Arqueometría de ánforas prerromanas procedentes de Lisboa (Portugal)

Abstract

In recent years, the existence of a dense pottery production in the Tagus estuary during the Iron Age, and specifically in the Lisbon area, has been highlighted. This was part of a process of economic intensification stimulated by the presence of phoenician traders. One of the most conspicuous products are amphorae containers, recently identified and classified from specimens recorded in different archaeological excavations. Imported amphorae, mostly from the south of the Iberian Peninsula, have also been found in the same contexts.

The aim of the present work is to further characterise these productions, both local and imported, through the analysis of 14 samples from excavations carried out on the slopes of the hill of Castelo de São Jorge in Lisbon. For this purpose, a petrographic study has been carried out through thin sections, as well as chemical (XRF) and mineralogical (XRD) analyses of all the sherds. A cluster analysis was applied to chemical data. In conclusion, a high degree of coincidence is observed in the results of these 3 analyses and their coherence with the previous geographical and typological ascription, proposed on the basis of the macroscopic examination.