A flock of sheep,goats and cattle: ancient DNA analysis reveals complexities of historical parchment manufacture

Parchments comprise one of the most common and valuable sources of archaeological and historical data. Previous studies have shown that parchment also preserves genetic data. These data could be valuable for population studies, to understand past animal husbandry, the development of breeds and varieties and to comment on the provenance of parchments. To improve our understanding of DNA contained in parchments, we analysed genetic data, including both mitochondrial and autosomal loci, from 18th to 19th century English parchments which stable isotope analysis had indicated were well-preserved. DNA results were unexpected. All but one of the parchments produced multiple sequences matching several different species. Ion beam analysis ruled out surface treatments of the parchments (including ink and animal glues) as the origin of these multiple sequences. Our results suggest that the DNA content of parchment is more complex than previous research has suggested and that multiple stages of parchment manufacture, treatment and storage are preserved in parchment DNA extracts.     

The composition of ‘naturally coloured’ late Roman vessel glass from Britain and the implications for models of glass production and supply

Naturally coloured, blue or green are the most common glass colours found in assemblages from the Roman world from the end of the 1st century BC onwards. In the 4th century two different compositions have come to dominate this group, ‘HIMT’ and ‘Levantine 1’ glasses, both of which are now thought to have been produced in the eastern Mediterranean. Using Romano-British glass assemblages from the 4th and 5th centuries, it is shown here that although the two naturally coloured glass types predominate, by far the most common composition in British assemblages is HIMT, although older, earlier blue-green compositions are still present. The earliest date HIMT could be identified in these assemblages is around AD 330, although two distinct compositions can be identified within this group which relate to changes in composition over time. A similar change over time is seen in the Levantine 1 glasses. The reasons for these patterns within the assemblages are explored within the archaeological evidence currently available for glass production and consumption in the Roman world.     

Rethinking Security: Perspectives from Arab–American and British Arab Activists

Abstract: In this article, we analyse the experience of securitization from the perspective of Arab–American and British Arab activists. Based on interviews with over 100 activists in both countries, we explore the ways in which Arab immigrant communities have experienced the enhanced security measures taken by governments. Our respondents describe the ways in which these measures have increased feelings of fear and insecurity within their communities. They emphasized how immigration, border and surveillance technologies lent a pervasive sense of insecurity to daily life. At the same time, they argued for the importance of the legal rights of citizenship in anchoring a sense of security in and belonging to British and American society.     

Functional analysis of stone grinding and polishing tools from the earliest Neolithic of north-western Europe

This reconstruction of grinding, pounding, hammering and abrading activities in the Early Neolithic of north-western Europe (Linearbandkeramik and Villeneuve-Saint-Germain cultures, 5100–4700 BC) is based on the study of 1289 sandstone tools from 17 sites located in the main Paris basin river valleys (Aisne, Eure, Marne, Oise, Seine, Yonne). An original method of functional identification was elaborated, relying on observation of use-wear with a stereoscopic microscope (under120×). Identification of traces of use relied on an experimental referential of 92 samples. These include (1) grinding cereals, (2) pounding temper, colourants and various plants, (3) shaping mineral, vegetal and animal objects by polishing (schist, limestones, bone, antler, wood), (4) softening skin. A significant observation concerns the use of small handstones for grain dehusking and larger handstones for grain grinding. Recycling is a widespread feature, with multipurpose handstones and frequent reuse of lower grinding tools for obtaining colourants. A change in the function of tools can also be observed between the Linearbandkeramik and the Villeneuve-Saint-Germain.     

La trame de la logique floue et l'usure du temps

Sans résumé à propos de: ClaudeRosental,La Trame de l'évidence. Sociologie de la démonstration en logique, Paris, Presses universitaires de France, 2003, 15×22, 367 p., index (Sciences, modernités, philosophies).     

Extinct species identification from late middle Pleistocene and earlier Upper Pleistocene bone fragments and tools not recognizable from their osteomorphological study by an enhanced proteomics protocol

Ancient preserved molecules offer the opportunity of gaining a deeper knowledge on their biological past. However, the development of a proteomic workflow remains a challenge. The analysis of fossils must involve a low quantity of material to avoid damaging the samples. In this study an enhanced proteomic protocol was applied to 5-milligram samples of about 130,000-year-old mammalian bones ranging from the end of the Middle Pleistocene up to the earlier Upper Pleistocene, excavated from Scladina Cave (Sclayn, Belgium). Using sequence homology with modern sequences, a biological classification was successfully achieved and the associated taxonomic ranks to each bone were identified consistently with the information gained from osteomorphological studies and palaeoenvironmental and palaeodietary data. Amino acid substitutions on collagens were identified, thus providing new information on extinct species sequences and helping in taxonomy-based clustering. Considering samples with no osteomorphological information, such as two fragments of bone retouchers, proteomics successfully identified the families providing paleontologists new information on these objects. Combining osteomorphology studies and amino acid variations identified by proteomics, one of the retouchers was potentially identified as belonging to the Ursus spelaeus species.     

The analysis of two historic fired artificial stonewares: Coade stone (18th–19th centuries) and a recent discovery from Oxnead Hall,Norfolk (16th–17th centuries)

Coade stone has played a significant role in architectural and ornamental design since its inception in the early 18th century. It is well known that earlier, experimental, architectural stoneware products existed, but few of these have been studied in detail scientifically, and only one major analytical study of Coade stone has appeared in the literature. This paper presents a new spectroscopic analysis of Coade stone along with that of a newly discovered sample from Oxnead Hall in Norfolk where it known that Sir Clement Paston experimented with artificial stone in the late 16th century. The results demonstrate that it is possible to differentiate between the two variants on the basis of both the raw materials used and the different phases formed in their production processes.     

Taboo and sensitive heritage: labour camps,burials and the role of activism in the Channel Islands

In this article we propose the concept of taboo heritage as a way to describe a legacy of war so sensitive that it never undergoes heritage creation. Attempts at creation, such as heritage listing, renovation or excavation, are blocked by local authorities. We also examine the transition from taboo heritage to sensitive heritage, the next step along the ‘heritage continuum’, which we propose can only occur through the combined efforts of the passage of time, the role of activists and official authorisation. We take as our case study two of the British Channel Islands of Jersey and Alderney, occupied by German forces from 1940 to 1945. Labour camps were built in both islands, where the dead were also buried locally. We explore how the existing legacy of these events is still taboo heritage in Alderney, but has achieved partial progress in the transition to sensitive heritage in Jersey.