Archaeological identification

Bachmann, H. G. (1982), The Identification of Slags from Archaeological Sites, Historical Metallurgical Publications, Institute of Archaeology, London Univ., London. 

Evershed, R. P. and P. H. Bethell (1996), Application of Multi-molecular Biomarker Techniques to the Identification of Faecal Material in Archaeological Soils and Sediments, ACS Symposium Series, Vol. 625, pp. 157-172. 

Rottlander, R. C. A. (1985), Detection and identification of archaeological fats, Fette, Seifen 87, 314-317. 

Wales, S., J. Evans, and A. R. Leeds (1992), The value of using chemical analytical techniques on coprolites, in White, R. and H. Page (eds.), Organic Residues in Archaeology Their Identification and Analaysis, UK Institute of Conservation, London, pp. 33-38. 

The survival of a-boswellic acid, p-boswellic acid and their O-acetates, which have been isolated only from frankincense, has been demonstrated in archaeological samples [99,107,113]. These compounds are considered as very useful specific chemical markers for the identification of frankincense in resinous archaeological materials. 

M. Regert, C. Rolando, Identification of archaeological adhesives using Direct Inlet Electron Ionization Mass Spectrometry, Analytical Chemistry, 74, 965 975 (2002). 

J. Connan, A. Nissenbaum, Conifer tar on the keel and hull planking of the Ma agan Mikhael ship (Israel, 5th century BC) identification and comparison with natural products and artefacts employed in boat construction, Journal of Archaeological Science, 30, 709 719 (2003). 

It is likely that when you have unknown compounds, such as those that can be extracted from an archaeological material, knowledge of their weight is important for their identification. MS can measure it. Hence, when you introduce a given compound into a mass spectrometer you can determine its molecular weight. Accordingly, you can restrict the number of possible compounds. 

E. W. H. Hayek, P. Krenmayr, H. Lohninger, U. Jordis, W. Moche and F. Sauter, Identification of archaeological and recent wood tar pitches using gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and pattern recognition, Anal. Chem., 62, 2038 2043 (1990). 

J. S. Mills, R. White, Natural resins of art and archaeology their sources, chemistry and identification, Stud. Conserv., 22, 12 31 (1977). 

In the following sections, common features of gas chromatographic procedures applied to proteinaceous material identification in paint are discussed such as sample pretreatments and data analysis. Finally, a section is devoted to the recognition of the amino acid racemisation in ancient proteins encountered mostly in archaeological contexts. 

Figure 10.21 Total ion current chromatograms obtained after headspace SPME for (a) a pine pitch and (b) an archaeological pitch from Fayoum. Peak labels correspond to compound identification given in Table 10.1. Si, siloxanes (artefacts). Reproduced from S. Hamm, J. Bleton, A. Tchapla, J. Sep. Sci., 27, 235 243 (2004). Copyright Wiley VCH Verlag GmbH Co. KgaA. Reproduced with permission...

SPME/GC/MS is an efficient technique to reveal the presence of resinic substances in archaeological samples. Indeed, volatile terpenes are still present in very old archaeological samples (4000 years old), particularly in the case of compact matrixes, and can be trapped by the SPME fibre. In comparison with methylene chloride extraction, SPME is very specific and allows the direct analysis of the volatile terpenes content in complex mixtures including oils, fats or waxes. For this reason, headspace SPME is the first method to use when analysing an archaeological sample it will either allow the identification of the resin or indicate further sample treatment in order to detect characteristic triterpenes. The method is not really nondestructive because it uses a little of the sample but the same sample can be used for several SPME extractions and then for other chemical treatments. 

Craig, O. E., Taylor, G., Collins, M. J. and Parker Pearson, M. (2005) The identification of prehistoric dairying activities in the Western Isles of Scotland an integrated biomolecular approach. Journal of Archaeological Science 32, 91 103. 

Evershed, R. P., Dudd, S. N., Copley, M. S. and Mukherjee, A. J. (2003b) Identification of animal fats via compound specific 813C values of individual fatty acids assessments of results for reference fats and lipid extracts of archaeological pottery vessels. In Documenta Praehistorica, XXIX 9th Neolithic Studies (Ed. Budja, M.), Ljubljana, pp. 73 96. 

Reber, E. A. and Evershed, R. P. (2004b) Identification of maize in absorbed organic residues a cautionary tale. Journal of Archaeological Sciences 31, 399 410. 

Kami J, Becerra-Velasquez V, Debouck DG, Gepts P (1995) Identification of presumed ancestral DNA sequences of phaseolin in Phaseolus vulgaris. Proc Natl Acad Sci USA 92 1101-1104 Kaplan L (1981) What is the origin of common bean Econ Bot 35 240-254 Kaplan L, Lynch TF (1999) Phaseolus (Fabaceae) in archaeology AMS radiocarbon dates and their significance for pre-colombian agriculture. Econ Bot 53 261-272... 

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