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Occari V, Möller H, Fenwick C, Quinn P, Freestone IC, Chaouali M, von Rummel P. The technology of polychrome glazed ceramics in Ifriqiya: new data from the site of Chimtou. ARCHAEOLOGICAL AND ANTHROPOLOGICAL SCIENCES 2024; 16:61. [PMID: 38529512 PMCID: PMC10960904 DOI: 10.1007/s12520-024-01974-x] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/29/2024] [Accepted: 03/13/2024] [Indexed: 03/27/2024]
Abstract
Ifriqiya (roughly Tunisia and eastern Algeria) is believed to have played a significant role in the diffusion of ceramic glazed technologies into other regions of the Western Mediterranean. However, due to limited analysis on North African glazed ceramics, its role in technology transfer remains poorly understood. This paper uses SEM-EDS and petrographic analyses to understand the technology employed in the production of Tunisian ceramics through the study of 30 polychrome glazed ceramics from a medieval settlement at the site of Chimtou (ancient Simitthus), Tunisia, dated to the late ninth-twelfth century. The results show that these are lead-rich glazes with varying contents of alkalis, coloured with copper, iron and manganese oxide and applied over a calcareous body. Opaque glazes were obtained using cassiterite crystals as opacifier or by adding crushed quartz. The use of lead stannate as a colourant and opacifier in one light yellow glaze raises questions about the mechanisms of introduction of tin opacification technology in North Africa. Scrap metal seems to have been used as a source of lead for the glazes; while iron slag was probably used as a source of iron to colour the glaze in one sample, pointing to a cross-craft interaction between glazemaking and metallurgy. Supplementary information The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s12520-024-01974-x.
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Affiliation(s)
- V. Occari
- UCL Institute of Archaeology, London, WC1H 0PY UK
| | - H. Möller
- Deutsches Archäologisches Institut, Berlin, Germany
| | - C. Fenwick
- UCL Institute of Archaeology, London, WC1H 0PY UK
| | - P. Quinn
- UCL Institute of Archaeology, London, WC1H 0PY UK
| | | | - M. Chaouali
- Institut National de Patrimoine, Tunis, Tunisia
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Mil-Homens M, Vale C, Brito P, Naughton F, Drago T, Raimundo J, Anes B, Schmidt S, Caetano M. Insights of Pb isotopic signature into the historical evolution and sources of Pb contamination in a sediment core of the southwestern Iberian Atlantic shelf. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2017; 586:473-484. [PMID: 28209405 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2017.01.204] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.1] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/13/2016] [Revised: 01/27/2017] [Accepted: 01/28/2017] [Indexed: 06/06/2023]
Abstract
Stable Pb isotopic ratios and concentrations of Al, Cu and Pb were measured in a 5m long sediment core (VC2B) retrieved at 96m water depth in the southwestern Iberian Atlantic shelf. Five phases during the last 9.5kyrs were identified, two of them (Roman Period and modern mining) marked by a decrease of 206Pb/207Pb ratios reflecting additional inputs of Pb derived from mining activities. The Roman Period was also characterized by high 208Pb/206Pb ratios suggesting the exploitation of the outcropping portion of the orebody intensely weathered when compared with the other formations later mined. The shift of 208Pb/206Pb ratios towards linearity took approximately 1.0kyrs, which may mirror the time of environmental recovery from the impact of Roman mining activities. The application of a mixing model allowed the quantification of the contribution associated with anthropogenic mining activities to the shelf sediments. The maximum values of Pb contamination occurred in the 20th century. This study gives direct evidence of Pb and Cu exploitation over the last 2000years. The stable Pb isotopic signatures point to legacy of mining activities that are still the prevailing metal source recorded in the southwestern Iberian Atlantic shelf sediments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mário Mil-Homens
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 289, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal.
| | - Carlos Vale
- CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 289, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
| | - Pedro Brito
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 289, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
| | - Filipa Naughton
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; CCMAR, Center of Marine Sciences, Algarve University, Campus de Gambelas, 8005-139 Faro, Portugal
| | - Teresa Drago
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; IDL, Instituto Dom Luiz, Faculty of Sciences, University of Lisbon, Campo Grande, Edifício C1, Piso 1, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Joana Raimundo
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 289, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
| | - Bárbara Anes
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; Faculty of Sciences, University of the Lisbon, Centre for Molecular Sciences and Materials, Campo Grande, 1749-016 Lisboa, Portugal
| | - Sabine Schmidt
- UMR 5805 EPOC OASU, University of Bordeaux, 33615 Pessac, France
| | - Miguel Caetano
- IPMA, Portuguese Institute of Sea and Atmosphere, Rua Alfredo Magalhães Ramalho, 6, 1449-006 Lisboa, Portugal; CIIMAR, Interdisciplinary Centre of Marine and Environmental Research, University of Porto, Rua dos Bragas, 289, 4050-123 Porto, Portugal
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