Archaeology strontium isotopes

Bone and enamel, archaeological, strontium isotope analysis, 102-104 Bone chemistry, principles, 116-117 Bone materials in archaeological soils and sediments, 198, 200-204 Botswana prehistoric mines, specular hermatite source fingerprinting, 460-479... 

Freestone, I.C., Degryse, P., Shepherd, J., Gorin-Rosen, Y. and Schneider, J. (2008). Near Eastern origin of Late Roman glass from London using neodymium and strontium isotopes. Journal of Archaeological Science. 

Bentley, R.A. (2006). Strontium isotopes from the earth to the archaeological skeleton a review. Journal of Archaeological Method and Theory 13 135-187. 

Using Archaeological Chemistry to Investigate the Geographic Origins of Trophy Heads in the Central Andes Strontium Isotope Analysis at the Wari Site... 

In the twenty years since it was first proposed (24, 2S), strontium isotope analysis of archaeological human remains to examine residential mobility has become increasingly common. Briefly, 87Sr/86Sr in a given geologic zone is... 

Strontium Isotope Analysis of Archaeological Enamel and Bone... 

All tooth and bone samples were initially prepared in the Laboratory for Archaeological Chemistry by the first author. Modem faunal samples for strontium isotope analysis were placed in a crucible and ashed at approximately 800°C for 10 hours. The bone samples were then crushed in an agate mortar and pestle. The teeth were removed from modem fauna mandibles after ashing and crushed and stored separately from the bone. 

While the strontium isotope signatures in archaeological human tooth enamel and bone from tombs at Conchopata are very similar, the five trophy heads have more heterogeneous strontium isotope signatures, as shown in Table I and Figure 1. Three trophy heads exhibit enamel and bone strontium isotope... 

Figure 1. Strontium Isotope Results from Archaeological Human Remains from...

A similar set of experiments was performed to test our ability to precisely characterize strontium isotopes. For the archaeological chemistry of biological remains, strontium isotopes are useful for testing dietary hypotheses and for examining differences in place of birth and place of residence. To test the precision of strontium isotope ratio measurement using TOF-ICP-MS, we made glass fusion beads using NIST Strontium Carbonate Standard SRM 987 and... 

Isotopes are involved today in virtually all areas of chemistry. The use of isotopes in archaeological chemistry is widespread and rapidly growing, with many different applications. Different isotopes are used with many different kinds of materials to answer a variety of questions. Some of these isotope ratios are listed in Table 4.1 along with additional information on their abundance in nature, the kinds of materials sampled, and the kinds of information obtained in archaeological applications. Isotopes of oxygen, carbon, nitrogen, and strontium isotopes are more commonly used in archaeological applications and are discussed in more detail in this chapter. 

The place of origin of prehistoric people can also be determined. The isotopic proveniencing of human remains, using ratios of strontium isotopes, has been employed in archaeology for approximately 20 years. Strontium isotope analyses have been used successfully in a number of studies. The basic principle involves comparison of isotope ratios in human tooth enamel with local levels in bone or other materials. Because isotopic ratios vary geographically, values in human teeth (marking place of birth) that differ from the local ratio (place of death) indicate migration. This method of analysis is described in more detail in Chap. 8, Provenience and Provenance. 

Price, T. D., L. Manzanilla, and W. D. Middleton. 2000. Immigration and the Ancient City of Teotihuacan in Mexico A Study Using Strontium Isotopes Ratios in Human Bone and Teeth. Journal of Archaeological Science 27 903-913. 

Hodell, David A., Rhonda L. Quinn, Mark Brenner, and George Kamenov. 2004. Spatial variation of strontium isotopes ( Sr/ Sr) in the Maya region a tool for tracking ancient human migration. Journal of Archaeological Science 31 585-601. 

Price, T.D., C.M. Johnson, J.A. Ezzo, J.H. Burton, and J.A. Ericson. 1994a. Residential mobility in the Prehistoric Southwest United States. A preli minary study using strontium isotope analysis. Journal of Archaeological Science 24 315-330. 

Richards, Michael, et al. Strontium Isotope Evidence of Neanderthal Mobility at the Site of Lakonis, Greece Using Laser-Ablation PIMMS. Journal of Archaeological Science 35 (May 2008) 1,251. 

Nowell, G.M., Horstwood, M.S.A. (2009) Comments on Richards et al., Xournal of Archaeological Science 35, 2008 Strontium isotope evidence of Neanderthal mobility at the site of Lakonis, Greece nsing laser-ablation PIMMS . Journal of Archaeological Science, 36(1), 1334-1341. 

Viner, S., Evans, X, Albarella, U., Parker-Pearson, M. (2010) Cattle mobility in prehistoric Britain strontium isotope analysis of cattle teeth from Durrington Walls (Wiltshire, Britain). Journal of Archaeological Science, 37(11), 2812-2820. 

Horstwood et al. [Ill] reported results of experiments to determine strontium isotopes in archaeological tooth enamel using LA-MC-ICP-MS and pointed out the need for careful attention to interferences from the calcium phosphate matrix. In another study, Richards et al. [112] detected evidence of Neanderthal mobility via LA-MC-ICP-MS characterization of strontium isotope ratios in tooth enamel. Enamel values from a Neanderthal molar recovered from a coastal limestone environment in Greece were found to be consistent with... 

Tafuri, M.A., Bentley, R.A., Manzi, G, di Ixrnia, S. (2006) Mobility and kinship in the prehistoric Sahara strontium isotope analysis of Holocene hnman skeletons from the Acacus Mts, southwestern Libya. Journal of Anthropological Archaeology, 25, 390-402. 

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