Ivory of unknown provenance

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. 

In Table VIII, the composite values for all analyses, by group, are presented together with the analyses for modern elephant ivory and for an Assyrian ivory of unknown provenance in a private collection. The results of the elemental analyses for the Khorsabad ivories are consistent with those for the excavated specimens. Samples from the Assyrian ivory from the private collection, however, yield analyses which are not con-... 

Ivories of Unknown Provenance. The data for the Khorsabad ivories are consistent with the suggested age. These data do not, however, eliminate the possibility of artificial methods for simulating the patina and texture, generally acquired by long-term burial, by chemical extraction... 

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. 

Analyses of Excavated Ancient Near Eastern Ivory 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. 

Table VI. Designations of "Khorsabad Ivory Specimens (Provenance Unknown)...

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