ABSTRACT Recent claims proposing a Syracusan provenance for the Riace Bronzes rely on selective petrographic, geochemical, and taphonomic evidence that raises crucial methodological questions. This paper critically reassesses the analytical premises and inferential logic underlying these claims, showing that they bypass established protocols in ceramic and sediment provenance studies, lack statistically meaningful reference groups, and raise concerns on the interpretation of archaeometric, radiocarbon, and lead isotope data. Additional arguments based on casting technology and taphonomy appear to rely on assumptions that remain insufficiently supported. Rather than proposing an alternative provenance, this study demonstrates why the available evidence does not support the Syracusan hypothesis and highlights the methodological risks of allowing interpretative narratives to overcome available archaeometric evidence.
Geochemical analysis of five brooch types from the Lower Rhine area dated to the last century bc and first century ad is used to constrain resource use, exchange and mobility. Lead isotope ratios demonstrate an Iberian provenance for copper in bronze Late Iron Age brooches. Lead isotope ratios of most brass brooches are similar to imperial Roman brass coinage and comparable with zinc ore deposits in the Bergamasque Alps or are interpreted as mixing between zinc sources and Iberian copper-lead sources. This indicates that control over access to raw materials by the Roman army is likely for brass Early Roman spoonbow, arched bow and eye brooches. In addition, the use of zinc from Aachen-Stolberg in Almgren 10-14 one-piece Armbrustfibeln provides additional constraints on the regional metal supply.
The specific depth-profiling capabilities of the muonic x-ray emission spectroscopy (mu-XES) technique have proved to be effective for examination of the elemental distribution within ancient coins. This 'layered' analysis can also be applied to the examination of ancient faience, the production of which can result in distinct layers (glaze, interaction, and body). Initial results also indicated the presence of nitrogen and carbon, something with potential implications for production techniques of these objects. Moreover, by using this method, the samples do not become radioactive. This paper presents a pilot study of this method used on three faience samples, two from the Nubian (ancient Sudanese) site of Meroe (c.350 bce-350 ce) and one from the ancient Egyptian site of Beni Hasan (c.2055-1650 bce).
Carbon smudging and black coating are two main coloration techniques of black pottery, yet the combination of slip and carbon smudging remains unstudied. This research is the first to reveal this black pottery technological process and the mechanism by which slip affects carbon smudging depth. Scientific analyses and simulation experiments were conducted on samples from several archaeological sites in prehistoric China. The results show that unfired clay is first fired and then a slip is applied and subjected to postfiring carbon smudging. Although carbon smudging depth cannot be precisely regulated in single firing, it can be effectively affected in the postfiring process by adjusting the slip thickness, thereby highlighting the carved decorations. Meticulous burnishing helps to preserve the decorations. The surface layer technology is more complex and advanced than that of ordinary black pottery.
The object of this study consists of an archaeometric investigation of Early medieval Forum Ware glazed ceramics found in the central archaeological area of Rome, a significant chronological and economic marker for 8th-11th centuries. Instrumental analysis included digital microscopy, ESEM-EDS imaging, EDS spectral analysis, EMPA quantitative measurements and XRF investigations. Results provided clues about the chemical-mineralogical composition of the ceramic body and the glass coating, as well as on the manufacturing procedure. Archaeometric analyses were conducted on Forum Ware samples collected from the same kiln they had been produced, corresponding to the first known discovery of a production site for this class of ceramics in the Middle Ages.
