Microfacies and Archaeology
Archaeologists are faced with the problem of the provenance of materials used in ancient buildings, sculptures or ceramics. Archaeometric methods applied to source studies include analyses of element distributions, stable isotope patterns and studies of t
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19.1 Questions and Methods
19.2 Building Stones
Archaeologists are faced with the problern of the provenance of materials used in ancient buildings, sculptures or ceramics. Archaeometric methods applied to source studies include analyses of element distributions, stable isotope pattems and studies of the mineralogical and petrographical composition (Herz 1987; Riederer 1987; Herz and Waelkens 1988; Gibson and Woods 1990; Walsh 1990; Waelkens et al. 1992; Orton 1993; Rapp and Gifford 1995; Herz and Garrison 1998; Pollard 1999). 'Geoarchaeology' (Rapp and Gifford 1998) is an exciting and promising interdisciplinary approach. Archaeometric studies of Iimestones and marbles consider petrographical data, stable isotopes and strontium isotopes, trace elements, and cathodoluminescence signatures.
Building stones are rocks suitable for use in constructions. They are chosen for their properties of durability, economy and attractive beauty. Building stones that are quarried and prepared in regularly shaped blocks are called dimension stones. Provenance analysis of carbonate and non-carbonate stone material used in the construction of ancient buildings assists in deciphering the exploitation history of antique quarries and provide information on changing local and regional sources. Knowledge of the source of marbles and other precious stone material used for buildings and works of art gives information on former trading pattems. Specific questions that could be answered by microfacies-based studies ofbuilding stones are: Did ancient builders only exploit local sources or did they use different sources for buildings of different social rank? What trading pattems can we discem from the distribution of particular materials? How did the available material affect architectural styles? Are building stones repeatedly reused? Some of these questions are touched on in a faciesbased provenance study of the building stones of Roman Sagalassos in southwestem Turkey (Degryse et al. 2003) who identified distinct relationships in time changing local sources, changing architecture styles and the attempt to use material exhibiting better technological properties (e.g. strength).
Microfacies analysis is playing an increasingly more important role. The microfacies approach can be used both for carbonates and materials made of cherts. Archaeological objects consisting of Iimestone or dolomite are typified according to textures, composition and paleontological criteria. The combination of these criteria with geological and facies data provides a highly valuable means for provenance determinations of antique building stones, mosaics, works of art and ceramics. Chapter 19 summarizes several case studies.
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Microfacies studies contribute to differentiating the source of material used as building stones, mosaics and works of art, recognizing the source area of raw materials used in the manufacture of pottery as well as the production sites, defining time-dependent technologies used in the fabrication of ceramics, understanding trade ro
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