Ivory archaeological

O Connor, T.P. (1987) On the Structure, Chemistry and Decay of Bone, Antler and Ivory. Archaeological Bone, Antler and Ivory. UKIC. 

Baer, N. S. and N. Indictor (1974), Chemical investigations of ancient Near Eastern archaeology ivory artifacts, in Beck, C. W. (ed.), Archaeological Chemistry, Advances in Chemistry Series, Vol. 1, ACS, Washington, DC, pp. 241-251. 

Chemical Investigations of Ancient Near Eastern Archaeological Ivory Artifacts... 

In this work, we have studied the change in collagen content, by elemental analyses, for buried ivory obtained from archaeological excavations. The sites mentioned in this study are given in Table I. The results of the analyses for excavated specimens are compared with those for ivories of unknown provenance. 

Related Problems. The first question to be resolved in examining an Ancient Near Eastern ivory object of unknown provenance is its antiquity. Perhaps equally significant is the question of assignment to a specific archaeological site. This problem, as yet unexplored, may ultimately depend on the study of trace element distributions for its technical resolution. 

Long term burial of artifacts recovered in archaeological excavations often leads to friability, salt encrustation, physical damage, and severe corrosion. Field conservation is limited to such measures as are required to preserve the artifact until it may receive the attention of specialists in the museum laboratory. Typical conservation treatments for textiles, waterlogged wood, bone and ivory, cuneiform tablets, and cast and wrought marine iron are reviewed with particular emphasis on the effects such treatments may have on the subsequent technical examination of the artifact. 

In the following discussion a number of conservation methods commonly used to treat archaeological artifacts are examined for their eflFects on subsequent technical examination. The preservation of archaeological textiles, waterlogged wood, archaeological bone and ivory, cuneiform tablets, and marine iron are among the problems considered. 

Tn a recent study we examined samples taken from ivory artifacts exca-vated at Hasanlu, Acem Hiiyiik, and Nimrud. Elemental analyses were obtained for carbon, hydrogen, and nitrogen (I). The results for specimens of known provenance were used to develop preliminary criteria for Ancient Near Eastern archaeological ivory artifacts of uncertain provenance. The useful results obtained in that work suggested an extension of similar observations to other excavation sites in the Ancient Near East (Megiddo and Khorsabad). The range of analyses was extended to include fluorine. 

The results of carbon, hydrogen, nitrogen, fluorine, and ash analyses are reported here for five archaeological sites (Table I). These data are compared with those for ivories of unknown provenance. 

Faunal remains The animal ecofacts found in archaeological contexts, including bone, teeth, antler, ivory, shell, scales, and the like. 

Turekian KK, Kulp JL (1956) Strontirrm content in human bones. Science 124 405-406 Ttrross N, Behrensmeyer AK, Eanes ED (1989) Strontium increases and crystallinity changes in taphonomic and archaeological bone. J Archaeol Sci 16 661-672 Van der Merwe NJ, Lee-Thorp JA, Thackeray JF, Hall-Martin A, Kmger FJ, Coetzee H, Bell RHV, Lindeque M (1990) Somce-area determination of elephant ivory by isotopic analysis. Nature 346 744-746... 

CoNNAN (1999) Connan, J. Use and trade of bitumen in antiquity and prehistory molecular archaeology reveals secrets of past civilizations Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B Biological Sciences 354 (1999) 33-55 Connor (1991) Connor, C.L. New perspectives on Byzantine ivories Gesta 30 (1991) 100-101... 

Figure 1 Roman die, ca. AD 300, from archaeological excavations at Frocester Villa, Gloucester, UK. Raman spectroscopy has suggested the origin of the die as sperm whale ivory. (See Colour Plate 1).

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