Turquoise Mine and Artefact Correlation for Some Bronze Age Archaeological Sites in Hubei Province,China

In China, there are places that are rich in gem‐quality turquoise resources, including north‐west Hubei Province and the nearby Baihe County in Shaanxi Province, and many ancient mining sites, although the mining history remains a mystery. Based on the compositional data from reference samples of known deposits, a comparison of the major and trace element contents of archaeological turquoise may help with determination of artefact provenance. This paper discusses new evidence of provenance‐tracking of turquoise in this area, obtained from geochemical analyses using REE and other trace elements of 22 turquoises and their surrounding rock samples from six ancient mines and three archaeological sites. The results indicate that the three archaeological turquoises from the tomb of the Middle Spring and Autumn Period (580–560 bc ) and the Warring States Period (476–221 bc ) in Hubei Province were made of raw material from north‐west Hubei Province and the nearby Baihe County in Shaanxi Province. [Correction added on 29 October 2014, after first online publication: In the preceding sentence, the correct dates for the Middle Spring and Autumn Period, and the Warring States Period have been added]     

Was Lacquer the Key Ingredient for Luxurious Jinyin Pingtuo Products in the Tang Dynasty of China (AD 618–907)?

Jinyin pingtuo is one of the most sumptuous decorative methods applied on ‘lacquered' objects described in Tang dynasty literatures. Two Tang dynasty objects, a silver bowl and a bronze mirror, in the British Museum collection said to be made by this technique, were scientifically examined to confirm the application of the technique. Although the metal décors levelled with the rest of the surfaces on these objects suggested the application of the pingtuo method, lacquer, a major ingredient of this technique, was not identified by Py (HMDS)-GC–MS in any of the four samples analysed. The results question the use of lacquer in the pingtuo technique as usually described. The detection of shellac and oil in the bronze mirror aligns with other studies on similar objects, whereas proteinaceous materials as main ingredient of the decorative layers of the silver bowl, appear less usual. Further comparative study by scientific analysis of similar objects in other museum collections or from excavations is required to help better understand the use of lacquer in ancient China.     

Provenance of Qingbai wares from Shabian kiln archaeological site in the Northern Song dynasty (960–1127 ce) using XRF and LA-ICP-MS*

In order to discuss the exact provenance of the Qingbai wares discovered at Shabian archaeological site in Guangzhou, which had a similar appearance to Jingdezhen Qingbai ware, we analysed both the body and glaze of the Qingbai wares from the Shabian kiln site and those from other related kilns, including Hutian in Jingdezhen, Xicun in Guangzhou and Chaozhou of Guangdong, by using micro-X-ray fluorescence (μ-XRF) and laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Based on the analyses, we found that both bodies and glaze of the Qingbai wares in Shabian had the characteristics of a low abundance of rare earth elements (REE), strong negative Eu anomalies, and remarkably low Nb/Ta and Zr/Hf ratios, which was consistent with those from Hutian kiln in Jingdezhen, Jiangxi province. We also found that the glaze of Qingbai ware from different kilns also had its provenance characteristic in the concentration of the trace elements, and the change of the REE pattern between glaze and its corresponding bodies in Qingbai wares might provide some clue about the types and source of flux. In addition, the lower Nb/Ta and Zr/Hf ratios in both the bodies and glaze of Jingdezhen Qingbai wares were attributed to the chemical characteristics of the local granite.     

Against the Grain: Long-Term Patterns in Agricultural Production in Prehistoric Cyprus

Journal of World Prehistory - Our understanding of the timing and dynamics of the spread of human populations to the island of Cyprus has changed significantly in the last few decades. Ongoing...     

Application of veratraldehyde as a temporary consolidant for relics at underwater cultural heritage sites

Because it is often difficult to preserve fragile relics in situ at underwater cultural heritage sites, it is sometimes necessary for relics to be extracted and moved to a controlled environment on land for protection and study. This paper discusses the feasibility of using the volatile organic compound veratraldehyde as a temporary consolidant for underwater fragile relics extraction. The results show that different materials (iron, tile, sand, wood) under water can be bonded together and extracted when using veratraldehyde. The fact that veratraldehyde is difficult to spread on the surface of underwater objects is a problem that can be solved by adding a layer of strong hydrophobic polypropylene (PP) fibres onto the object, serving as a ‘package' for the relics. Under laboratory conditions, we used veratraldehyde and PP fibres to extract broken tiles from underwater sand onto an exhibition stand. The broken tiles, in both condition and distribution, were safely and completely retained as the veratraldehyde was slowly removed by the soaking process. This work fills a gap in knowledge about temporary consolidant materials in underwater archaeology, and provides a new method for extracting underwater fragile cultural relics without damaging them.