A Re-Appraisal of the Archaeological Findings at Tel Hashash: On the Archaeology of the Yarqon Estuary from Classical Times to Late Antiquity

Abstract

Tel Hashash is located within the boundaries of modern Tel Aviv. Surveys and excavations carried out in the site by the late J. Kaplan and H. Ritter-Kaplan during the 1960s and 1980s revealed remains and finds dated mainly to the Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine periods. The present paper includes the presentation and analysis of these yet unpublished remains, and a revision of the excavators' conclusions about the function and history of the site in classical times and Late Antiquity, in light of the archaeology and history of the lower Yarqon river and the central coastal plain.     

THE ANALYSIS OF DYESTUFFS FROM FIRST‐ TO SECOND‐CENTURY TEXTILE ARTEFACTS FOUND IN THE MARTRES‐DE‐VEYRE (FRANCE) EXCAVATIONS*

A series of Gallo‐Roman clothes and miscellaneous textile fragments from the first and second centuries from the Martres‐de‐Veyre necropolis (Puy‐de‐Dôme, France) was investigated. The objects studied were excavated between 1851 and 1923, during successive rounds of archaeological work. Since that time, they have been conserved in the Barguin Museum at Clermont‐Ferrand. The target of our research was dye identification, as it gives very interesting and useful information regarding the ancient technology. This approach has until now not been considered to be relevant and, unfortunately, is not systematic. The analysis was carried out by high‐performance liquid chromatography with photodiode array detection (HPLC–PDA). The small samples (threads up to 0.6 mg, less than 1 cm long) of coloured textile fibres were submitted to this technique. In one case, X‐ray fluorescence (XRF) analysis was applied. According to the analysis, the dyeing sources proposed are the Rubiaceae family for red, a luteolin ‘base’ for yellow, ellagitannins for brown and indigo for blue colours. Several samples did not seem to contain any dye. We point out possible factors for the partial dye source determination: instrumental limits, sample size, low dyestuff content in analysed samples and the dyes’ decomposition during ageing. Some improvements of dye analysis in archaeological samples by separation techniques based on recent analytical instrumentation and combined approaches are proposed.     

A MULTIDISCIPLINARY APPROACH TO THE CHARACTERIZATION OF ROMAN GRAVESTONES FROM AQUILEIA (UDINE,ITALY)*

The results of an archaeometric study on gravestone production in Aquileia (northeastern Italy) during Roman Republican times are reported here. The artefacts are made of limestone, quarried from the sedimentary sequence of the Trieste Karst (Carnican Alps, northeastern Italy), as testified by historical sources which refer to the ‘Roman Quarry’ at Aurisina. The rock types used for the gravestones are petrographically, geochemically and geochronologically homogeneous, and display similar faunal assemblages. In addition, their age is restricted to the Santonian – Lower Campanian. Comparisons between archaeological finds and rock specimens from various active and inactive quarries in this area suggest that quarrying during Roman Republican times was limited to a specific stratigraphic horizon of the sedimentary sequence, corresponding to the higher part of the ‘Roman Quarry’.     

ARCHAEOLOGICAL DATA ANALYSIS AND FUZZY CLUSTERING

Cluster analysis is widely used in archaeological data analysis. Fuzzy clustering is a more modern technique than methods normally used by archaeologists and has not been much exploited. Applications that have been reported are sometimes unsatisfactory and usually do not exploit the ‘fuzziness’ of the procedure. After a brief review of the more common methods of cluster analysis, fuzzy ideas and fuzzy clustering are discussed. The method is applied to three data sets of different sizes and complexity, to illustrate particular aspects of, and problems in, application. Summarizing results is less easy than for more standard methods, but has the potential to reveal features of the data concealed by other methods.     

MORTAR STUDIES TOWARDS THE REPLICATION OF ROMAN CONCRETE

The use of strong and durable materials is one essential ingredient leading to the survival of many monumental Roman concrete structures. Replicated concrete mortars with different lime to pozzolan ratios, encompassing the range likely to have been used by the Romans, have been studied here to determine their relative compressive strengths as a function of time. This has been supplemented by the use of the scanning electron microscope to delve into the structure and composition of the binders formed within the strongest and weakest mortars, leading to a deeper understanding of the reasons for the differences in compressive strength.     

How Did Mississippians Prepare Maize? The Application of Compound‐Specific Carbon Isotope Analysis to Absorbed Pottery Residues From Several Mississippi Valley Sites

A newly developed compound‐specific stable carbon isotope technique allows the detection of maize in absorbed organic pottery residues. This method was applied to absorbed organic residues from a variety of Mississippi Valley potsherds, and successfully identified maize components. Maize was cooked in sampled vessels less often than expected, but otherwise fitted expected patterns of maize use derived from stable carbon isotope analysis of human bone from the region. Absorbed organic pottery residue analysis is useful in determining pottery use, particularly in concert with other analytical methods.     

INVESTIGATION ON ROMAN LEAD GLAZE FROM CANOSA: RESULTS OF CHEMICAL ANALYSES*

Five sherds of green glazed pottery excavated at Canosa (Apulia) in Italy have been analysed by scanning electron microscopy. The aim of the investigation was to determine the chemical composition of the glazes and thus obtain information on the methods used in their production. The glazes were all of the high‐lead type, coloured green by the addition of copper. Intermediate layers, observed at the interface between the glaze and body and giving the appearance of an applied white slip, were the result of the crystallization of lead feldspar from the molten glaze. Non‐calcareous clays were used in the production of the pottery bodies. Concentration profiles from the glaze exterior to the body suggested that the glazes were produced by applying a suspension consisting of lead oxide plus silica to the bodies. On the basis of the glaze and body compositions, it is suggested that the Canosa glazed pottery was produced locally.     

THOUGHTS ON THE UTILITY OF A BIVARIATE‐SPLITTING APPROACH TO OLMEC CERAMIC DATA INTERPRETATION*

A recently resolved debate centred on the interpretation of a major set of INAA data that was based on Olmec ceramics from Mexico. In an attempt to answer questions arising from the debate, this paper discusses the effect of numbers of samples chosen for data interpretation. It also presents interpretations of the ceramic data set based on a bivariate data‐splitting approach and compares the results of this with the multivariate analysis approaches employed by the initial publishers of the data.     

DISCOVERY,PRODUCTION AND USE OF TIN‐BASED OPACIFIERS IN GLASSES,ENAMELS AND GLAZES FROM THE LATE IRON AGE ONWARDS: A REASSESSMENT*

Tin‐based opacifiers (lead stannate yellow and tin oxide white) were first used in glass production for a short period in Europe from the second to the first centuries bc , and then again throughout the Roman and Byzantine Empires from the fourth century ad onwards. Tin oxide was also used in the production of Islamic opaque glazes from the ninth century ad , and subsequently in enamels applied to Islamic and Venetian glasses from the 12th century ad onwards. A selection of published analytical data for the tin‐opacified glasses, enamels and glazes is summarized, and the methods used in their production are reassessed. The phase transformations occurring when mixtures of lead oxide, tin oxide and silica are fired are investigated with high temperature X‐ray diffraction (XRD) using a synchrotron radiation source, and these results are used to explain the observed differences in the glass, enamel and glaze compositions. Possible reasons for the use of tin‐based opacifiers in the second to first centuries bc , and for the switch from antimony‐ to tin‐based opacifiers in the fourth century ad are suggested, and the possible contexts in which tin‐based opacifiers might have been discovered are considered. The introduction of tin‐opacified glazes by Islamic potters in the ninth century ad is discussed in terms of technological transfer or independent invention.     

A NEW DATING METHOD FOR HIGH‐CALCIUM ARCHAEOLOGICAL GLASSES BASED UPON SURFACE‐WATER DIFFUSION: PRELIMINARY CALIBRATIONS AND PROCEDURES*

The first European settlers came to North America in the early 17th century using glass in the form of containers and decorative objects. Thus, glass is a horizon marker for all historic period settlements and a potential source of chronometric dates at archaeological sites belonging to the historic period in the Americas. We have developed a new absolute dating method based upon water diffusion into the surface of manufactured glasses that predicts diffusion coefficients based upon variation in glass chemical constituents. Low‐temperature (< 190°C) hydration experiments have been performed on a set of five high‐calcium (21.7–28.3%) glasses that were used to manufacture wine bottles from the 17th?19th centuries. Infrared spectroscopy and secondary ion mass spectrometry was used to model the water diffusion/alkali exchange process. The ability of the model to accurately predict archaeological ages was evaluated with artefacts recovered from ceramic‐dated contexts at Thomas Jefferson's plantation known as Monticello.