A Multi‐Method Database of the Black and White Marbles of Göktepe (Aphrodisias), Including Isotopic,EPR, Trace and Petrographic Data

A database of the ancient marbles of Göktepe near Aphrodisias is reported, and includes 160 white, black and bichrome samples from 13 quarries and two waste deposits. The quarries are grouped into four districts. Districts 1 and 2, to the north, produced exclusively black or dark grey marbles (nero antico). Districts 3 and 4 produced white statuary marble. Nero antico and a black and white stone were also quarried in district 4, where the black marble surfaces again. The samples were characterized using petrography, isotopic analysis, EPR spectroscopy and trace analysis. The Göktepe white exhibits an unparalleled combination of fine grain, low EPR intensity and high strontium concentration that often allows easy identification. The isotopic values are less distinctive and similar to those for Carrara. In most cases, however, they are tightly grouped and also quite indicative. The black marbles exhibit a much weaker metamorphic overprint. With respect to the white marbles, they show analytical similarities but also notable differences. Therefore, establishing their provenance can be more difficult and may require the support of petrographic analysis. The results suggest that the Göktepe marbles were among the most prized and widespread statuary marbles used in Roman times, particularly from the early second century ad onwards.     

Diagenesis and elemental geochemistry under varying reservoir oil saturation in the Junggar Basin of NW China: implication for differentiating hydrocarbon‐bearing horizons

In this paper, we attempt to differentiate hydrocarbon‐bearing reservoir horizons of the Junggar Basin of NW China based on the characteristics of diagenesis and associated elemental geochemistry. Reservoirs at this site have varying levels of oil saturation that correlate with the degree of dissolution in minerals (e.g., calcite and feldspar). Four different horizons with varying diagenetic mineral assemblages were observed, including (i) kaolinite‐rich, oil‐dominated horizons, (ii) kaolinite–pyrite–hematite‐rich, oil–water‐dominated horizons, (iii) siderite–chlorite‐rich, water‐dominated horizons, and (iv) chlorite‐rich horizons with negligible hydrocarbon production. The mean MnO content of the representative diagenetic mineral (e.g., calcite) in each of the above horizons is >2.5, 2.0–2.5, 1.5–2.0, and <1.0 wt%, respectively. We propose that the above methodology can be used for the identification of reservoir hydrocarbon‐bearing horizons. We argue that the indicators presented here can be applied in oil exploration across the Junggar Basin.     

Life and Death in Neolithic Southeastern Italy: The Strontium Isotopic Evidence

There is a strong relation between people's structured identities and their chemical biographies: these can reflect the way individuals choose to reside and/or move. The strontium isotope ratio (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) of skeletal remains is considered a useful proxy to assess residential mobility and social practices in past populations; however, so far, it has only occasionally been applied to prehistoric contexts in the Mediterranean. In this paper, we present ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr data of human and animal samples from several Neolithic sites in the Apulian Tavoliere (southeastern Italy), namely, Grotta Scaloria, Passo di Corvo, Masseria Candelaro and La Torretta/Poggio Imperiale. Data obtained from dental enamel reflect the local origin of the individuals and allowed us to differentiate function and meaning of the sites examined. In particular, within a generally homogeneous background of Sr signatures, the range of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr at Scaloria Cave is greater than at the other sites, with variation likely to be related to funerary practices. We interpret this as the evidence of the ritual use of the cave, which implied the gathering of people of different origin. The relative variation of the Sr signature among individuals, either intersite or intrasite can be tentatively associated with mobility during life as well as with social practices, such as access to foods from geologically different environments. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Isotopic Reconstruction of the Late Longshan Period (ca. 4200–3900 BP) Dietary Complexity before the Onset of State‐Level Societies at the Wadian Site in the Ying River Valley,Central Plains,China

During the late Longshan period (ca. 4200–3900 BP) settlements on the Central Plains of China underwent a diversification in food production technologies, which set the stage for rapid economic and social development. The introduction of novel domesticates such as rice, wheat, cattle, and sheep not only provided more food choices, but also changed ideas concerning land use, farming techniques, and the use and mobilization of large scale labor forces. To better understand the contribution that these new dietary items and practices made to shaping the late Longshan period societies, a stable isotope ratio study of humans (n = 12) and animals (n = 42) was conducted at the late Longshan period site of Wadian. The human δ¹³C and δ¹⁵N values are clustered into two distinct groups. One group of nine individuals (δ¹³C = −9.9 ± 0.7‰; δ¹⁵N = 7.5 ± 0.5‰) had a predominately C₄ diet based on millet grains with little protein input from the domestic animals. The other group of three individuals (δ¹³C = −14.3 ± 0.8‰; δ¹⁵N = 10.2 ± 0.3‰) had a mixed C₃/C₄ diet of millets and rice and were consuming sheep and cattle. The animals also displayed dietary diversity with the pigs (δ¹³C = −11.3 ± 2.5‰; δ¹⁵N = 6.9 ± 1.0‰, n = 10) and dogs (δ¹³C = −10.1 ± 1.0‰; δ¹⁵N = 7.2 ± 1.1‰, n = 7) having mostly a C₄ plant based diet (millets). In contrast, the cattle (δ¹³C = −12.8 ± 2.1‰; δ¹⁵N = 7.6 ± 0.7‰, n = 9), sheep (δ¹³C = −16.7 ± 0.9‰; δ¹⁵N = 7.6 ± 0.1‰, n = 2), and cervids (δ¹³C = −20.8 ± 0.9‰; δ¹⁵N = 5.0 ± 1.2‰, n = 10) had diets with a greater contribution from C₃ sources such as rice and wild plants. The discovery that humans and animals had different subsistence patterns indicates dietary complexity at Wadian and that rice agriculture, and cattle and sheep husbandry practices were already an important part of the local economy by the late Longshan period in the southern region of the Central Plains of China. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

原始形态体育器械的考古学分析——史前劳动工具与原始形态的体育器械

人类文化的产生,由某种意义上说,是从人类的劳动开始的,而人类的劳动又是从制造工具开始的。因此,工具的出现,就意味着人类生产活动的肇始,意味着人类以工具为手段在改变自然界的同时,进而改变人类自身的开始。具有自觉意识的人类的活动,在迈上原始体育形态的第一步台阶时,劳动工具的使用起着重要作用。人类原始的劳动工具,是一种多用途的"人工器官",因此,史前的劳动工具,是反映原始人类文化形态的显著标志。这些工具既是人类同大自然进行斗争的工具,在一定程度上,又是进行身体运动的主要辅助手段。当原始生产工具由于加工技术的发展而不断进步的时候,它们也开始被用于人类进行自身改造的活动中去。从人类利用工具作为器械在改造自然界的同时,进行有意识地自身改造开始,人类原始的体育形态就形成了。但这一发展却经历了极其漫长的过程,在这一漫长的过程中,原始的体育运动器械处于和生产工具不分的状态,即主要用于狩猎、采集的许多生产工具,在一定程度上也被用于身体练习和娱乐活动。如旧石器在晚期,除了石球、石镞和石矛几种新器形的出现外,还有斧形小石刀,雕刻器、钻头等。这些主要是作为切、刮、剥工具来应用于人们生活中的。不过,像小石刀等,后来多数是作为复合工具使用的,因此,它对石镞,石矛等复合工具的发展,也产生了一定的影响。因此,原始生产工具的不断发展进步,也就潜在地为专用原始体育器械的诞生作好了准备。原始社会后期,随着生产力的发展,人类文化的进步和人类活动方式的扩大,许多生产工具在功能方面开始分化。虽然这时的工具仍以石器为主。但在制作方式上,磨制的已占多数,且更为精致,器形种类也大大增多了;同时,骨、角、蚌、木、陶等质料的工具也更加丰富。这一方面反映了人们的经济生活提高了,生活的手段增强了,同时,适应人类运动形式的需要,也演化出了一些颇具专门化的运动器械。但更重要的一点是,工具的改进,为人类文化形态的发展提供了物质前提。对原始体育形态来说,工具的进步与类型的增加,为人们提供了更加丰富的活动手段,在一定程度上,扩大了人们在原始体育上的活动方式。通过考古资料所反映的原始时代工具的发展和功能特点的转化,可以看出原始体育形态从形成到逐步发展的事实。旧石器时代的工具,种类少,形式简单,且多为一器多用。像刮削器、砍砸器、尖状器,甚至石镞、石球等,所显示出的原始体育活动的某些功能只是间接的,其主要特点还是作为当时人类生存谋生的手段。至新石器时代,随着社会和原始经济生活的进步,人们活动领域和内容的扩展,许多工具已经不是生产工具与劳动对象的简单接触所产生的了。这些经过人们精心设计的工具,在原始体育文化的发展中产生了重要的作用,一是许多工具在最初由适应狩猎业和原始农业,逐渐也具有了原始体育活动器械的功能;一是出现了直接用于原始体育活动的器械。这两种变化,使原始的生产、生活工具在推动原始体育形态从其他社会活动中完全分离转化出来,并向文明时代体育形态演化创造了条件。     

Cribra orbitalia: a non‐human primate perspective

Cribra orbitalia, a porous lesion involving the orbital roofs, is one of the most‐studied skeletal pathologies in bioarchaeology, and yet uncertainty still exists regarding its aetiology and significance. In contrast to the hundreds of reports of cribra orbitalia in human skeletal remains, little is known of this condition in non‐human primates. Previously, cribra orbitalia has only been reported in catarrhines, with just two cases in cercopithecoids. To provide a broader, phylogenetic perspective on cribra orbitalia, a sample of primate skeletal material was examined to evaluate the occurrence of this condition. The taxonomically diverse sample consists of 380 non‐hominoid (non‐ape) modern primates from both wild and captive populations. Cribra orbitalia is present in 16 individuals, including cercopithecines, colobines, platyrrhines and a prosimian, substantially expanding the known taxonomic range of this condition. Modern primates—with their varied habitats, diets, levels of parasitism, etc.—provide a set of natural experiments regarding conditions and physiologies which may influence the aetiology and impact of cribra orbitalia. More generally, it is suggested here that studies of non‐human primate skeletal pathologies have the potential for providing significant insight on human paleopathologies. Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.