Silver production at al‐Radrad: archaeometallurgical analysis of ore,slag and technical ceramics from early medieval Yemen

The zinc‐lead‐silver deposit of al‐Jabali, about 65 km north‐east of Sana'a in Yemen, has been identified as the location of the late antique/Islamic period silver mine al‐Radrad. Exploitation of the mine is known from the account of al‐Hamdani, an Arab geographer of the tenth century AD. The al‐Jabali area has been the focus of geological and archaeometallurgical surveys, and extensive metallurgical remains have been discovered. Samples of ore, slag and technical ceramics were collected for archaeometallurgical analysis. The technology of silver production is discussed in relation to the historical record, and elemental and lead isotope characterisation of ore and slag provides a basis for future provenance studies.     

Das andere Zuhause

Cities are increasingly addressing high-skilled migrants. Our contribution examines the factors that shape how this group relates to places and why cities provide different conditions for this. We draw on empirical data from an explorative case study with highly qualified migrants in the university city of Münster. First, we look at the place ties at the new place of residence and thereby focus on their local social networks and their sense of belonging. Second, we turn to the place-specific characteristics, in particular the role of “connections” and “urban opportunity structures”. Based on our findings we discuss how urban policy-making may influence the place attachment of this desired group.     

Mineralogical and geochemical characterization of high-medieval lead–silver smelting slags from Wiesloch near Heidelberg (Germany)—an approach to process reconstruction

Here, we present detailed electron microprobe analyses and age data of high-medieval lead–silver smelting slags. The mineral composition data provide a database of all silicate and oxide phases in the slag. Bulk chemistry as well as mineral composition is used to reconstruct liquidus, solidus, and viscosity of the slag melt. By calculating the mass balance of the smelting process, a mass ratio of the various compounds used in the smelting process is determined. Through this we were able to discriminate qualitatively between non-ferrous metal smelting slags and bloomery slags. We also report a new type and process of silver production in which argentiferous galmei (zinc carbonate) was used as a main silver ore together with galena. The results indicate a sophisticated high-medieval smelting technology, in which a slag with a low liquidus and a low viscosity was created.     

Publications received 1984–1985

José Manuel Sánchez Ron (1997): INTA. 50 años de ciencia y técnica aeroespacial (Madrid: INTA)

Dieter Hoffmann and Kristie Macrakis (eds.), Naturwissenschaft und Technik in der DDR (Berlin: Akademie Verlag, 1997), pp. 410.

Monika Renneberg and Mark Walker (eds.), Science, Technology and National Socialum (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1994), pp. 422.

Keith Wailoo, Drawing Blood: Technology and Disease Identity in Twentieth‐Century America, (Baltimore &; London: The Johns Hopkins University Press, 1997), xii+288 pp., ill.

Richard H. Grove, Green Imperialism: Colonial Expansion, Tropical Islands and the Origins of Environmentalism. 1660–1860 (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1995 (HB) and 1996 (PB)), pp. xiv+540.

Peter Galison, Image and Logic. A Material Culture of Mkrophysics. (Chicago and London: The University of Chicago Press, 1997) pp. xxv+955.     

Evaluation of very high to medium resolution multispectral satellite imagery for geoarchaeology in arid regions – Case study from Jabali,Yemen

Archaeological research of the ancient Jabali silver mines (7th to 14th centuries ad) in northern Yemen is a multidisciplinary project covering scientific disciplines traditionally related to archaeology, a geological approach and new technologies such as very high resolution remote sensing. Mining companies envisage the development of the Jabali deposit for zinc ore. Some of the planned facilities, particularly a large open pit, will have a destructive impact on the old pits and processing heaps, already damaged by recent works. In the present study, remote sensing is used for a detailed survey of the impact of preliminary mining works from the early 1980’s with the aim to establish archaeological remains and to prioritize areas for future ground surveys, as well as for geological mapping. Results indicate that mapping using remote sensing in the visible to short wave infrared range has a great potential for the identification of gossans (iron caps) possibly related to archaeological remains. The phases of work in Jabali are clearly put into light by the study of a time series of Landsat data. Very high resolution QuickBird imagery appears particularly relevant for mapping most of the archaeological remnants, iron caps, as well as the 3D visualization of the mining site when drapped over a detailed digital elevation model.     

Morphospace occupation of temnospondyl growth series: a geometric morphometric approach

A morphometric analysis based on 16 landmarks (specific geometric points) identified on the skull roof of different growth stages of various temnospondyls revealed patterns of shape change during ontogeny. Data from 50 individuals from 12 taxa, encompassing euskelians (dissorophoids, eryopids and zatracheids) and stereospondylomorphs were plotted in a morphospace diagram defined by two principal-component axes (PC 1 and PC 2) of a principal-component analysis of the shape variables. The morphospace occupation reflects phylogenetic relationships of the main clades of temnospondyls. All stereospondylomorphs investigated here have similar ontogenetic trajectories with long intervals on PC 1. Eryopids and zatracheids have shortened their trajectories on PC 1 and are separated in morphospace relative to the stereospondylomorphs and dissorophoids. Outgroup comparison with Cochleosaurus bohemicus (Fri?, 1876 Fri?, A. 1876. Über die Fauna der Gaskohle des Pilsner und Rakonitzer Beckens. Sitzungsberichte der Königlichen Böhmischen Gesellschaft der Wissenschaften, 1875: 70–79.  [Google Scholar]) suggests that a long ontogenetic trajectory with gradual development represents the plesiomorphic condition for temnospondyls. More derived stereospondylomorphs (among the taxa considered here, but excluding groups such as derived rhytidosteids and brachyopoids) increased the length of their trajectories on PC 1 and show a peramorphic pattern, resulting in the long and slender skull of piscivorous predators. Dissorophoids exhibit truncated ontogenetic trajectories and occupy the morphospace region of larval stereospondylomorphs, thus attaining a paedomorphic appearance probably by hypomorphosis. Amphibamid and branchiosaurid dissorophoids have clearly distinguishable larval and postlarval developments, indicating that these forms had evolved a lissamphibian-like type of metamorphosis.     

Human capital accumulation and long‐term income growth projections for European regions

We propose an econometric framework to construct projections for per capita income growth and human capital for European regions. Using Bayesian methods, our approach accounts for model uncertainty in terms of the choice of explanatory variables, the nature of spatial spillovers, as well as the potential endogeneity between output growth and human capital accumulation. This method allows us to assess the potential contribution of future educational attainment to economic growth and income convergence among European regions over the next decades. Our findings suggest that income convergence dynamics and human capital act as important drivers of income growth for the decades to come.     

There are Many Roads to Reindustrialization and Resilience: Place-based Approaches in Three German Urban Regions

Reindustrialization has become a major political objective in the European Union. This paper provides three urban case studies on reindustrialization pathways and experiences during the global economic crisis to reveal the specificities of place-based approaches on the local level despite common policies on EU, federal and state levels. Moreover, the evolutionary perspective on reindustrialization and economic resilience shows the importance of adaptive capabilities on the local level, although the sources for these capabilities differ according to context- and place-specific structures.