Scientific investigation of the paint and adhesive materials used in the Western Han dynasty polychromy terracotta army,Qingzhou, China

A royal tomb of early period of the Western Han dynasty (206 B.C–8 A.D) was excavated by archaeologists in Qingzhou County, Shandong Province in 2006. Over 2000 polychromy terracotta soldiers, horses, chariots, servants etc. were unearthed from the tomb. All the terracotta figures are one quarter or one sixth as large as the livings, most of them were painted with well designed patterns. In order to gain complete information about the materials and techniques used for the polychromy on the terracotta army, five samples from the painted areas were taken. In addition, one sample from the area to adhere one leg to the ploychromy horse body was also obtained. The analytical techniques applied include XRF, FTIR, Py-GC/MS and GC/MS. Chinese purple, cinnabar, lead red and ochre were used as pigments, while animal glue was identified as binding medium and adhesive in the polychromy terracotta army in the Han Dynasty. The results definitely will provide new evidence about the materials and technologies used in Han Dynasty. Especially, the binding medium identified is different in comparison with Qin Shihuang's terracotta army (259–210 BC).     

A PROCEDURE FOR COMBINING VERTICAL AND HORIZONTAL SEISMIC ACTION EFFECTS

The vertical component of earthquake ground motion has generally been neglected in the earthquake-resistant design of structures. This is gradually changing due to the increase in near-source records obtained recently, coupled with field observations confirming the possible destructive effect of high vertical vibrations.

In this paper, simple procedures are suggested for assessing the significance of vertical ground motion, indicating when it should be included in the determination of seismic actions on buildings. Proposals are made for the calculation of elastic and inelastic vertical periods of vibration incorporating the effects of vertical and horizontal motion amplitude and the cross-coupling between the two vibration periods. Simplified analysis may then be used to evaluate realistic vertical forces by employing the vertical period of vibration with pertinent spectra without resorting to inelastic dynamic analysis.

Finally, a procedure is suggested for combining vertical and horizontal seismic action effects which accounts for the likelihood of coincidence, or otherwise, of peak response in the two directions.     

The early roman imperial AES coinage II: Tracing the copper sources by analysis of lead and copper isotopes—copper coins of Augustus and Tiberius*

Lead and copper isotopes of Roman Imperial copper coins (denominations as and quadrans) were analysed by MC–ICP–MS. We concentrated on well‐dated coins minted at the official mint of Rome under the Emperors Augustus and Tiberius (between 16 bc and ad 37). The lead isotope results were compared with published lead isotope data of ore bodies from the Aegaean, Cyprus, Italy and Spain, in order to fingerprint the sources of Roman copper. During the Augustan period the main copper supply, as judged from the copper coins, is from Sardinia and south‐east Spain, with minor contributions from Tuscany. Except for Tuscany, this continued into the Tiberian period, when Cypriot copper also appears. Augustan quadrantes and late Tiberian asses came solely from the Rio Tinto area in south‐west Spain. Copper isotopes were applied here for the first time to systematic archaeometric studies. They are supplementary to lead isotopes and allow further grouping and classification of the copper coins.     

The contents of unusual cone-shaped vessels (cornets) from the Chalcolithic of the southern Levant

Cornets are cone-shaped ceramic vessels, characteristic of the Chalcolithic period (ca. 4700–3700 BC) in Israel and Jordan. Their contents and use are unknown. Gas chromatography with flame ionization and mass-selective detection, showed that extracts of cornets from five different sites with different related activities (domestic, habitation cave and a cultic complex) all contain the same assemblage of mainly n-alkanes adsorbed within their walls. This assemblage differs from those found in other types of ceramic vessels from the same sites, as well as from the residues found within the associated sediments. The assemblage of odd and even-numbered n-alkanes found in the cornets is almost identical to that found in the residues of beeswax heated on modern ceramic fragments, as well as in a beehive from the Iron Age IIA strata at Tel Rehov, Israel. Thus the cornets are most likely to have contained beeswax. The presence of beeswax in the cornets contributes to our understanding of the Chalcolithic period; a time when secondary products such as milk, olive oil and wine are thought to have come into use.     

Holocene fire history of black colluvial soils revealed by pyrolysis-GC/MS: a case study from Campo Lameiro (NW Spain)

The colluvial soils of Galicia (NW Spain) are records of Holocene environmental change. In spite of the omnipresence of charcoal fragments in these soils, the effect of fires on the development of the Galician landscape and the potential role of past societies are poorly understood.     

The Application of Steroidal Biomarkers to Track the Abandonment of a Roman Wastewater Course at the Agora (Athens,Greece)*

A subterranean, stone‐built, sediment‐filled culvert discovered during excavations at the Agora (Athens, Greece) was dated to the Roman period on the basis of its characteristic construction and associated finds, including coins. The location of the culvert relative to other adjacent watercourses and an ancient river bed suggested that the structure was a sewer. This was confirmed through a multi‐molecular biomarker approach based on analysis of the bile acids associated with sediment filling the sewer, using gas chromatography (GC) and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). The acid fraction contained predominantly deoxycholic and lithocholic acids, while the neutral steroid fraction comprised a complex mixture of Δ⁵ sterol and 5β‐ and 5α‐stanols, dominated by coprostanol, suggesting the presence of faecal matter of predominantly human origin. The concentrations of neutral and acidic faecal biomarkers were observed to vary in tandem, with the highest concentrations being found in the sediment at the base of the fill in the culvert. A reduction in concentration occurred with decreasing depth of the fill, with concentrations in the uppermost samples being little different from control samples of sediment taken beyond the confines of the culvert. The enhanced concentration of bile acids relative to 5β‐stanols compared with fresh human faeces must reflect the enhanced diagenetic stability of the former, thereby making bile acids the possibly preferred biomarker for this type of study. The quantitative data obtained suggest that the culvert fell rapidly out of use, possibly coinciding with the Slavic incursion in AD 582–3.     

热裂解-气相色谱/质谱在文化遗产研究中的应用进展

色谱和质谱联用技术是有机物常用的一种分析方法,在文物保护与考古残留物研究等方面的应用已有几十年的发展。色谱与质谱联用分析样品时,需要对样品进行水解提取、衍生化等前处理,这个过程较繁琐,且耗时长,另外在样品处理过程中还有样品流失的情况发生。因此,现在一般采用热裂解-气相色谱/质谱联用技术(pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry,Py-GC/MS)来分析有机质样品。Py-GC/MS在分析样品时有如下优势:无需对样品进行前处理,样品可直接进行热裂解分析,操作比较简单;灵敏度高,能实现多组分混合有机样品识别;需要样品量很少,可满足文物样品微损分析检测的要求。因此,该方法在文化遗产保护和考古有机残留物识别鉴定中发挥了重要的作用。     

Chemical Analyses of Sarmatian Glass Beads from Pokrovka, Russia

The chemical composition of 18 glass beads from Early Sarmatian period burials were determined using electron probe microbeam analysis and energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence. The beads were made from high-magnesia-soda-lime-silica glass, leaded-soda-lime-silica glass, low-magnesia-soda-lime-silica glass and low-magnesia-high-potash glass. Multivariate analysis of the major oxides suggests that there are five distinct glass recipes used to manufacture these beads. These various glass recipes indicate the involvement of the Sarmatians in exchange/trade networks linking the Eastern Mediterranean, the Indian subcontinent, and China.     

Quantitative estimation of overpressure caused by gas generation and application to the Baiyun Depression in the Pearl River Mouth Basin,South China Sea

Hydrocarbon generation can yield high fluid pressures in sedimentary basins as the conversion of solid kerogen to hydrocarbons can result in an increase in fluid volume. To quantify the relationship between gas generation and overpressure in source rocks, a set of equations for computing the pressure change due to gas generation has been derived. Those equations can be used to quantitatively estimate overpressure generated by type III kerogen in source rocks by considering gas generation and leakage, gas dissolution in formation water and residual oil, thermal cracking of oil to gas, and hydrocarbon episodic expulsion from source rocks. The equations also take consideration of other factors including source rock porosity, transformation ratio, total organic carbon (TOC), hydrogen index, and compressibility of kerogen, oil, and water. As both oil and gas are taken into account in the equations, they can also be used to estimate the evolution of overpressure caused by hydrocarbon generation of type I and type II kerogen source rocks. Sensitivity analyses on the type III kerogen source rock indicate that hydrogen index is the most influential parameter for overpressure generation, while TOC and residual gas coefficient (β: ratio of residual gas over the total gas generated) have a moderate effect. Overpressure can be generated even if the gas leakage/loss in the source rock is up to 80% of the total gas generated. This suggests that the internal pressure seal of the source rock is not a critical factor on the pressure change as long as the source rocks are capable of sealing liquid oil. The equations were applied to evaluate the overpressure in the Eocene–Oligocene Enping Formation source rocks due to hydrocarbon generation in the Baiyun Depression, the Pearl River Mouth Basin by considering the source rock properties, hydrocarbon generation history, and hydrocarbon expulsion timing. Two episodes of overpressure development due to gas generation and release were modeled to have occurred in the Enping Formation source rock since 16 Ma. The overpressure release at 10.2–5.3 Ma via hydrocarbon expulsion was apparently related to the Dongsha phase of tectonic deformation, whereas the pressure release at 2–0 Ma was due to pressure generation that was exceeded the fracture‐sealing pressure in the source rocks.     

New Data on the Soda Flux Used in the Production of Iznik Glazes and Byzantine Glasses

Previous research has shown that Iznik glazes are characterized by low potash and magnesia contents. It was therefore suggested that the flux used was either a purified plant ash or some unidentified mineral source of soda. More recently, as a result of the detection of small, but significant, amounts of boron and lithium in Byzantine glasses from western Turkey, which also exhibit low potash and magnesia contents, it has been suggested that the source of the flux used was a soda‐rich evaporite associated in some way with the extensive borax deposits in the region. LA–ICP–MS has been used to establish that Iznik glazes also contain similarly small amounts of boron and lithium. The Na/K, Na/Mg, Na/Ca and Na/B ratios for these Iznik glazes are shown to be comparable to the equivalent ratios calculated from published data for waters from a range of Na–HCO₃ type hot springs in western Turkey, with the closest match being to the hot springs around Afyon‐Gazligöl, which is consistent with documentary evidence. It is therefore proposed that the soda‐rich salts produced by evaporating water from these springs to dryness would have provided the flux required for the production of Iznik glazes and high‐boron Byzantine glasses.