Archaeological Mineralogy

A special issue of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X). This special issue belongs to the section "Crystallography and Physical Chemistry of Minerals & Nanominerals".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (31 December 2023) | Viewed by 5976

Special Issue Editors

Department of Earth and Geo-environmental Sciences, University of Bari Aldo Moro, Via Edoardo Orabona, 4, 70126 Bari, Italy
Interests: applied mineralogy; crystallography; artificial materials (ceramics, mortars, plasters, pigments, geopolymers); clays; X-ray diffraction
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals
Earth and Geoenvironmental Sciences Department, University of Bari Aldo Moro, 70121 Bari, Italy
Interests: archaeomineralogy; archaeometry; natural rock materials (lithic materials, decorative stone, building rocks, marbles) and artificial lapideous material (ceramics, mortars, plasters, pigments)

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The study and identification of minerals used over the centuries as raw materials for the manufacturing of objects and tools, as well as for the construction of buildings and for the execution of decorative works, represents an effective strategy to deepen the knowledge on these resources and to reconstruct the social, cultural, and economic relationships of ancient communities. One of the most positive aspects is that mineralogy studies are based on accurate methods of analysis, and therefore, their application in the field of archaeological materials leads to satisfactory and concrete results. Moreover, in recent years, due to the increasingly urgent need to operate on the archaeological heritage through non-invasive and in situ approaches, increasingly sophisticated and effective portable mineralogical investigation techniques have been developed in addition to traditional mineralogical characterization techniques.

The main aim of this Special Issue is to collect contributions regarding case studies and application of mineralogical methods in the field of archaeological materials.

For this Special Issue on “Archaeological Mineralogy”, original research articles and reviews are welcome. Research topics may be on (but not limited to) the following interest areas:

  • Lithic materials: siliceous rocks, obsidian, gemstones, and other minerals and rocks used for the manufacturing of tools and objects;
  • Ceramic materials, both for vessels and tiles and refractory ceramics, and their parts (clay, pottery, tempers, glazes);
  • Pigments and binders found in decorative works in archaeological sites, i.e., paintings, mosaics;
  • Historical mortars with construction or bedding function;
  • Decorative and dimensional stone, i.e., marbles, granites, limestone.

Dr. Daniela Pinto
Dr. Giovanna Fioretti
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

Manuscripts should be submitted online at www.mdpi.com by registering and logging in to this website. Once you are registered, click here to go to the submission form. Manuscripts can be submitted until the deadline. All submissions that pass pre-check are peer-reviewed. Accepted papers will be published continuously in the journal (as soon as accepted) and will be listed together on the special issue website. Research articles, review articles as well as short communications are invited. For planned papers, a title and short abstract (about 100 words) can be sent to the Editorial Office for announcement on this website.

Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Minerals is an international peer-reviewed open access monthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • minerals
  • ceramics
  • pigments
  • stone
  • binders
  • mortars
  • archaeology
  • gems
  • artworks
  • raw materials

Published Papers (5 papers)

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Research

31 pages, 20186 KiB  
Article
The Use of Lime over the Centuries: The Complexity of the Apulian Built Heritage
by Giacomo Eramo, Marina Clausi, Giovanna Fioretti and Daniela Pinto
Minerals 2024, 14(1), 91; https://doi.org/10.3390/min14010091 - 12 Jan 2024
Viewed by 654
Abstract
In the field of historical buildings, the wide use of lime as a binder in various contexts of application emerges from a series of artistic and archaeological evidence in the Apulia (Italy) from the 4th century BCE to the 15th century CE. The [...] Read more.
In the field of historical buildings, the wide use of lime as a binder in various contexts of application emerges from a series of artistic and archaeological evidence in the Apulia (Italy) from the 4th century BCE to the 15th century CE. The large availability of carbonate rocks in the geological substratum from Daunian Subappennines to Salento areas strongly influenced the material culture of the region. In this paper, significant study cases were presented to bring to light the technological complexity, almost completely cancelled by the widespread presence of industrial products, in the use of lime over the centuries. Through examples of use from antiquity to the modern age in Apulia (Egnatia, Lamapopoli, Tertiveri, Siponto, Lucera and Monopoli sites), technological solutions indicating an ecological dimension of production were discussed, bearing witness to technologies on a human scale and sustainability. The comparison of petrographical (POM, SEM-EDS) and mineralogical (XRPD) results indicated the technological trend and custom for lime production in the Apulian region that starts from the choice of the stone to be calcined and the aggregates and passes through the modalities of lime hydration and preparation of the mixture up to the laying. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeological Mineralogy)
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50 pages, 15378 KiB  
Article
Characterizing Archaeological Rhyolites in the Nenana Valley, Interior Alaska
by Angela K. Gore, Kelly Graf and Joshua J. Lynch
Minerals 2023, 13(9), 1146; https://doi.org/10.3390/min13091146 - 30 Aug 2023
Viewed by 677
Abstract
Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) is a useful geochemical technique employed to explore toolstone procurement strategies in the lithic record, commonly utilized in sourcing obsidians. Non-obsidian volcanic toolstones (e.g., dacites, rhyolites, basalts, and andesites) are abundant in interior Alaskan assemblages yet understudied compared to [...] Read more.
Portable X-ray fluorescence (pXRF) is a useful geochemical technique employed to explore toolstone procurement strategies in the lithic record, commonly utilized in sourcing obsidians. Non-obsidian volcanic toolstones (e.g., dacites, rhyolites, basalts, and andesites) are abundant in interior Alaskan assemblages yet understudied compared to obsidian. Geochemical analyses of these non-obsidian materials offer the potential to gain new insights into ancient toolstone provisioning behaviors. This paper presents a synthesis of geochemical (pXRF) analyses of rhyolite artifacts, systematic regional raw material surveys, and lithic technological analyses collected from nineteen late Pleistocene and Holocene assemblages from the Nenana valley, interior Alaska. Previous research studies on archaeological rhyolites from the region are replicated, new rhyolite artifact groups are identified, and one new rhyolite source is reported and described here. Ultimately, this paper contributes to a growing body of geochemical research seeking to provide a more nuanced look at the complex late Pleistocene and Holocene record of eastern Beringia. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeological Mineralogy)
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21 pages, 12896 KiB  
Article
Trade Networks in the Neighbouring Roman Provinces of Aquitania-Tarraconensis on the Bay of Biscay: Evidence from Petrographic and Chemical Analyses of Common Coarse Ware Pottery
by Ainhoa Alonso-Olazabal, Maria Cruz Zuluaga, Ana Martínez-Salcedo, Milagros Esteban-Delgado, Maria Teresa Izquierdo-Marculeta, François Rechin and Luis Ángel Ortega
Minerals 2023, 13(7), 887; https://doi.org/10.3390/min13070887 - 29 Jun 2023
Viewed by 818
Abstract
Common non-wheel-thrown Roman pottery from the southern Aquitania and north-eastern of Tarraconensis provinces (CNT-AQTA) of the Early and Later Roman Empire (1st to 5th centuries AD) has been studied. Petrological, mineralogical, and chemical analyses were conducted to contrast with the archaeological study of [...] Read more.
Common non-wheel-thrown Roman pottery from the southern Aquitania and north-eastern of Tarraconensis provinces (CNT-AQTA) of the Early and Later Roman Empire (1st to 5th centuries AD) has been studied. Petrological, mineralogical, and chemical analyses were conducted to contrast with the archaeological study of the pottery. The chemical composition of many pottery samples displays different patterns of burial chemical modification, limiting their use for provenance and diffusion studies. Particular emphasis has been paid to the petrographic features of the fabrics, as they do not change during burial, reflecting the nature of the raw material and making it possible to identify the provenance areas of the raw materials. Around the Bay of Biscay, the same pottery tradition continued in the neighbouring provinces during Roman times. Petrographic studies make it possible to determine the distribution of pottery and the changes in trade networks during the Roman period across the area of the Bay of Biscay being studied. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeological Mineralogy)
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14 pages, 3107 KiB  
Article
Spectroscopic Investigation of a Color Painting on an Ancient Wooden Architecture from the Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Prince Dai’s Mansion in Jiangsu, China
by Kezhu Han, Hong Yang, Gele Teri, Shanshuang Hu, Jiaxin Li, Yanli Li, Ersudai Ma, Yuxiao Tian, Peng Fu, Yujia Luo and Yuhu Li
Minerals 2023, 13(2), 224; https://doi.org/10.3390/min13020224 - 03 Feb 2023
Viewed by 1502
Abstract
This research sheds light on the analysis of pigments and adhesives applied on a color painting on wooden architecture in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Prince Dai’s mansion, located in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province in China. Four samples were collected from the painting above the building [...] Read more.
This research sheds light on the analysis of pigments and adhesives applied on a color painting on wooden architecture in Taiping Heavenly Kingdom Prince Dai’s mansion, located in Changzhou, Jiangsu Province in China. Four samples were collected from the painting above the building beam in the mansion, and the samples were analyzed and identified using a series of techniques, including polarized light microscopy (PLM), scanning electron microscope coupled with an energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), micro-Raman spectroscopy (m-RS) and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR). The results indicate that the red, black, blue, and green pigments were identified to be cinnabar, ivory black, indigo, and phthalocyanine green, respectively. The green pigment was inferred to be a lately repainted pigment based on its production age, suggesting that this ancient building had been refurbished or repaired. Given the good stability and visual effect of this green pigment, it is suggested to be used in future conservation processes. The pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass Spectrometry (Py-Gc/Ms) results indicate that glue containing protein was used as a binder for the pigment samples, and that walnut oil might have been applied to the wooden architecture as a primer before painting. Our findings can well inform curators and conservators of the selection of appropriate restoration materials if necessary, and also provide data support for conservation of similar ancient buildings in southern China. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeological Mineralogy)
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22 pages, 4117 KiB  
Article
Multilayer Technology of Decorated Plasters from the domus of Marcus Vipsanus Primigenius at Abellinum (Campania Region, Southern Italy): An Analytical Approach
by Sabrina Pagano, Chiara Germinario, Maria Francesca Alberghina, Marina Covolan, Mariano Mercurio, Daniela Musmeci, Rebecca Piovesan, Alfonso Santoriello, Salvatore Schiavone and Celestino Grifa
Minerals 2022, 12(12), 1487; https://doi.org/10.3390/min12121487 - 23 Nov 2022
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1461
Abstract
Situated on the left bank of the Sabato river, the city of Abellinum (Campania region, southern Italy) represents a tangible testimony to the influence of the Roman civilization in Irpinia. At the site, where the remains of the public area of [...] Read more.
Situated on the left bank of the Sabato river, the city of Abellinum (Campania region, southern Italy) represents a tangible testimony to the influence of the Roman civilization in Irpinia. At the site, where the remains of the public area of the town are preserved, archaeological excavations unearthed a monumental Pompeian domus, likely owned by Marcus Vipsanius Primigenius, a freedman of Agrippa, son-in-law of Augustus. The rooms preserved fine wall paintings of 3rd and 4th Pompeian style, reflecting the social status of the owner. From four rooms overlooking the peristyle, eight specimens of decorated plasters were collected, and petrographic and spectroscopic analyses were carried out to investigate the plastering and painting technology. Thin sections of all plasters depicted a multilayer technology, although differences in mix designs of the supports were highlighted. Some samples are pozzolanic plasters, containing volcanic aggregate, others can be classified as cocciopesto because of the presence of ceramic fragments mixed to the volcanic aggregate. Finally, the presence of marble powder also permitted the identification of marmorino. Moreover, the pigments, applied using a fresco or lime-painting techniques, consist of pure or mixed Fe- and Cu-based pigments to obtain yellow, orange, red, pink, and blue decorations. Full article
(This article belongs to the Special Issue Archaeological Mineralogy)
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