Stones, Marbles, Mortars, Ceramics and Pigments in Archaeology: Analytical Techniques for Their Characterization and Conservation

A special issue of Minerals (ISSN 2075-163X).

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2023) | Viewed by 347

Special Issue Editor


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Guest Editor
Dipartimento di Scienze Chimiche e Geologiche, University of Cagliari, Cittadella Universitaria di Monserrato, Monserrato, 09042 Cagliari, Italy
Interests: georesources; mineralogical and petrographic applications for environment and cultural heritage; alteration and provenance of stones and mortars; petrophysical-mechanical characterization of geomaterials
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

The building and decorative materials used in antiquity represent a response to the specific requirements and technical needs of the particular historical period in accordance with the processing and production technologies for raw materials of that time. Therefore, the exploitation of mineral georesources is not only linked to their intrinsic characteristics and vocation in use as building materials but also to their local availability in the area. Knowledge of compositional and physical–mechanical aspects is therefore essential for understanding the choices and use of geomaterials in historical construction and their supply in the territory. The study of materials also makes it possible to increase knowledge about a civilization and its experiences, as well as to understand the growth and technological evolution of a human settlement in a particular territory. Microdestructive analytical techniques, in combination with nondestructive techniques, are essential for defining the compositional aspects of the materials used in cultural heritage, particularly their chemical, physical, mineralogical, and petrographic characteristics. In addition to understanding the technical aspects and choices in their use, adopting an archeometric approach in the study of geomaterials makes it possible to define, in particular, the geographical provenance (e.g., ancient quarries) of the raw materials, their degradation at the chemical–mineralogical level, their state of preservation, the techniques used for their extraction and processing, as well as the technological processes for the production of artificial lithoid materials (e.g., pozzolanic mortars, pigments, etc.) and other artifacts (e.g. ceramics, etc.).

For this Special Issue, we welcome submissions of all research aimed at studying the materials of archeological sites or historical–artistic monuments and artifacts in pursuit of the aforementioned scientific–cultural objectives.

Prof. Dr. Stefano Columbu
Guest Editor

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

  • stone and marble
  • provenance
  • chemical-physical decay
  • ancient mortars
  • pozzolan and hydraulic lime
  • mineral pigments
  • analytical techniques
  • mineralogical-petrographic characterization
  • conservation
  • cultural heritage
  • archaeology

Published Papers

There is no accepted submissions to this special issue at this moment.
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