Ancient activation analysis

Olin, J. S. and E. V. Sayre (1974), Neutron activation analysis of some ancient glass, in Beck, C. W. (ed.), Archaeological Chemistry, Advances in Chemistry Series, Vol. 1, ACS, Washington, DC. 

Emeleus, V.M. and Simpson, G. (1960). Neutron activation analysis of ancient Roman potsherds. Nature 185 196. 

Olariu, A., Constantinescu, M., Constantinescu, O., et al. (1999). Trace analysis of ancient gold objects using radiochemical neutron activation analysis. Journal of Radioanalytical and Nuclear Chemistry 240 261-267. 

Sayre, E. V. (1965). Refinement in methods of neutron activation analysis of ancient glass objects through the use of lithium drifted germanium diode counters. In Comptes Rendus Vile Congres International du Verre, Bruxelles, 28 Juin-3 Juillet 1965, Charleroi, Institut National du Verre. 

Tsolakidou, A. and Kilikoglou, V. (2002). Comparative analysis of ancient ceramics by neutron activation analysis, inductively coupled plasma-optical emission spectrometry, inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry, and X-ray fluorescence. Analytical and... 

Proton activation analysis (PAA) provides chemical composition of the materials at a depth of 300-500 pm under the irradiated surface. This technique has been used in the study of metallic objects such as ancient coins [27]. 

In order not to disfigure valuable ancient silver objects, only minute specimens can be removed for analysis. Sample size is thus a major restriction on the analytical method chosen. Thermal neutron activation analysis provides excellent opportunities for quantitative multi-element analysis of these small samples. The question as to how accurately these samples represent the entire specimen is considered in detail later. 

Biblical Studies through Activation Analysis of Ancient Pottery... 

Until now, little attention has been given to the analysis of ancient copper alloys with LA-ICP-MS. This type of material is usually analyzed with fast or instrumental neutron activation analysis (FNAA or INAA), particle induced X-ray emission (PIXE), X-ray fluorescence (XRF), inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry or inductively coupled plasma-atomic absorption spectrometry (ICP-AES or ICP-AAS). Some of these techniques are destructive and involve extensive sample preparation, some measure only surface compositions, and some require access to a cyclotron or a reactor. LA-ICP-MS is riot affected by any of these inconveniences. We propose here an analytical protocol for copper alloys using LA-ICP-MS and present its application to the study of Matisse bronze sculptures. 

Trace elemental analysis of ancient ceramics has been proven a very useful tool for tracing the circulation of this material. Instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) was for years the analytical technique of choice to measure the composition of ceramics because of the large number of elements it could determine and its good sensitivity. Lately, a few publications have shown that laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) could provide similar results as INAA more quickly and at lower cost. A protocol has been developed to determine 51 elements using LA-ICP-MS and tested it on Wari period ceramics previously analyzed using INAA. We show how INAA and LA-ICP-MS analysis lead to the same conclusion in terms of sample groupings. 

Ochre is very common in the Terminal Archaic-Early Formative archaeological site of Jiskairumoko, (Rio Have, Lake Titicaca Basin, southern Peru). Within the site, ochre was found on tools, palettes, and in burials and soil deposits within structures in several contexts, suggesting both symbolic and functional uses of ochre. Variations in the color and contexts imply possibilities for different uses of ochre.. Instrumental neutron activation analysis was used to analyze the ochre samples found in Jiskairumoko. Multivariate analysis of the elemental data by principal components analysis suggests trends in the data related to the compositional variation of ochres on the site. Further analysis of the ochre will lead to conclusions about the variation in composition of the ochres from Jiskairumoko and possible archaeological conclusions about ancient technologies and uses of ochre on the site. 

One aspect of this project is the analysis of the stone tools and manufacturing debris recovered from excavated sites. In addition to standard typological and attribute analysis, a program of identification and source determination for lithic materials using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA) and petrography was carried out. The purpose of this research program was to provide insights into questions about ancient human behavior Where, when, why, and how did prehistoric peoples use the natural resources in their environs (2) ... 

Modern Neutron Activation Analysis and Ancient History... 

Neutron activation analysis (NAA) is an eminently suitable technique for obtaining the chemical profile of ancient pottery and artifacts made from other earthy materials. This technique can be used to determine where these articles originated. An NAA system that has proved to be adequate for this task is discussed. A brief review is also given of the way archaeologists have decided matters of provenance and the uses to which they put their knowledge. Finally, two examples of archaeological problems are given in which the new horizons opened by the laboratory work are stressed. 

Neutron activation analysis (NAA), as the title of this chapter suggests, has some relevance to the reconstruction of ancient history to be more exact, we are dealing with the application of NAA to archaeology. Ancient writings that have been uncovered or handed down through the ages are of course invaluable, but much of what is known about ancient history comes from the work of the archaeologist. 

In the Andes Mountains, more than 500 years ago, a young girl was sacrificed to appease the gods. As was the custom of the ancient Incas, pottery and other artifacts were buried with her. Neutron activation analysis performed on pottery such as the vessel in Figure 1 allowed archaeologists to determine the origin of the soil from which the pottery was made. 

Neutron activation analysis has found ample use in research which has as its goal an understanding of ancient technology. That type of research has tended to fall into certain rather well-defined areas, which can now be discussed. 

The work of Ambrosino and colleagues has already been mentioned. The early volumes of the journal Archaeometry (first published in 1958) also contain some exploratory research on the application of NAA to the problem of coin analysis. Kraay and Emeleus at Oxford realized that NAA was a very practical solution to one of the requirements of ancient coin analysis, and that was, for the rare and most valuable specimens at least, that it be totally non-destructive. They also quickly discovered another benefit because neutrons activated the whole coin, they provided a bulk analysis as opposed to x-ray fluorescence, which gave only the surface composition. They found that a Corinthian coin, thought to be silver, was in fact silver-plated over a copper core. For precise NAA studies, the self absorption of neutrons in solid gold coins requires a substantial correction to the flux. Self absorption in silver, less serious has also been investigated (see below). 

Gilmore GR (1976) Analysis of Ancient Copper Alloys using Epithermal Activation Techniques, in Proceedings Fourth Internat. Conf. Modern Trends in Activation Analysis, p. 1187 Glascock MD, Spalding TG, Biers JC, Comman MF (1984) Archaeometry 26 96 Wessen G, Ruddy FH, Gustafson CE, Irwin H (1977) ibid. 19 200... 

Brooks D, Bieber Jr AM, Harbottle G, Sayre EV (1974) Biblical Studies throu Activation Analysis of Ancient Pottery, in Archaeological Chemistry, (ed. Beck CW) p. 48, Washington, D.C., Amer. Chem. Soc. 

In some cases, activation analysis may be regarded as a nondestructive method, i.e., the sample is not significantly altered, neither visually nor chemically. This attribute is obviously exploited in the aforementioned sequential multielement determinations. It is a valuable characteristic for situations where the sample needs to be preserved, such as forensic objects or irreplaceable historical samples, such as ancient coins or paintings. For general analytical practice, this valuable feature can allow reactivation for the determination of additional elements or for full reanalysis, as well as the use, with appropriate precautions, of another analytical method. 

The reluctance of museum curators and collectors to allow permanent damage to antiquities was, until not long ago, the main reason for the small amount of analytical work done on ancient coins. This was understandable since performing chemical analysis required removing a sample from the coin or damaging its surface, which meant either the destruction or defacement of, at least, a portion of a coin. More recently, however, a number of nondestructive methods of analysis such as neutron activation, X-ray fluorescence, and some techniques of surface analysis have been successfully applied to obtain information about ancient coins and the people and societies involved in their production (Carter 1993 Barrandon et al. 1977). 

Chemical Analysis. The chemical composition of ancient objects is important for their authentication. The nature as well as the relative amounts of major, minor, and trace elements in any object are of use for determining the authenticity or otherwise of ceramics, glass, or alloys. A wide range of analytical techniques, depending on the nature of the material studied, have been used for this purpose, including X-rays fluorescence analysis, mass spectrometry, atomic absorption spectroscopy, and neutron activation analy-... 

Rybach, L. and Nissen, H.U. (1964). Neutron activation of Mn and Na traces in marbles worked by the Ancient Greeks. In Proceedings of Radiochemical Methods of Analysis. International Atomic Energy Agency, Vienna, pp. 105-117. 

In addition to providing the means for calculating the isotopic compositions of ancient fluids based on analysis of minerals, mineral-fluid isotope fractionation factors provide an opportunity to combine fractionation factors when there is a common substance such as water. A fundamental strategy for compiling databases for isotopic fractionation factors is to reference such factors to a common substance (e.g., Friedman and O Neil 1977). For example, the quartz-water fractionation factor may be combined with the calcite-water fractionation factor to obtain the quartz-calcite fractionation factor at some temperature. It is now recognized, however, that the isotopic activity ratio of water in a number of experimental determinations of mineral-fluid fractionation factors has been variable, in part due to dissolution of... 

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