Biofilm growth in human skeletal material from ancient Mesopotamia

Investigators have long recognised the effects of microbial activity on archaeological bone. These investigators, however, have focused on single or groups of microbes rather than on complex microbial aggregates such as biofilms, a focus that has affected our understanding of archaeological bone biodeterioration. In this paper, we report on the investigation of a biofilm in archaeological human bone from the site of Tell Leilan, Syria (2900–1900 BCE). Scanning electron microscopy indicated that the biofilm is characterised by single cells and microcolonies of bacteria and fungi, as well as calcite crystals that were all embedded within extracellular polymeric substances. Using culture techniques and DNA sequencing, we isolated and identified several microbes from the biofilm including Amycolatopsis sp., Penicillium chrysogenum, Aspergillus sp., Chaetomium sp., and Cladosporium sp. Having characterised the Leilan biofilm, we are now closer to understanding the complex process of bone biodeterioration in archaeological bone collections.     

瓷器热释光测定年代研究

本工作从标准的(即线性的)前剂量技术着手,研究了瓷器热释光测定年代的方法。在这个研究中,发现了瓷器的灵敏度对剂量的非线性响应和灵敏度随剂量变化的指数模式。因此,一个用饱和指数拟合的方法被提了出来。实验表明,这是一个测定瓷器年代的成功方法。另外,还对一些与测定年代有关的复杂因素进行了讨论。例如,当少数瓷器的灵敏度与剂量不呈指数关系时,就要改变拟合模式或采用B的平均值方法等。     

《红楼梦》与《桃花扇》

文章对《红楼梦》与《桃花扇》这两部古典名著进行了全面的比较,并指出思想性与艺术性的完美统一是它们得以成功的重要原因。     

苏南传统铸造技术调查与启示

传统技术是活的文物,应该加以整理、保护与研究,传统技术所包含的古代科技信息对古代技术研究有极大的启示。传统泥型铸造技术为研究中国古代陶范铸造技术提供了重要信息;植物硅酸体测试结果表明,传统泥型铸造技术与古代陶范铸造技术有着密切的关系。     

In situ desalination of a granitic column by the electrokinetic method

Desalination of rocks used in monuments is a common strategy to reduce the possibility of deterioration by soluble salt crystallization processes. In the last years, some laboratory studies have demonstrated that the application of electrokinetic techniques allow to achieve higher desalination effectiveness, overcoming most limitations of the traditional methods. However, to our knowledge no studies have been conducted on the effectiveness of this technique for in situ desalination of granite. The present study is aimed at filling this gap. The results of an in situ desalination intervention using electrokinetic methods, on a column highly contaminated with salts are presented. The desalination method was optimized to desalinate large in situ structures, trying to establish the necessary protocols (buffering system, irrigation system, setup, etc.) to obtain results as satisfactory as those obtained in laboratory. The results demonstrated the high effectiveness of this method in terms of total salt extraction and depth of salt extraction. The concentration of anions in the column was decreased by more than 80% after 55 days of treatment. No mineralogical and aesthetic damages on the stone were detected after the treatment, confirming the reliability of this method to be applied in situ on granitic rocks.     

隋唐鎏金铜释迦佛坐像铸造结构的检测分析

本文使用X-CT技术对隋唐时期鎏金铜释迦佛坐像的铸造结构进行无损分析检测,结果观测到隋唐时期的鎏金铜释迦佛坐像存在三种不同的铸造结构:头顶开孔式(陶范法)、全身插针式(失蜡法)、头部实心铸造。这一发现,对今后古代金铜佛像的结构研究,具有极其重要的意义。     

U-series and radiocarbon dates on mollusc shells from the uppermost layer of the archaeological site of KHB-1, Ra's al Khabbah,Oman

The archaeological site of KHB-1, Oman, has been investigated in order to improve the chronological knowledge of the site, which is dated to the beginning of the fourth millennium B.C. on the basis of the archaeological context. Mollusc shells of the genus Anadara, coming from the uppermost layers of the site, have been dated using two different methods, radiocarbon and U-series technique. The results of the two techniques date the last occupational phase of the site from the end of the fourth millennium B.C. to the beginning of the third millennium B.C.     

A pottery workshop with flint tools on blades knapped with copper at Nausharo (Indus civilisation, ca. 2500 BC)

Twenty years after its discovery, the pottery workshop of Nausharo (province of Baluchistan, Pakistan), which yielded a series of knapped stone tools in association with unbaked sherds and clay waste, is still of unique importance in Asian protohistorical studies. The types of pottery production (sandy marl fabrics) identified in this workshop, which is dated to ca. 2500 BC, correspond to the majority of the domestic pottery discovered at the site during the first two phases of the Indus Civilisation. The flint blades discovered in the workshop were made from exotic flint, coming from zones close to the great Indus sites such as Mohenjo-Daro and Chanhu-Daro. This is also the origin of a small amount of the pottery (micaceous fabrics) found at Nausharo in domestic contexts, e.g. Black-Slipped-Jars. The butts of the blades display features characteristic of pressure detachment with a copper pressure point. Gloss and microwear traces (polish) testify to the blades' having been used for finishing the clay vessels: for actual finishing (trimming) while they were being turned on a wheel, and possibly also for scraping by hand. Both of these operations are distinctly attested to by the presence in the workshop of two different types of clay shavings.     

Leroi-Gourhan, a Philosopher of Technique and Evolution

With the publication of two volumes on technology—L'Homme et la matière and Milieu et technique in 1943–45, and Le geste et la parole (translated into English in 1993 as Gesture and Speech)—-Leroi-Gourhan asserted himself as a major social anthropologist, prehistorian, and the founder of the French schools of the ethnology of technique and of prehistoric ethnology. This paper analyzes the innovative concepts and the content of these original works, which draw their inspiration and data from biology, physiology, psychology, anthropology, and prehistory to study evolution, and technique as its medium, to create a global science of humanity.     

丸都山城高句丽铁器的金相与工艺

为探讨高句丽铁器加工业发展状况以及魏晋南北朝时期钢铁技术水平,利用金相显微镜对吉林省集安市丸都山城遗址出土铁器样品进行金相学检测及工艺研究,并结合以往高句丽铁器检测结果进行讨论。检测结果表明,工匠制造铁器时采用了"生铁淋口"、铸造后脱碳退火、铸铁脱碳钢材料锻打成型、锋刃部淬火、熟铁、低碳钢等不同材质的锻接、折叠锻打等加工技术。铁镞03JWN2T105②:12是迄今为止应用"生铁淋口"工艺的最早实例,将这种工艺的使用年代,前推至魏晋南北朝时期,相对于明代文献的明确记载提前1000年左右,相对于已报道的宋代实例早600余年,其发明时间应该还在此之前,该项发现对构建魏晋南北朝时期钢铁技术发展序列,具有十分重要的意义。