A palynological investigation of a second millennium BC bank-system in the black moss of Achnacree

Evidence of agricultural activity in Scotland during the Bronze Age is sparse. A bank system of that date, covered by a deep peat accumulation, in Argyllshire, Scotland has preserved a podzolic palaeosol. Palynological investigation of the palaeosol allows a consideration of potential prehistoric land use. The existence of a well developed iron pan in the palaeosol divides the soil pollen into two contrasting groups, suggesting two quite distinctive periods of land use. Also discussed are the problems which the processes of podzolization cause pollen analysts, the dating of buried soils and the possibility of periodicity in pollen movement through a soil.     

Lead Isotope Analyses Revealed the Key Role of Chang'an in the Mirror Production and Distribution Network During the Han Dynasty

Chang'an (now Xi'an) was the capital of the Western Han Dynasty and the starting point of the Silk Road. In the light of the importance of Chang'an as the centre of politics, economy and cultural interaction, the overarching question proposed in this paper is focused on its role in the mirror production and distribution network during Han period. On the basis of chemical and lead isotopic analyses of 34 Han mirrors, this paper discusses the potential existence of a mirror production centre in Chang'an. Meanwhile, a comparative study with mirrors uncovered from the south‐western frontier and from Central Asian and North‐East Asian countries offers new insight into these related issues.     

Geographies of generation: age restrictions in international adoption

International adoption relocates minors, and only minors, from one country to another. The centrality of age to adoptive migration may prevent us from seeing the significance of generation: the prospective parent's age is also examined and evaluated for its relationship to the child's age and what this relationship will mean for the creation of a family. Because international adoption results in children crossing borders to enter new kinship formations, the assumptions under which it operates require closer geographical analysis. Generation, or the age range that separates dependents and their caretakers, is a significant but unstated motivator of international adoption policies and practices. This article argues that a normative and biologized sense of intergenerational difference is embedded in international adoption. The presence of generational ideology in national laws and international norms regarding international adoption demonstrate a broader sense in which policies situate more privileged families as acceptable and others as inadequate. I draw material for this analysis from both legal documents and documents which aim to provide interpretation of those laws, with reference to international adoptions from Peru.     

The prehistoric pile-dwelling settlement of Stagno (Leghorn,Italy): wood and food resource exploitation

A pile-dwelling settlement, dated to the final Bronze–early Iron Age (XII–XI century BC), was excavated at Stagno, near Leghorn (Tuscany, Italy). The site presented a well-preserved portion of the wooden foundation structure buried by sediments rich in plant remains: both wood and plant remains were subjected to archaeobotanical investigation. The ultimate goal was to improve our knowledge on agricultural economy and wood usage in Tuscany during the prehistoric ages. The results pointed to a farming system based on Triticum spp. (wheat), Hordeum spp. (barley) and Leguminosae cultivation in addition to the gathering of wild fruits, such as Corylus avellana, Cornus mas, Prunus spp., Vitis spp. Many of these plant remains are associated to a wetland context. Mesohygrophilous trees, such as deciduous Quercus, Ulmus minor, Fraxinus cf. excelsior, and Sorbus were used for the construction of the pile-dwelling structures; the choice of these plants indicates a good knowledge of the technological characteristics of timber.     

巴蜀带斑纹兵器的锈蚀产物分析及机理探讨

带斑纹兵器是巴蜀兵器的一大特色。由于表面有斑纹的青铜兵器锈蚀与一般青铜器锈蚀有所不同,必须针对其特殊性进行锈蚀机理的研究,才能对症下药,达到有效保护的目的。应用矿相分析、SEM EDS、XRD等分析手段对几件巴蜀带斑纹兵器表面与截面锈蚀产物进行分析,并与非斑纹锈蚀进行比较;对斑纹与非斑纹的锈蚀机理进行探讨。分析结果表明,斑纹的锈蚀产物主要是SnO2,其在兵器斑纹表面形成钝性保护膜,防止其进一步腐蚀,对斑纹下面的基体有一定的保护作用。非斑纹层锈蚀向斑纹层下面的基体扩展,膨胀是造成斑纹层凸起甚至脱落的主要原因,对斑纹兵器保护的关键是控制非斑纹层锈蚀的进一步发展。     

论两汉时期皖南铜与皖南经济

皖南地区铜矿资源丰富,两汉时期的皖南属于丹阳郡,丹阳铜以质优量多而闻名全国.两汉时期皖南铜矿得到了较大规模的开采和冶炼,同时兴起了铸钱和铜镜制造业,从而扩大了皖南地方政府的财政来源,增强了皖南地区的经济实力,推动了皖南的农业和其它行业的发展,可以说皖南铜在皖南经济发展中发挥了极其重要的作用.     

Une collection de statuettes de prisonniers au musée national de San'â'

This paper deals with a collection of nineteen bronze statuettes that take the shape of a small plate from which only legs, arms and head protrude in relief. The main interest of this corpus lies in the fact that these pieces of work, of a kind generally used to portray dedicants, present a new iconographic theme. Indeed, eighteen of them show shackled figures, probably prisoners. A comparative study suggests that this corpus may be interpreted as a set of small statuettes offered in thanksgiving, dating from the end of the first millennium BC and the beginning of the Christian era.     

明代科举中的官年现象

在明代“进士登科录”、“进士同年录”、“进士履历便览”等科举文献中,皆存在程度不等的官年现象。嘉靖以后,这一现象逐渐变得普遍且近乎公开化,虚报年龄者越来越多,虚报的年岁越来越大,至明末而流于糜烂。这一现象的形成,一方面是继承了历史上的官年传统,另一方面又受嘉靖以后选拔翰林院庶吉士、科道官限年制度的直接影响。