Earthenware production and distribution in the prehispanic Philippine polity of Tanjay: results from laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS)

This paper presents the results of laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) analysis of low-fired earthenware from the prehispanic trading polity of Tanjay (c. A.D. 500–1600) in the central Philippines. The goal of this project was to determine whether or not the compositional analysis of ceramics could be used to examine the organization of pottery production and exchange relationships in the Bais-Tanjay region of Negros Island. Results indicate that at least five distinct groups of ceramics can be differentiated based on elemental compositions and that pottery production was both a part-time, dispersed endeavor and a full-time, likely centralized, craft. In addition, a number of compositional outliers in the ceramic dataset suggest that interregional trade took place, with pottery made outside the Bais-Tanjay region being imported, especially by upland swidden farmers.     

Compulsory Voting: Residual Problems and Potential Solutions

The state-enforced compulsion to vote can be defended as a reasonable imposition on individual autonomy. This article moves on from this position to examine a number of residual problems with Australia's compulsory voting arrangements. While maintaining a commitment to the compulsory voting system, I suggest that, in order to protect the reputation of the practice and preserve the norm of universal participation, some reforms may be necessary. While the argument that it is reasonable to compel people to vote accepts that the state can legitimately penalise avoidance, I have doubts about the propriety of some current and past practices, specifically those relating to the legal consequences of avoidance and the public promotion of avoidance. One recommendation allows genuine 'conscientious objectors' to apply for exemption provided they meet a number of conditions. I also make suggestions that address the complaint that compulsion limits democratic choice.     

Protest or Error? Informal Voting and Compulsory Voting

Some opponents of compulsory voting claim that rising rates of informal voting point to growing antipathy towards the institution. In order to test this claim we examine recent trends in informal voting, focusing upon some recent figures, particularly those of the 2004 Federal election when there was a sharp rise in informal votes. We suggest that it is not compulsion that is leading to informal voting but rather complexity and its interactions with sociological factors that are brought into play by near-universal turnout.     

The Birmingham Jewellery Quarter: A Marshallian Industrial District

The paper presents the findings of a study on the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter at its zenith from 1880 to 1920. Drawing on a unique database covering four decades and secondary data, it has been possible to map out the organization of production, the degree of firms' specializations, and extent of production and social networking within the Quarter. Such evidence seems to suggest that the Birmingham Jewellery Quarter was a Marshallian industrial district at the turn of the nineteenth century.     

‘The debatable territory where geology and archaeology meet’: reassessing the early archaeobotanical work of Clement Reid and Arthur Lyell at Roman Silchester

The first large-scale archaeobotanical study in Britain, conducted from 1899 to 1909 by Clement Reid and Arthur Lyell at Silchester, provided the first evidence for the introduction of Roman plant foods to Britain, yet the findings have thus far remained unverified. This paper presents a reassessment of these archaeobotanical remains, now stored as part of the Silchester Collection in Reading Museum. The documentary evidence for the Silchester study is summarised, before the results are presented for over a 1000 plant remains including an assessment of preservation, identification and modern contamination. The dataset includes both evidence for the presence of nationally rare plant foods, such as medlar, and several archaeophytes. The methodologies and original interpretations of Reid and Lyell's study are reassessed in light of current archaeobotanical knowledge. Spatial and contextual patterns in the distribution of plant foods and ornamental taxa are also explored. Finally, the legacy of the study for the development of archaeobotany in the 20th century is evaluated.     

Protocol for lapis lazuli provenance determination: evidence for an Afghan origin of the stones used for ancient carved artefacts kept at the Egyptian Museum of Florence (Italy)

Despite that the Badakhshan Province (Afghanistan) remains the most plausible hypothesis for the lapis lazuli used in antiquity, alternatives proposed in literature are worth to study to confirm or disprove their historical reliability. In this work, a protocol for determining the provenance of lapis lazuli rocks used for carved artefacts is described. Markers for the univocal attribution of the raw material to a source were identified analysing 45 rocks of known provenance (among which 15 georeferenced) from 4 quarry districts. To the best of our knowledge, this reference database is the widest in provenance studies on lapis lazuli. All the markers are recognisable by means of Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) techniques, in particular micro-proton-induced x-ray emission (PIXE) and micro-ionoluminescence (IL). These techniques are non-invasive and applicable in air, allowing to analyse artworks and rocks of practically any shape and dimension without sample preparation.The protocol was applied to determine the provenance of raw material used for carved lapis lazuli artefacts kept at the Egyptian Museum of Florence, the second most important Egyptian museum in Italy, second only to the museum of Turin. The collection in Florence has a great historical value and includes several lapis lazuli pendants, scarabs, small statuettes and amulets ascribable mainly to the first millennium BC. Following the protocol, 11 of these artefacts were analysed by means of IBA techniques. Results ascribe the raw material to the Afghan quarry district.