Beads of Alexandria: Non‐invasive analysis of glass from Roman, Late Antique and Islamic Kom el‐Dikka, Egypt

IF 1.5 3区地球科学 0 ARCHAEOLOGY

Archaeometry Pub Date : 2024-07-01 DOI:10.1111/arcm.13002

Joanna Then‐Obłuska, Olga Syta

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引用次数: 0

Abstract

Written sources indicate that Alexandria in Egypt was a leading producer of Roman glass. Furthermore, archaeological finds have provided evidence for the local production of drawn glass and gold‐in‐glass beads, which were distributed throughout the world. In this study, we present an analysis of the chemical composition of more than two hundred glass objects from the Roman (2nd–3rd/4th century ce) and Late Antique (4th/5th–7th century ce) glass bead workshops located at Kom el‐Dikka in Alexandria. This study is based on the results of portable X‐ray fluorescence (pXRF) analyses carried out on raw glass, bead semi‐products, products and waste from both periods. Additionally, the glass chemistry of some Islamic (8th–12th century ce) beads found at the site has been analysed.Despite the limitations of the method, the vast majority of samples exhibited compositions confirming their general dating and Egyptian origin. Remarkably, a single bead was made of high‐alumina glass and appeared to be an import from India, possibly a remnant of the Indo‐Pacific glass bead route that connected Red Sea ports and Europe in Late Antiquity. In addition, we offer a new analytical approach to the method that has potential to enhance the value of pXRF in the analysis of archaeological glass.

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亚历山大的珠子：对埃及 Kom el-Dikka 出土的罗马、古代晚期和伊斯兰玻璃的非侵入式分析

书面资料显示，埃及的亚历山大城是罗马玻璃的主要生产地。此外，考古发现也提供了当地生产拉制玻璃和金嵌玻璃珠的证据，这些产品销往世界各地。在本研究中，我们对位于亚历山大 Kom el-Dikka 的罗马（公元前 2-3/4 世纪）和晚期古代（公元前 4/5-7 世纪）玻璃珠作坊中的两百多件玻璃制品的化学成分进行了分析。这项研究基于对这两个时期的玻璃原料、珠子半成品、产品和废料进行的便携式 X 射线荧光（pXRF）分析结果。此外，还对遗址中发现的一些伊斯兰（公元前 8-12 世纪）珠子的玻璃化学成分进行了分析。尽管该方法存在局限性，但绝大多数样品的成分都证实了它们的大致年代和埃及起源。值得注意的是，有一颗珠子是由高铝玻璃制成的，似乎是从印度进口的，可能是古代晚期连接红海港口和欧洲的印度-太平洋玻璃珠路线的遗迹。此外，我们还提供了一种新的分析方法，有望提高 pXRF 在考古玻璃分析中的价值。

本文章由计算机程序翻译，如有差异，请以英文原文为准。

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来源期刊

Archaeometry 地学-地球科学综合

CiteScore

3.60

自引率

12.50%

发文量

105

审稿时长

6 months

期刊介绍： Archaeometry is an international research journal covering the application of the physical and biological sciences to archaeology, anthropology and art history. Topics covered include dating methods, artifact studies, mathematical methods, remote sensing techniques, conservation science, environmental reconstruction, biological anthropology and archaeological theory. Papers are expected to have a clear archaeological, anthropological or art historical context, be of the highest scientific standards, and to present data of international relevance. The journal is published on behalf of the Research Laboratory for Archaeology and the History of Art, Oxford University, in association with Gesellschaft für Naturwissenschaftliche Archäologie, ARCHAEOMETRIE, the Society for Archaeological Sciences (SAS), and Associazione Italian di Archeometria.