Isotopic Composition of Lead in Copper Ores and a Copper Artefact from the La Profunda Mine (León,Spain)

This paper continues the characterization of the lead isotopic fingerprint of ancient copper mines in the north‐west of Spain. In this work, the lead isotopic compositions found in copper ores from the La Profunda mine are presented. Azurites and malachites sampled from this deposit were subjected to lead isotope analysis by multicollector ICP–MS. The results showed a clear radiogenic lead signature compatible with the presence of uranium‐rich minerals (such as zeunerite) in the same mining complex. Moreover, a rare copper artefact, found in the galleries of the mine during its modern exploitation, was also analysed and showed that local mineral was used for its manufacturing.     

Experimental micromorphology in Tierra del Fuego (Argentina): building a reference collection for the study of shell middens in cold climates

Commonly used in archaeological contexts, micromorphology did not see a parallel advance in the field of experimental archaeology. Drawing from early work conducted in the 1990’s on ethnohistoric sites in the Beagle Channel, we analyze a set of 25 thin sections taken from control features and experimental tests. The control features include animal pathways and environmental contexts (beach samples, forest litter, soils from the proximities of archaeological sites), while the experimental samples comprise anthropic structures, such as hearths, and valves of Mytilus edulis (the most important component of shell middens in the region) heated from 200 °C to 800 °C. Their micromorphological study constitutes a modern analogue to assist archaeologists studying site formation and ethnographical settings in cold climates, with particular emphasis on shell midden contexts.     

A Stability-Based Target Displacement for Direct Displacement-Based Design of Bridge Piers

P-Δ effects can cause instability if they are not properly accounted for during the design of bridge piers and other structures. When a bridge pier is designed with the Direct Displacement-Based Design Method, P-Δ effects are evaluated at the end of the design process and compared to the flexural strength of the pier to find a stability index. If the stability index exceeds the specified value, the design must be repeated, iteratively reducing the target design displacement. This article presents a model that when used at the beginning of design (without knowledge of strength) allows the estimation of the maximum lateral displacement that a bridge pier can sustain without exceeding the specified value of the stability index, therefore eliminating the need for iteration. The examples that are presented prove that the model is accurate and very useful for design of extended pile bents.     

Archaeology in Antarctica: Nineteenth-Century Capitalism Expansion Strategies

Antarctica was the last continent to be discovered in the early nineteenth century. In order to become acquainted with the process of incorporation of Antarctica to the scope of the capitalist system we have focused on particularity: i.e., specific economic and technological and ideological aspects of everyday life in sealer camps spread along the coastline of the South Shetland Islands. Archaeological research in Byers Peninsula–Livingston Island provides an approach to the mechanisms implemented to organize the first resource exploitation in these lands.     

Vidas secas or Canine Melancholia: Reflections on Living Capital

The article examines Vidas secas (1938) by Brazilian writer Graciliano Ramos as bridging biopolitical reflections on animality and new materialist reflections on animal studies. By tracing the bond between canine and human in Vidas secas as a canine melancholia, from Lacanian extimité into Donna Haraway’s species companionship, I expose the implicit theory of animality of the novel as an interspecies politics of survival. In doing this, I present a new frame of interpretation for the novel that places its particular kind of melancholia as untimely contemporary.     

Macroscopic and microbiological alterations of bird and small mammal bones buried in a Cerrado biome (south western Brazil)

In this paper, we present the results of an experimental approach developed to study the macroscopic and microbiological alteration of bird and small mammal bones buried under a Cerrado biome. The first experiment evaluated the macroscopic alteration of cooked and fresh carcasses buried through the dry and rainy seasons. The second experiment analyzed the mycobiota associated to the decomposition of a complete bird that remained buried for almost a year. Results show that in tropical forest environments: 1) bone structure and pre-taphonomic factors determine its differential alteration by biochemical processes; 2) fungal populations associated to the decomposition of animal remains depend on soil chemistry and ecological dynamics; 3) even in a corrosive environment, bird bones are more capable of surviving to several mycological decomposition steps.     

A high-resolution electron microscopic and energy-dispersive spectroscopic study on the molecular mechanism underpinning the natural preservation of 2300 Y.O. naturally-mummified human remains and the occurrence of small-sized [Zn][Al]Carbon spheres

In this paper we use Scanning and Transmission Electron Microscopy, and Energy Dispersive Spectroscopy to characterize the surface of the skin of a 2300 YO, naturally-preserved mummy, belonging to a two-year and eight month girl (“Pepita”), found inside a cave located in Altamira, Querétaro, México (21°40′–20°01′; 99°03′–100°36′). The cave was found in Sierra Gorda, an orographic region with a relief of sedimentary origin from the Gulf of Mexico, composed by high mountains with altitude values surpassing 3000 m above sea level, with ample and steep canyons, and a prominent role on the exploitation and distribution of cinnabar (HgS). The skin showed the presence of small-sized spherules, containing Al (≤43%) in the most exposed region (5–10 μm depth). Thin layers and structural microdomains covered small and large spheres. Structures conformed by stacked, nano-sized particles located far-from-the bunches contained C (≤45%), Zn and Si (≤10%), and minor amounts of Ca (≤2.6%). By contrast, regions between spheres contained high amounts of Ca (≤23%) and Al (≤15%), but lacked Zn and Si. Carbon spheres showed two distinctive composition, a signature that their formation might have occurred in a least two different stages via concentric growth mechanisms, with the incorporation of Zn and Al at a later stage. [Zn][Al]Carbon spheres showed morphology and growth patterns that compared to those resulting from the hydrothermal carbonization by Fe²⁺ ions under mild conditions, suggesting a common mechanism of formation. Textural changes of thin films found between [Zn][Al]Carbon spheres were attributed to differences in viscosity, which might have contributed to increases in functionality and specific surface area (by means of decreases in size) and, in turn, facilitating the sequestration of biomolecules. We propose that the presence of [Zn][Al]Carbon spheres provides protection against bacterial and UV attack. The physical properties of these spheres helped entrap biomolecules. Taken together, these factors contributed to the preservation of Pepita.     

Painting Andean Liminalities at the Church of Andahuaylillas,Cuzco, Peru

The church of Andahuaylillas located near Cuzco, Peru, is frequently hailed for its lush interior decorations and seventeenth-century mural paintings. One mural image in particular has captured the sustained attention of scholars for decades: the entrance wall mural entitled Camino del cielo e infierno depicting a complex allegory of good and bad faith. This article explores the mural's connections to a Flemish print and a Spanish auto sacramental (a one-act play associated with Corpus Christi), demonstrating the hitherto unexamined relationships between mural painting, print culture, and religious theatre in the Andes. It also considers the inclusion of local indigenous and Inca references in the mural that were simultaneously subsumed within discourses of idolatry while at the same time granting visibility and legitimacy to indigenous Andeans. This article brings to light the plurality of meanings invested in Heaven and Hell as both destination and journey among Spanish ecclesiastics and their indigenous constituents.     

Earthen mound formation in the Uruguayan lowlands (South America): micromorphological analyses of the Pago Lindo archaeological complex

The stratigraphic excavation of the Pago Lindo archaeological complex, in central-eastern Uruguay (La Plata basin), helped to propose an alternative model for mound formation that expresses the intrinsic complexity of prehistoric earthen architecture. This model, known as the spatial–temporal discontinuous model, sees mound complexes as multi-functional areas, with diverse earth works occupied and abandoned intermittently. Since earthen mound sediments are homogeneous, resemble natural soils and show evidences of intense bioturbation, soil micromorphology was used to confirm, refute and further investigate issues raised during field work, related with the prime material used for mound construction, detection of major episodes of mound building, identification of activity areas and taphonomic processes. In this paper, we present the results of the micromorphological analyses of two different earth works from the Pago Lindo archaeological complex (a mound and a micro-relief). Analyses proved the recurrent use of surface horizons for mound and micro-relief building throughout the entire period of site occupation. It also demonstrated the difficulty in identifying discrete depositional episodes and occupation surfaces, because of the intense bioturbation. Two activity areas where recognized: a domestic hut built over a platform, ca. 1600 yrs. BP; and an area of plant residue accumulation over a platform, raised almost 800 hundred year after the domestic hut. The practice of cleaning the occupation surfaces was interpreted from the complete absence of bioarchaeological remains (bones and micro-charcoal). The use of micromorphology as a complementary tool in the stratigraphic excavation of Pago Lindo unraveled evidences that corroborate a newly proposed model for mound growth.