlation coefficients which are scale‐free. The method was employed in a case study to investigate the differences in activity patterns between men and women from the Early Bronze Age population buried at the necropolis in Mokrin, Serbia. The null hypothesis of no difference between the male and female MSM correlation matrices was rejected (p = 0.0135). After the statistical significance of the difference was established, further investigation of male and female activity patterns was undertaken by means of principal component analysis (PCA) with varimax rotation. PCA results suggest that covariation between MSMs is stronger in the male sample. Success in demonstrating differences in activity patterns between sexes implies that the proposed method can be used to test for differences in physical activity between groups of individuals defined by criteria other than sex. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

A TECHNOLOGICAL EXAMINATION OF NINTH–TENTH CENTURY AD ABBASID BLUE‐AND‐WHITE WARE FROM IRAQ,AND ITS COMPARISON WITH EIGHTH CENTURY AD CHINESE BLUE‐AND‐WHITE SANCAI WARE*

Eight sherds of ninth–tenth century ad Abbaesid blue‐and‐white glazed earthenware, excavated in 1931 at Hira in western Iraq, were analysed using, variously, quantitative wavelength‐dispersive spectrometry (WDS) and energy‐dispersive spectrometry (EDS) in association with scanning electron microscopes (SEM), and semi‐quantitative X‐ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF). In order to compare the compositions of the cobalt pigments used, the glazes of seven complete vessels of eighth century ad Chinese Tang blue‐and‐white sancai were also analysed semi‐quantitatively using XRF. The Abbasid wares were shown to have used traditional Mesopotamian alkali–lime glazes applied to calcareous clay bodies. Half the glazes examined were opacified with tin oxide. Three types of blue decoration (i.e., raised; spreading; and flat, non‐spreading) were produced using a variety of formulations, including a mixture of cobalt pigment with lead oxide. The sources of the ores used for the cobalt pigments have not been identified. However, the analytical data showed that the cobalt ore used for the Abbasid blue‐and‐white ware could be distinguished from that used for the Tang blue‐and‐white sancai by its higher iron content and by the presence of a significant amount of zinc. The use of cobalt‐blue decoration on the ninth–tenth century ad Abbasid ware was anticipated in China by eighth century ad Tang blue‐and‐white sancai wares. However, whether its introduction by the Abbasid potters should be seen as an independent invention that followed the introduction of tin‐opacified glazes in Iraq, or whether it was influenced in some way by Chinese originals, is still unresolved.     

Tin‐Rich Surface Decoration of Chinese Bronzes: A Case Study of the British Museum Collection

In this paper six bronze artefacts of the Eastern Zhou period to Han dynasty (770 BC ‐ 220 AD) with tin‐rich surface decoration in the British Museum collection were studied using a variety of analytical techniques. The decoration patterns include trellis patterns (菱形纹) on two swords of the Yue state, tiger's striped patterns (hu‐ban‐wen, 虎斑纹) on two swords from the Ba‐Shu region, a hexagonal star pattern (六角星纹) on a spearhead of the Wu state, and a cloud‐like pattern on a garment hook. The tin‐rich decorations on those objects were produced by deliberate tinning processes; at least three different tinning techniques were used, including the use of tin‐rich pastes for the trellis pattern of a Yue state sword and for the mottling decoration on the Ba‐Shu swords, amalgam tinning for the hexagonal star pattern on the spearhead of the Yue state, and hot tinning for the cloud‐like pattern of the garment hook. Different tinning techniques could have been applied to produce similar tin‐rich decoration patterns, and vice versa, a single tinning technique could have been used to produce different tin‐rich patterns on different objects.     

Anticipating the Next Half‐Century of Geographical Analysis

Prompted by a series of panel sessions at a recent American Association of Geographers annual meeting entitled “A Globe‐Shaped Crystal Ball: The Next Fifty Years of Geographical Analysis,” participants were asked to speculate on the future of the journal, which of course has broader implications for spatial and geographic analytics. In what follows, I provide my thoughts on the journal as a reader, contributor, referee, and former editor of Geographical Analysis. The major points touched upon include the following. First, application to address substantive concerns will come to dominate the field. Second, the spatial data deluge will continue unabated, but will lead to important advances because of better detail and less abstraction of reality. Third, analytical methods will evolve specifically for big data. Fourth, the point‐and‐click revolution will result in ever more use of spatial analytics, but also will lend itself to greater and more widespread abuse of these methods. Fifth, addressing assumptions and theoretical foundations of long utilized approaches will revolutionize a new generation of spatial analytics. Sixth, geographic uncertainty and bias will be more than an afterthought, and methods will emerge to support meaningful analysis. Finally, spatial optimization will have increased prominence in fundamental analysis, particularly associated with establishing and evaluating significance.