Where Do the Lead Ingots of the Saintes‐maries‐de‐la‐mer Wreck Come From? Archaeology Compared With Physics

The lead isotope compositions of many different samples from lead ingots of Roman age from two relicts (from Cabrera, and from Saintes‐Maries‐de‐la‐Mer) of the Western Mediterranean have been measured. Other lead isotope analyses of ores, metals or lead ingots from mines of Sierra Morena and from Cartagena and Sardinia have been accomplished. All the lead isotope measurements have been performed at the Joint Research Centre of the European Union, Ispra (Va), Italy. The samples have been prepared in a class 100 clean room, using only ultrapure reagents and FEP materials. In view of the archaeological arguments, it was possible to believe that the Roman lead ingots of the Saintes‐Maries‐de‐la‐Mer 1 wreck came from Spanish lodes, as well as those of the Cabrera 5 wreck. In fact, while the comparison between the first group of ingots (Cabrera 5) and the lead from Sierra Morena is consistent, the correspondence between the second group of ingots (Saintes‐Maries‐de‐la‐Mer 1) and the Cevennes ores (southern France) gives rise to several problems concerning the archaeological and physical origins. These problems are discussed.     

A General Misspecification Test for Spatial Regression Models: Dependence, Heterogeneity, and Nonlinearity

There is an increasing awareness of the potentials of nonlinear modeling in regional science. This can be explained partly by the recognition of the limitations of conventional equilibrium models in complex situations, and also by the easy availability and accessibility of sophisticated computational techniques. Among the class of nonlinear models, dynamic variants based on, for example, chaos theory stand out as an interesting approach. However, the operational significance of such approaches is still rather limited and a rigorous statistical-econometric treatment of nonlinear dynamic modeling experiments is lacking. Against this background this paper is concerned with a methodological and empirical analysis of a general misspecification test for spatial regression models that is expected to have power against nonlinearity, spatial dependence, and heteroskedasticity. The paper seeks to break new research ground by linking the classical diagnostic tools developed in spatial econometrics to a misspecification test derived directly from chaos theory—the BDS test, developed by Brock, Dechert, and Scheinkman (1987). A spatial variant of the BDS test is introduced and applied in the context of two examples of spatial process models, one of which is concerned with the spatial distribution of regional investments in The Netherlands, the other with spatial crime patterns in Columbus, Ohio.     

The Environmental History of Tigray (Northern Ethiopia) in the Middle and Late Holocene: A Preliminary Outline

This paper outlines the environmental history of the Tigrean Plateau (northern Ethiopia) during the Holocene, based on the available geomorphological, palynological, archaeological, and historical evidence. At present, it seems that (1) the plateau experienced a more humid climate with a denser vegetation cover during the Early Holocene; (2) Soil erosion due to clearing vegetation began in the Middle Holocene; (3) agricultural activity was intensified in the Late Holocene, as a consequence of the rise of a state; (4) demographic pressure increased from the early first millennium BC to the mid–first millennium AD, causing soil erosion; (5) environmental degradation and demographic decline occurred in the late first millennium AD; (6) the vegetation cover was regenerated in the early second millennium AD; and (7) progressive vegetation clearance started again in the second half of the second millennium AD.Cet article trace l'histoire ambiante du Plateau Tigréen dans l'Holocène en utilisant les données géomorphologiques, palynologiques, archéologiques et historiques. Il semble que (1) dans l'Holocène ancien le plateau était caractérisé par une phase humide avec une dense végétation; (2) l'érosion causée par l'abbattage de la végétation commen¸a dans l'Holocène moyen; (3) l'activité agricole s'inténsifia à la fin de l'Holocène, par conséquence de l'essor d'un état; (4) la pression démographique augmenta de plus en plus du début du premier millénaire av. J.-Ch. à la moitié du premier millénaire ap. J.-Ch.; (5) la dégradation ambiante et la diminution démographique se vérifièrent à la fin du premier millénaire ap. J.-Ch.; (6) une régéneration de la vegetation se vérifia au début du seconde millénaire ap. J.-Ch.; et (7) l'abbatage de la végétation recommen¸a dans la seconde moitié du seconde millénaire ap. J.-Ch.     

A Late Neolithic vertebrate food web based on stable isotope analyses

Stable carbon and nitrogen isotope analyses of bone collagen, and stable carbon and oxygen isotope analyses of the bone's structural carbonate, were performed on 120 individuals representing 33 vertebrate species, including a single human bone find, collected from the Late Neolithic settlement at Pestenacker, Bavaria, Germany. We were thus capable of reconstructing a rather complex food web and could also address particular issues, such as whether humans influenced the diet of their domestic animals as opposed to their wild relatives, or whether humans perhaps had to compete over food with their domesticates. A rather unexpected result was that freshwater fish, which could be captured in the nearby river Lech, a major tributary of the Danube, contributed to the human diet only occasionally. As for mammals, it was also possible to recognise different trophic levels for birds and aquatic vertebrates, applying stable isotope analyses to both bone collagen and structural carbonate. In the case of fish, δ¹⁸O values at least revealed a physiological regularity in terms of temperature preference, besides diet. Conceivably, variability of δ¹⁸O in surface water as reflected, for example, by species that avoided human settlements, may help to characterise past ecosystems and to define site catchment exploited by Neolithic man in the course of food acquisition. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Trepanation in the Chachapoya region of northern Perú

This paper discusses trepanation frequency data from the Chachapoya region of the northern highlands of Perú. New data from three skeletal samples are presented: Kuelap, Laguna Huayabamba, and Los Pinchudos, as well as isolated crania housed at the Chachapoya Museo Instituto Nacional de Cultura. The vast majority of the trepanations are circular in shape, except for one individual exhibiting as many as three roughly square trepanations. Evidence for healing is prevalent, with examples of both associated periosteal reaction of nearby outer table bone, as well as for healing of the insult itself. Only one case demonstrates a clear association between a traumatic injury and a trepanation event. The purpose or function of the remaining cases of trepanation, however, remains elusive. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Thalassemia: macroscopic and radiological study of a case

Differentiation of the genetic and the acquired anaemias, particularly in areas of the world where they may co‐exist, has been a challenge for palaeopathologists for over 100 years. In this paper we present macroscopic and radiographic skeletal lesions that are associated with the thalassemias in a 14‐year‐old girl from a modern reference collection of the University of Athens. This individual is of known sex, age, cause of death, place and dates of birth and death. The case is examined in terms of epidemiology, growth, distribution and severity of lesions and differential diagnosis. The entire skeleton is affected by marrow hyperplasia: lesions of the axial skeleton are extreme, and the appendicular skeleton is severely affected as well. The odontofacial manifestations that are diagnostic of thalassemia and differentiate it from other anaemias are present and include: maxillary and mandibular hyperplasia, reduced sinuses, displacement of maxillary dental structures, overbite, and generalised osteopenia. The development of extreme bone lesions and the ‘advanced’ age‐at‐death of this individual is explained as either the result of thalassemia major under a low transfusion regimen that was the norm during her lifetime, or to a form of thalassemia intermedia that allows survival to later life at the expense of gross skeletal alterations. The present status of skeletal studies in Greece does not support the identification of a genetic anaemia in past populations. The potential contribution of the current analysis in differentiating the anaemias in antiquity is evaluated. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Frontiers of Contact: Bioarchaeology of Spanish Florida

The arrival of Europeans in the New World had profound and long-lasting results for the native peoples. The record for the impact of this fundamental change in culture, society, and biology of Native Americans is well documented historically. This paper reviews the biological impact of the arrival of Europeans on native populations via the study of pre- and postcontact skeletal remains in Spanish Florida, the region today represented by coastal Georgia and northern Florida. The postcontact skeletal series, mostly drawn from Roman Catholic mission sites, are among the most comprehensive in the Americas, providing a compelling picture of adaptation and stress in this setting. Study of paleopathology, dental and skeletal indicators of physiological stress, stable isotope (carbon and nitrogen) analysis, tooth microwear, and skeletal morphology (cross-sectional geometry) reveals major alterations in quality of life and lifestyle. The bioarchaeological record indicates a general deterioration in health, declining dietary diversity and nutritional quality, and increasing workload in the contact period. The impact of contact in Spanish Florida appears to have been more dramatic in comparison with other regions, which likely reflects the different nature of contact relations in this setting versus other areas (e.g., New England, New France). The bioarchaeological record represents an important information source for understanding the dynamics of biocultural change resulting from colonization and conquest.     

Invasion of a karst aquifer by hydrothermal fluids: evidence from stable isotopic compositions of cave mineralization

Mineral deposits in the Cupp‐Coutunn/Promeszutochnaya cave system (Turkmenia, central Asia) record a phase of hydrothermal activity within a pre‐existing karstic groundwater conduit system. Hydrothermal fluids entered the caves through fault zones and deposited sulphate, sulphide and carbonate minerals under phreatic conditions. Locally, intense alteration of limestone wall rocks also occurred at this stage. Elsewhere in the region, similar faults contain economic quantities of galena and elemental sulphur mineralization. Comparisons between the Pb and S isotope compositions of minerals found in cave and ore deposits confirm the link between economic mineralization and hydrothermal activity at Cupp‐Coutunn. The predominance of sulphate mineralization in Cupp‐Coutunn implies that the fluids were more oxidized in the higher permeability zone associated with the karst aquifer. A slight increase in the δ³⁴S of sulphate minerals and a corresponding δ³⁴S decrease in sulphides suggest that partial isotopic equilibration occurred during oxidation. Carbonate minerals indicate that the hydrothermal fluid was enriched in ¹⁸O (δ¹⁸O_SMOW ～ + 10‰) relative to meteoric groundwater and seawater. Estimated values for δ¹³C_DIC (δ¹³C_PDB ～ ? 13‰) are consistent with compositions expected for dissolved inorganic carbon (DIC) derived from the products of thermal decomposition of organic matter and dissolution of marine carbonate. Values derived for δ¹³C_DIC and δ¹⁸O_water indicate that the hydrothermal fluid was of basinal brine origin, generated by extensive water–rock interaction. Following the hydrothermal phase, speleothemic minerals were precipitated under vadose conditions. Speleothemic sulphates show a bimodal sulphur isotope distribution. One group has compositions similar to the hydrothermal sulphates, whilst the second group is characterized by higher δ³⁴S values. This latter group may either record the effects of microbial sulphate reduction, or reflect the introduction of sulphate‐rich groundwater generated by the dissolution of overlying evaporites. Oxygen isotope compositions show that calcite speleothems were precipitated from nonthermal groundwater of meteoric origin. Carbonate speleothems are relatively enriched in ¹³C compared to most cave deposits, but can be explained by normal speleothem‐forming processes under thin, arid‐zone soils dominated by C4 vegetation. However, the presence of sulphate speleothems, with isotopic compositions indicative of the oxidation of hydrothermal sulphide, implies that CO₂ derived by reaction of limestone with sulphuric acid (‘condensation corrosion’) contributed to the formation of ¹³C‐enriched speleothem deposits.     

‘Torrents of Terror’: the August 1998 Storm and the Magnitude,Frequency and Impact of Major Floods in the Illawarra Region of New South Wales

The Illawarra Region some 80 kilometres south of Sydney is characterised by a prominent coastal escarpment that rises to 700 m within 12 km of the coast and forms a locus for frequent, high intensity rainfall events. One of the most recent recorded events occurred on 17 August 1998 with rainfall intensities at several pluviometers exceeding 120 mm hr^‐1 over a duration of one hour, with up to 249 mm falling in 3.5 hours during the main storm burst. Detailed pluviometer data indicate that the storm was non‐stationary and moved down catchment producing a widespread zone of 120 mm hr^‐1 intensity rainfall over a 30 minute duration across mid‐lower catchment areas after similar intensity but longer duration rainfall in catchment headwaters. Slope‐area reconstructions of peak discharge indicate that small catchments on the escarpment within the zone of maximum intensity experienced close to 100% rainfall‐runoff relationships, with peak discharges correlated to short duration (<1 hr) peak rainfall intensities. Widespread erosion occurred particularly where urban development had encroached on natural water courses. Debris/hyperconcentrated flows originating from both anthropogenic and natural sediment sources caused damage to urban areas. This paper provides an overview of the spatial and temporal characteristics of the 17 August 1998 storm, the hydrologic and geomorphic response of the streams, and the nature of damage to urban areas. It reassesses the frequency of recent high‐magnitude rainfall/flood events in the region, discussing the relationships between rainfall intensities, estimates of flood magnitudes and stormwater channel capacities.