Optical spectroscopy as a rapid and low-cost tool for the first-line analysis of glass artefacts: a step-by-step plan for Roman green glass

Archaeometric research on glass artefacts is continuously evolving and is converging towards a multidisciplinary research domain where different types of techniques are applied depending on the questions asked and the circumstances involved. The technique described in this work is optical spectroscopy. The benefit of this technique being the possibility of building up a knowledge database for a large amount of material in a relatively short period of time and with a relatively limited budget. This is of particular interest for the investigation of extensive and/or unexplored glass collections where a first-line analysis of artefacts could facilitate the selection of material needing further and more detailed examination.     

The Visual Inheritance: Collections of Historical Photographs from Papua New Guinea

Knowledge about historical photographic collections of Papua New Guinea (PNG) is limited both in source communities and amongst scholars. This article aims to shed light on significant collections of PNG photographs, describing some of the collections, and pointing to their importance at both ends of the ‘exchange’. I discuss some limitations in present uses of these visual records and point to the need for repatriation initiatives. The poor knowledge of extant photographic collections among today’s Papua New Guineans is described, and I raise some thoughts about what this signals to archives and researchers. As examples, special mention is given to the collections of photographers Albert English, William Saville, Rudolf Pöch and Captain F.R. Barton. Finally, I comment on current challenges and future opportunities for the keepers of these historical collections. A list of the collections mentioned in the article can be found at the end.     

A procedural guide to metacarpal radiogrammetry in archaeology

The technique of metacarpal radiogrammetry was devised in 1960 as a clinical method to aid in the identification of thinned cortical bone, which may help in diagnosis of osteoporosis. Through taking measurements from radiographs, calculations of the amount of cortical bone can be made. The technique is relatively simple and is not destructive. This paper examines the value of the application of this technique to archaeological remains. A standardized methodology of bone assessment is incorporated to enhance the comparability of future research. Statistical tests demonstrate that the technique is robust, as the position of the bone on the film, radiographic enlargement and use of either the left or right metacarpal will not affect the results obtained. However, differences in film type and measurement position can introduce unacceptable variance into the results. Therefore, guidance is given on future applications of the technique. The technique does have value as a widely available, non‐destructive technique for assessing cortical bone loss and the probable prevalence of osteoporosis in archaeological collections. Copyright © 2004 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Collections of industrial and product design: a pathway for improved economic development connections among cultural institutions

This research investigates US cultural institutions housing collections of industrial and product design (IPD) and explores how IPD are collected, curated, and exhibited to uncover the barriers and opportunities that exist in connecting these collections to economic development. Based on key person interviews with nine institutions, this inquiry finds the collections generally are not externally integrated as a local or regional economic development asset. The full depths of these collections are somewhat concealed within the institutions because of their curation across departments or through a broader Decorative Arts lens. Using a framework of arts and culture research and development, this article argues that IPD collections represent an opportunity for greater engagement of cultural institutions in culturally oriented economic development strategies that pair their expertise and assets with those of the private sector.     

博物馆文物的防震保护研究（一）——传统抗震措施与现代隔震技术

通过对博物馆内物浮放物体的地震危害性分析,指出了物防震的一些主要问题。归纳总结了馆藏物的传统抗震措施。阐述了现代隔震技术的发展、研究现状以及隔震装置在物防震工作中的应用情况。同时给出了博物馆物防震保护的设计方案。     

Archaeological Collections, Government Warehouses, and Anxious Moderns: The Maryland Archaeological Conservation Laboratory

This paper focuses on archaeological curation repositories and their role as more than mere storage facilities. Archaeological collections are increasingly marshaled to confront anxieties about a seemingly ‘vanishing past’ and to arrest its disappearance. In Maryland, the state has invested heavily in a ‘state-of-the-art’ facility to protect and study archaeological collections in its custody. The facility has become the proxy for the collections and a form of cultural property itself, becoming part of the ongoing process that serves to recast this portion of the state as a place rooted in the past.     

皇家名分的确认与再确认——清宫至伪满皇宫收藏钱选《观鹅图》始末

清宫的书画收藏是中国封建社会后期文化史的重要组成部分,为考察艺术与社会的关系提供了一个特殊的窗口。大量珍贵的前代书画作品从民间进入清代宫廷,并在乾隆朝形成鼎盛局面。成为宋徽宗以来又一个皇家艺术收藏的高峰。这不仅是封建集权制度的产物,同时也是满汉文化融合的结果。自清王朝覆亡至满洲国出笼,逊帝溥仪及其小朝廷在北京、天津及长春的一系列复辟和称帝活动中从未放弃对清宫旧藏的关注与重视,将之作为象征皇家名分的主要标志之一。本文以1746年到1940年代元代钱选《羲之观鹅图》(现藏美国纽约大都会美术馆)的收藏过程为脉络,通过考察画卷上诸多收藏印鉴和题跋来认识清宫绘画收藏的兴衰转折及其历史意义。在近200年的皇家收藏史中,特别是在清皇室20世纪所经历的变故中,这一画卷成为不可多得的历史见证。其奇特的收藏始末,深刻地向世人揭示了中国和世界政治、经济及文化史中的一段精彩画面。     

A ROBUST APPROACH TO PREDICTING FLUCTUATIONS IN STATE-LEVEL EMPLOYMENT GROWTH*

ABSTRACT. Economic forecasting models are famous for performing well over short time periods and then suffering rapidly deteriorating performance when economic conditions change. This behavior makes composite forecasting models valuable in situations where large forecast errors cause considerable losses. A composite forecasting model for state-level employment is proposed here. This method is designed to protect state budget processes by producing robust forecasts of changes in employment and the related revenue collections. An application to Georgia nonagricultural employment is presented which demonstrates the benefits of this technique. The example shows that the method can forecast such series accurately without the forecaster having to choose in advance a single model specification to all economic conditions.     

Geochemical characterisation of north Asian glazed stonewares: a comparative analysis of NAA,ICP-OES and non-destructive pXRF

The analytical performance of non-destructive portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) is compared with that of Inductively Coupled Plasma-Optical Emission Spectrometry (ICP-OES) and Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA) for the elemental characterisation of a group of glazed stonewares from North-East Asia. As a non-destructive technique pXRF is potentially well suited to the elemental analysis of high value archaeological and museum collections but has yet to be critically evaluated for the analysis of archaeological stonewares. In this study we use multivariate evaluation to compare results from non-destructive pXRF in relation to ICP-OES and NAA analysis for the same group of samples. We conclude that, although pXRF is comparatively limited to a small number of major, minor and trace elements, these are sufficient to identify the same compositional groups as high dimensional ICP-OES and NAA datasets for this assemblage.     

The Origin of 18th–19th Century Tin‐Glazed Pottery from Lorraine,France

Forty‐eight tin‐glazed ceramic fragments (faiences) from Lorraine, found in excavations or pertaining to objects in collections, were subjected to X‐ray fluorescence analysis to determine the bulk, major, minor and trace element compositions. Sixteen superficially clay layers from the surroundings of Lunéville and Saint‐Clément were also analysed. The faiences are, with four exceptions, MgO rich. The combination of stylistic and chemical arguments allowed the recognition of 28 objects that were attributable to the important faience manufactory of Jacques II Chambrette in Lunéville. This reference group was used to test the provenance of high‐Mg faiences from private collections. The latter are not from the manufactory of Le Bois d'Épense/Les Islettes as commonly assumed, but most probably belong to Lunéville and Saint‐Clément. According to archival sources, the potters mixed three clays for the pastes. Some prospected clays are MgO rich due to the presence of dolomite and other Mg‐bearing minerals, but not as high as the faiences, a fact that can be explained by the sampling of de‐carbonatized layers.     

A Very Remote Storage Box Indeed: The Importance of Doing Archaeology with Old Museum Collections

Although our practice has come to be defined by a focus on excavation as the trademark of archaeological research, research on archaeological collections lies at the scientific heart of the discipline. We demonstrate through two very different case studies how a return to primary sources (in this case, boxes of artifacts) can upend our understanding of the objects themselves and create new narratives of social and technological change. At the same time, access to museum collections is becoming increasingly difficult as institutions struggle with the growing pressure to enhance public outreach and modernize data management, while simultaneously contending with persistent budget cuts. As archaeologists who work closely with museum curators and museum collections, we offer suggestions for how researchers can work with museums to ensure that future generations of researchers and the general public can learn from the ancient materials preserved within their collections.     

Human osteoarchaeology in the UK 2001–2007: a bibliometric perspective

Bibliometric analysis of osteoarchaeology publications covering the period 2001–2007 in leading journals was carried out. The aims were two‐fold: firstly, to characterise research in this field in the UK and make comparisons with selected other countries, and secondly, to shed light on the use of skeletal collections. It was found that, since a previous survey of this type,covering the period 1991–1995, isotopic and DNA studies have increased. In the UK, work on biodistance studies is minor compared with other countries, and the proportion of palaeopathology work is high. In palaeopathology, substantial effort continues to be devoted to case studies, particularly in the UK where the frequency of problem‐orientated work directed at understanding earlier populations has not increased since the early 1990s. Although it is argued that the case study still has a place in osteoarchaeology, the balance of work needs to shift further in favour of population studies, particularly in the UK. Skeletal collections are vital for primary osteoarchaeological work, and there was little evidence for any great use of skeletal databases such as the Standard Osteological Database. Skeletal collections from the UK were the most used for the research papers analysed, demonstrating the importance of UK‐held collections for research that leads to high profile publication in the international scientific literature. These observations are pertinent since legal, ethical and practical issues in the treatment of human remains, particularly those connected with retention of skeletal collections, are now coming under closer scrutiny in the UK. Copyright © 2008 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Was Lacquer the Key Ingredient for Luxurious Jinyin Pingtuo Products in the Tang Dynasty of China (AD 618–907)?

Jinyin pingtuo is one of the most sumptuous decorative methods applied on ‘lacquered' objects described in Tang dynasty literatures. Two Tang dynasty objects, a silver bowl and a bronze mirror, in the British Museum collection said to be made by this technique, were scientifically examined to confirm the application of the technique. Although the metal décors levelled with the rest of the surfaces on these objects suggested the application of the pingtuo method, lacquer, a major ingredient of this technique, was not identified by Py (HMDS)-GC–MS in any of the four samples analysed. The results question the use of lacquer in the pingtuo technique as usually described. The detection of shellac and oil in the bronze mirror aligns with other studies on similar objects, whereas proteinaceous materials as main ingredient of the decorative layers of the silver bowl, appear less usual. Further comparative study by scientific analysis of similar objects in other museum collections or from excavations is required to help better understand the use of lacquer in ancient China.     

史料与史学视域下的藏品与陈列

借鉴史料与史学的关系理论来思考藏品与陈列问题,或可有利于博物馆界问题意识的强化和理论品位的提升,从而将相关问题的研究引向系统和深入。陈列本质上是一种意义重构的过程,理想的陈列应该是使藏品的自我解释与陈列的外在解释相得益彰。陈列设计者应该在整体历史观念的统摄下,将那些承载着片段历史和文化信息的藏品进行正确解读和定位,并引发观众对基本完整的历史事件的理解。为了从不同侧面令人信服地展示历史风貌,扩大博物馆藏品的征集和遴选范围是十分必要的。     

Excavator Bias at the Site of Pech de l'Azé IV,France

Abstract

Existing archaeological collections hold great potential for archaeologists who seek to answer specific research questions with minimal investment of time and money. Unfortunately, biases introduced in the field and during curation require us to evaluate and reorganize collections before and during analysis. Biases are reflected in collections as a result of research design, recovery methods, interpersonal variability, and the storage of both objects and documentation. By comparing collections from two different excavations at the Middle Paleolithic site of Pech de l'Azé IV, France, a number of biases in the older collection were identified and corrected. While all older collections are not affected by the same problems, our experience serves as a useful example to others who work with them.     

A Note on the Mixed Geographically Weighted Regression Model*

Abstract. A mixed, geographically weighted regression (GWR) model is useful in the situation where certain explanatory variables influencing the response are global while others are local. Undoubtedly, how to identify these two types of the explanatory variables is essential for building such a model. Nevertheless, It seems that there has not been a formal way to achieve this task. Based on some work on the GWR technique and the distribution theory of quadratic forms in normal variables, a statistical test approach is suggested here to identify a mixed GWR model. Then, this note mainly focuses on simulation studies to examine the performance of the test and to provide some guidelines for performing the test in practice. The simulation studies demonstrate that the test works quite well and provides a feasible way to choose an appropriate mixed GWR model for a given data set.     

Jean-Paul Sartre's Roads of Freedom Yesterday and Today

In France, the history of the series form for young readers begins in collections such as the well-known Bibliothèque rose published by Hachette. More recently, other serial forms using the recurring characters of the traditional series have developed. These new forms have complex structures that go beyond linearity. Authors Brigitte Smadja and Daniel Pennac in particular have created series that straddle the various collections of their respective publishing houses and whose characters also appear in their texts published for an adult readership. Through an analysis of these series and French children's collections, this article proposes a new term as a means to understand them. Both collections and series require a rhizomatic reading from the reader. Favouring the link, such a reading puts connections between texts to the fore, along with their re-establishment after rupture.

En France, l'histoire de la forme sérielle pour enfants commence dans les collections de jeunesse dont la plus connue est sans doute la Bibliothèque rose des éditions Hachette. Plus récemment, d'autres formes sérielles ont pu se développer librement et se servent des personnages récurrents de la série traditionnelle mais s'appuient sur des structures complexes qui devancent toute linéarité. En particulier, les auteurs Brigitte Smadja et Daniel Pennac ont créé des séries qui chevauchent plusieurs collections de la maison d'édition, et dont les personnages se retrouvent également dans leurs textes destinés à un lectorat adulte. En analysant les collections françaises et des séries contemporaines écrites par des auteurs français, nous proposons une nouvelle expression pour ces deux formes. Les collections et les séries exigent une lecture rhizomatique du lecteur. Une telle lecture qui favorise le lien met en évidence les connexions entre textes et leur rétablissement à la suite d'une rupture.     

The Impact of recovery methods on taxonomic richness in Roman faunal assemblages

Recovery methods can affect species richness in faunal assemblages, which can in turn impact interpretations of diet. A comparison of sample size to species richness across faunal collections from screened and from unscreened deposits associated with Roman occupations clearly shows these influences. Not surprisingly, the rate of species input was higher for collections recovered using screening methods than for collections not recovered from screens. Syntheses of published data and comparative analyses of faunal assemblages must be cognizant of whether or not included assemblages were recovered using screens.     

THE ANALYSIS OF SEA TURTLE AND BOVID KERATIN ARTEFACTS USING DRIFT SPECTROSCOPY AND DISCRIMINANT ANALYSIS*

We investigated the utility of diffuse reflectance infrared Fourier transform spectroscopy (DRIFTS) for the analysis and identification of sea turtle (Family Cheloniidae) and bovid (Family Bovidae) keratins, commonly used to manufacture historic artefacts. Spectral libraries are helpful in determining the class of the material (i.e., keratin versus plastics), but do not allow for inferences about the species source of keratin. Mathematical post‐processing of the spectra employing discriminant analysis provided a useful statistical tool to differentiate tortoiseshell from bovid horn keratin. All keratin standards used in this study (n = 35 Bovidae; n = 24 Cheloniidae) were correctly classified with the discriminant analysis. A resulting performance index of 95.7% shows that DRIFTS, combined with discriminant analysis, is a powerful quantitative technique for distinguishing sea turtle and bovid keratins commonly encountered in museum collections and the modern wildlife trade.     

Context, curation, and bias: an evaluation of the Middle Paleolithic collections of Combe-Grenal (France)

The site of Combe-Grenal is arguably the reference site for the Mousterian of southwest France. Bordes excavated the site over a period of 13 years and generated a large collection of lithics and fauna from a deep series of 64 Lower and Middle Paleolithic levels. Though Bordes only partially published his work at the site, its long stratigraphic sequence and particularly its collections have been subjected to numerous studies over the years and have figured prominently in several long-running debates concerning the Mousterian. Recently, the authors undertook a project to inventory and analyzed these collections along with the documentation of their archaeological context. In so doing, however, a number of serious problems became apparent with the collection in its current state, problems that cannot easily be resolved given the state of the available documentation. These problems have important implications not only for results of studies based on these collections, but more generally, they also point to problems in terms of how archaeological collections are curated.