RESEARCH NOTES AND APPLICATION REPORTS ELEMENT DISTRIBUTION MAPS IN FOSSIL BONES

The combined application of fission track analysis and neutron activation-induced β-autoradiography to map the trace element distributions of scandium, cobalt, uranium and rare earth elements in fossil bone samples from East Africa is described. Both uranium and the rare earth elements are incorporated into bone apatite during fossilisation, whereas scandium and cobalt occur additionally in any iron-manganese minerals precipitated in pore spaces within the bone cortex. The distribution of uranium is different from that of the rare earth elements in the fossil bone cortices; it enters fossil bone more rapidly and is sensitive to changes in the redox potential of the palaeogroundwater.     

THE SCIENTIFIC IDENTIFICATION OF ARCHAEOLOGICAL JET-LIKE ARTEFACTS

Jet has been widely used in the past for jewellery but was just one of a range of black lithic materials employed. When worked into small objects these materials can be visually indistinguishable, yet discrimination is important because of the restricted occurrence of jet. X-ray fluorescence (XRF) is a rapid non-destructive discriminatory technique, but not all samples are clearly classified, and inhomogeneity may pose problems. A reassessment of the use of XRF is reported. Other techniques considered include electron spin resonance, infrared spectroscopy, Raman spectroscopy, thermogravimetric analysis, scanning electron microscopy and X-radiography. These were tested on geological materials to define an effective methodology for archaeological material. The recommended approach is a combination of XRF and X-radiography, although preliminary Fourier transform infrared results showed promise. The X-ray techniques were tested on Romano-British assemblages from Catterick and Stanwick.     

MAGNETIC SUSCEPTIBILITY THICKNESS CORRECTIONS FOR SMALL ARTEFACTS AND COMMENTS ON THE EFFECTS OF‘BACKGROUND’MATERIALS*

Correction factors for magnetic susceptibility measurements on thin (<c. 50 mm thick > artefacts have been determined experimentally for a KT‐5 Exploranium G S. instrument using prepared blocks of Whin Sill dolerite. The cor rection factor is large (> 1.4) for samples less than 10mm thick, and reduces to 1 01 for samples of 50mm thickness. Measurements on thin samples can also be affected by the backing or substrate material on which they are measured. ‘Background’material, for example, soil or plaster, can contribute significantly to recorded measurements on artefacts, particularly for thin artefacts with low susceptibilities     

Unity and Exclusion in the Roman Catholic Priesthood: Explaining the Creation of the National Council of Priests of Australia

The National Council of Priests of Australia (NCP) was created in Sydney in September 1971 and continues to exist today. The organization has undergone some significant changes since its beginnings. It moved, for instance, from representation by delegates to direct membership in the mid‐1970s, which made it unique among other national associations of priests that were sponsored by bishops. Since its beginnings, deciding whether or not to extend membership to ordained men no longer in active ministry has proved to be a vexing issue within the NCP. It has shaped the organization's culture as much as those who qualify to belong. This article explains the significance of the NCP membership criteria and looks to some of the long‐term and short‐term influences on its creation.     

HELLENISTIC GLAZED WARES FROM ATHENS AND SOUTHERN ITALY: ANALYTICAL TECHNIQUES AND IMPLICATIONS

The original intention of the project, conceived in the context of the British School at Rome's excavation and survey programme in the Bradano basin (based on Gravina) was to establish the composition patterns of Hellenistic glazed wares from sites in southern Apulia, and then to use these to trace the trading patterns of the area, against a control group of sherds from the Athenian Agora. It proved possible to distinguish Attic from Apulian sherds by their nickel and chromium content, and average-link-cluster-analysis by computer showed that Gnathian ware from Taranto could be distinguished from seven other south Italian groups, suggesting that speciality wares were made of clays from special beds. Because of the geological homogeneity of the area no further distinctions could be made, but some sherds were also analysed petrologically and by heavy mineral analysis, for a methodological comparison. The very homogeneous geology, coupled with the fineness of the wares showed these methods to be at the limits of their usefulness. Only very generalized conclusions could be drawn concerning the origin of the pottery from the petrological evidence; the micro-mineralogical data showed that interesting differences existed between pottery from the main Apulian sites, but these could equally have reflected natural variations occurring within fairly homogeneous clay deposits.