Helen V Michel
Datos Biográficos
| ID | 230642 |
|---|---|
| NOMBRE | Helen V Michel |
| NOMBRES | Helen V |
| APELLIDO | Michel |
| FIRMA | MICHEL H V |
| AFILIACIONES | Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory |
| VERIFICADO | No |
| TOTAL DE OBRAS | 23 |
| TOTAL DE CITAS | 264 |
| TOTAL COMO AUTOR | 23 |
| TOTAL COMO EDITOR | 0 |
| PRIMER AÑO DE PUBLICACIÓN | 1975 |
| AÑO MÁS RECIENTE DE PUBLICACIÓN | 1999 |
| ÍNDICE H | 10 |
Does the Different Layout of the Late Bronze Age Tombs at Laish/Dan and Akko in Northern Canaan Reflect Different Trade Relations? An Instrumental Neutron Activation Study on Mycenaean Pottery
Obsidian Procurement and Distribution in the Tikal-Yaxha Intersite Area of the Central Maya Lowlands
Obsidian from known outcrops in the Mesoamerican highlands has been recovered from lowland Maya sites, providing significant evidence for long-distance procurement and local redistribution of obsidian by the ancient Maya. Prior chemical-characterization studies of obsidian from the lowland Maya area provide a foundation for the study of Tikal-Yaxha obsidian presented here. The samples used in this analysis came from middens associated with 12 res…
Interregional Contacts Between Tell En‐nasbeh and Littoral Philistine Centres in Canaan During Early Iron Age I
Philistine bichrome ware from Tell en‐Nasbeh, an Israelite village in the hill country, has been characterized by instrumental neutron activation analysis. A group of pottery stylistically indistinguishable from wares made in Philistia is shown to be of local origin, while other sherds match kiln wasters found in the littoral Philistine city of Ashdod. These findings attest to complex and reciprocal interregional contacts between the Philistines …
An Initial Consideration of Obsidian Procurement and Exchange in Prehispanic Ecuador
We have examined the role of long-distance trade in Prehispanic Ecuador using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and neutron-activation analysis (NAA) of obsidian artifacts from the archaeological sites of El Inga, Chobshi Cave and Site OGSE-46 on the Santa Elena Peninsula. Results indicate that two geological sources east of Quito, Yanaurco-Quiscatola and Mullumica, were the principal source of raw obsidian at these sites. We situate our findings within a…
Ecuadorian Obsidian Sources Used for Artifact Production and Methods for Provenience Assignments
A study by neutron activation analysis and X-ray fluorescence measurements of 116 Ecuadorian obsidian artifacts as well as primary and secondary source samples has shown that the material originated from two Andean sources in north-central Ecuador, a flow in the valley of Mullumica, and deposits found on Yanaurco Chico and the nearby Quiscatola crest. The Yanaurco-Quiscatola deposit complex, homogeneous within our ability to measure, is represent…
Obsidian Sources and Elemental Analyses of Artifacts in Southern Mesoamerica and the Northern Intermediate Area
Obsidian sources, and the proportions of those sources represented in site collections, are known poorly in the southeast mesoamerican periphery. The Honduran sources of La Esperanza and Güinope are described and 'fingerprinted' chemically, and their utilization is explored in selected sites in Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Although prehistoric Nicaraguans and Costa Ricans used obsidian from sources as far away as Honduras and Guatemala, m…
Maya Maritime Trade and Sources of Obsidian at San Juan, Ambergris Cay, Belize
San Juan is a small Late and Terminal Classic transshipment point on the north end of Ambergris Cay, Belize. It was well situated to have participated in the Maya maritime trade network that served large population centers on Corozal and Chetumal bays and those communities linked to these bays by the New River and Rio Hondo. A sample of Terminal Classic obsidian was sourced using visual, x-ray fluorescence, and neutron activation techniques. Alth…
News and Short Contributions
Kostas Kotsakis, Anthony P. Andrews, Frank Asaro, Helen V. Michel, Fred H. Stross, Pura Cerrera Rivero, Thomas H. Guderjan, James F. Garber, Herman A. Smith, News and Short Contributions, Journal of Field Archaeology, Vol. 16, No. 3 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 355-376
Special Studies
Provenience analysis of a small sample of obsidian artifacts from Isla Cerritos, a Terminal Classic/Early Postclassic Itzá trading port on the north coast of Yucatán, indicates a wide range of raw material sources from Central Mexico to the Guatemalan Highlands. The overwhelming predominance of Central Mexican obsidian reinforces the notion that Isla Cerritos was the main trading port of Chichén Itzá. The analysis also provides an indirect approx…
Sources of Obsidian from El Mirador, Guatemala
Sources of the Quartzite of Some Ancient Egyptian Sculptures
This article reports the results of analysis of samples collected from some Egyptian quartzite artifacts. such as statuary, dating from the New Kingdom. Most of the artifacts are located in Upper Egypt, but the results of analysis suggest that, until the middle of the fourteenth century B.C., the quartzite came from a more distant quarry near Cairo rather than from the quartzite quarries located near Aswan in Upper Egypt
The Chipped Stone Industry of Cihuatan and Santa Maria, El Salvador, and Sources of Obsidian from Cihuatan
The chipped stone industry of Cihuatan and Santa Maria, Postclassic sites of north-central El Salvador, is discussed briefly in terms of behavioral/technological typology. The industry was based almost exclusively on obsidian and emphasized specialized production of prismatic blades. Source determinations by X-rayfluorescence and neutron activation analysis of 20 obsidian specimens from Cihuatan indicate that at least three highland Guatemalan so…
Provenience Analysis of Obsidians from the Central Peten Lakes Region, Guatemala
A set of 296 obsidian artifacts from the lakes area of the Department of Peten, Guatemala, has been provenienced by X-ray fluorescence and neutron activation analysis. The obsidians come from socioeconomic contexts (primarily rural/domestic) and time periods-from the Middle Preclassic period, ca. 800 B.C., up to the time of Spanish contact, A.D. 1525-that have been poorly represented in previous Lowland provenience studies. Thus they provide new …
The Northern Colossus of Memnon
Chemical and petrographic studies of the two 720‐ton ‘Colossi of Memnon’ located near Luxor, and of Egyptian quartzite quarries indicate that the rear pedestal blocks of the northern statue were quarried at Aswan, while the other, main components of the monuments were quarried near Cairo. Our studies suggest that the rear pedestal blocks of the northern statue were part of the reconstruction project undertaken by Roman emperor Septimius Severus. …
Precise Characterization of Guatemalan Obsidian Sources, and Source Determination of Artifacts from Quiriguá
For the determination of provenience of obsidian artifacts, precise and accurate measurements of composition patterns of the geologic sources are necessary for definitive and cost-effective assignments. Inter-comparison of data from different laboratories is often difficult. Suggestions for maximizing the usefulness of data already in the literature are made, contributions to a useful data bank of source composition patterns are recorded, and pro…
Extraterrestrial Cause for the Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction
Platinum metals are depleted in the earth's crust relative to their cosmic abundance; concentrations of these elements in deep-sea sediments may thus indicate influxes of extraterrestrial material. Deep-sea limestones exposed in Italy, Denmark, and New Zealand show iridium increases of about 30, 160, and 20 times, respectively, above the background level at precisely the time of the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinctions, 65 million years ago. Reasons a…
Chemical Study of the Plate of Brass
The Plate of Brass is an inscribed brass artifact which has been attributed to the landing of Francis Drake on the California coast in 1579 A.D. In the present study the chemical abund~nces of the major and trace constituents in the Plate of Brass were quantitatively measured.These values were compared with measurements on both medieval and modern brasses and with the levels of impurities expected in brass making processes from medieval times to …
Mayan Obsidian
High‐precision neutron activation measurements have been made on mesoamerican obsidian from Ixtepeque and El Chayal which are thought to be the major sources of volcanic glass artifacts in pre‐Columbian times. These results are compared with measurements on obsidian artifacts from Lubaantun, Wild Cane Cay, Frenchman's Cay and Moho Cay
Comparison of Neutron Activation Analysis From the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and the Hebrew University
Neutron activation measurements for Eu, Sc, Cs. Th, Ta, and Fe on 6 samples of pottery and rock by the Hebrew University and the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory have been compared. The average disagreement exclusive of counting errors was 1.1%. The practical importance of this study to archaeology is that data taken on source materials in one laboratory can be used by the other. Methods of determining the consistency of measurements within a laborat…
High-Precision Chemical Characterization of Major Obsidian Sources in Guatemala
The important Mesoamerican obsidian source El Chayal has been carefully explored and sampled. Forty new source specimens have been subjected to neutron activation analysis, and the composition patterns are recorded and compared. The westernmost of the known Guatemalan obsidian sources, Tajamulco, has also been studied. Precise analytical data are also reported for the important Ixtepeque and Rio Pixcaya sources. In addition, the complete analytic…
Sources of Some Obsidian Flakes from a Paleoindian Site in Guatemala
Neutron activation analysis was used to determine the chemical composition of sources of obsidian artifacts from the Paleoindian site of Los Tapiales in Guatemala with an occupation date of around 10,700 radiocarbon years ago. Three different sources were detected, all between 50 and 75 km from Los Tapiales. The predominant source represented in our ten samples was in the Rio Pixcayá area, and another was in the Tajumulco area. A third source, id…
Chemical Composition Patterns of Ceramic, Wares From Fustät, Egypt
A Lyons Branch of the Pottery‐making Firm of Ateius of Arezzo
S Fifty‐one waster sherds of Terra Sigillata (∼20‐0 b.c. ) from Arezzo, Italy and Lyons, France have been chemically analysed for twenty‐eight elements by neutron activation and seven by X‐ray fluorescence. Most of the elemental abundances were measured with high precision and cross‐comparisons of the two techniques of measurement (and sample preparation) give added insight as to their relative precision, the calibration differences and the exten…
Special Studies
Provenience analysis of a small sample of obsidian artifacts from Isla Cerritos, a Terminal Classic/Early Postclassic Itzá trading port on the north coast of Yucatán, indicates a wide range of raw material sources from Central Mexico to the Guatemalan Highlands. The overwhelming predominance of Central Mexican obsidian reinforces the notion that Isla Cerritos was the main trading port of Chichén Itzá. The analysis also provides an indirect approx…
An Initial Consideration of Obsidian Procurement and Exchange in Prehispanic Ecuador
We have examined the role of long-distance trade in Prehispanic Ecuador using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and neutron-activation analysis (NAA) of obsidian artifacts from the archaeological sites of El Inga, Chobshi Cave and Site OGSE-46 on the Santa Elena Peninsula. Results indicate that two geological sources east of Quito, Yanaurco-Quiscatola and Mullumica, were the principal source of raw obsidian at these sites. We situate our findings within a…
High-Precision Chemical Characterization of Major Obsidian Sources in Guatemala
The important Mesoamerican obsidian source El Chayal has been carefully explored and sampled. Forty new source specimens have been subjected to neutron activation analysis, and the composition patterns are recorded and compared. The westernmost of the known Guatemalan obsidian sources, Tajamulco, has also been studied. Precise analytical data are also reported for the important Ixtepeque and Rio Pixcaya sources. In addition, the complete analytic…
Ecuadorian Obsidian Sources Used for Artifact Production and Methods for Provenience Assignments
A study by neutron activation analysis and X-ray fluorescence measurements of 116 Ecuadorian obsidian artifacts as well as primary and secondary source samples has shown that the material originated from two Andean sources in north-central Ecuador, a flow in the valley of Mullumica, and deposits found on Yanaurco Chico and the nearby Quiscatola crest. The Yanaurco-Quiscatola deposit complex, homogeneous within our ability to measure, is represent…
Provenience Analysis of Obsidians from the Central Peten Lakes Region, Guatemala
A set of 296 obsidian artifacts from the lakes area of the Department of Peten, Guatemala, has been provenienced by X-ray fluorescence and neutron activation analysis. The obsidians come from socioeconomic contexts (primarily rural/domestic) and time periods-from the Middle Preclassic period, ca. 800 B.C., up to the time of Spanish contact, A.D. 1525-that have been poorly represented in previous Lowland provenience studies. Thus they provide new …
Precise Characterization of Guatemalan Obsidian Sources, and Source Determination of Artifacts from Quiriguá
For the determination of provenience of obsidian artifacts, precise and accurate measurements of composition patterns of the geologic sources are necessary for definitive and cost-effective assignments. Inter-comparison of data from different laboratories is often difficult. Suggestions for maximizing the usefulness of data already in the literature are made, contributions to a useful data bank of source composition patterns are recorded, and pro…
Obsidian Sources and Elemental Analyses of Artifacts in Southern Mesoamerica and the Northern Intermediate Area
Obsidian sources, and the proportions of those sources represented in site collections, are known poorly in the southeast mesoamerican periphery. The Honduran sources of La Esperanza and Güinope are described and 'fingerprinted' chemically, and their utilization is explored in selected sites in Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Although prehistoric Nicaraguans and Costa Ricans used obsidian from sources as far away as Honduras and Guatemala, m…
Sources of Obsidian from El Mirador, Guatemala
A Lyons Branch of the Pottery‐making Firm of Ateius of Arezzo
S Fifty‐one waster sherds of Terra Sigillata (∼20‐0 b.c. ) from Arezzo, Italy and Lyons, France have been chemically analysed for twenty‐eight elements by neutron activation and seven by X‐ray fluorescence. Most of the elemental abundances were measured with high precision and cross‐comparisons of the two techniques of measurement (and sample preparation) give added insight as to their relative precision, the calibration differences and the exten…
Maya Maritime Trade and Sources of Obsidian at San Juan, Ambergris Cay, Belize
San Juan is a small Late and Terminal Classic transshipment point on the north end of Ambergris Cay, Belize. It was well situated to have participated in the Maya maritime trade network that served large population centers on Corozal and Chetumal bays and those communities linked to these bays by the New River and Rio Hondo. A sample of Terminal Classic obsidian was sourced using visual, x-ray fluorescence, and neutron activation techniques. Alth…
Comparison of Neutron Activation Analysis From the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and the Hebrew University
Neutron activation measurements for Eu, Sc, Cs. Th, Ta, and Fe on 6 samples of pottery and rock by the Hebrew University and the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory have been compared. The average disagreement exclusive of counting errors was 1.1%. The practical importance of this study to archaeology is that data taken on source materials in one laboratory can be used by the other. Methods of determining the consistency of measurements within a laborat…
The Chipped Stone Industry of Cihuatan and Santa Maria, El Salvador, and Sources of Obsidian from Cihuatan
The chipped stone industry of Cihuatan and Santa Maria, Postclassic sites of north-central El Salvador, is discussed briefly in terms of behavioral/technological typology. The industry was based almost exclusively on obsidian and emphasized specialized production of prismatic blades. Source determinations by X-rayfluorescence and neutron activation analysis of 20 obsidian specimens from Cihuatan indicate that at least three highland Guatemalan so…
Sources of Some Obsidian Flakes from a Paleoindian Site in Guatemala
Neutron activation analysis was used to determine the chemical composition of sources of obsidian artifacts from the Paleoindian site of Los Tapiales in Guatemala with an occupation date of around 10,700 radiocarbon years ago. Three different sources were detected, all between 50 and 75 km from Los Tapiales. The predominant source represented in our ten samples was in the Rio Pixcayá area, and another was in the Tajumulco area. A third source, id…
Mayan Obsidian
High‐precision neutron activation measurements have been made on mesoamerican obsidian from Ixtepeque and El Chayal which are thought to be the major sources of volcanic glass artifacts in pre‐Columbian times. These results are compared with measurements on obsidian artifacts from Lubaantun, Wild Cane Cay, Frenchman's Cay and Moho Cay
Chemical Study of the Plate of Brass
The Plate of Brass is an inscribed brass artifact which has been attributed to the landing of Francis Drake on the California coast in 1579 A.D. In the present study the chemical abund~nces of the major and trace constituents in the Plate of Brass were quantitatively measured.These values were compared with measurements on both medieval and modern brasses and with the levels of impurities expected in brass making processes from medieval times to …
Does the Different Layout of the Late Bronze Age Tombs at Laish/Dan and Akko in Northern Canaan Reflect Different Trade Relations? An Instrumental Neutron Activation Study on Mycenaean Pottery
Obsidian Procurement and Distribution in the Tikal-Yaxha Intersite Area of the Central Maya Lowlands
Obsidian from known outcrops in the Mesoamerican highlands has been recovered from lowland Maya sites, providing significant evidence for long-distance procurement and local redistribution of obsidian by the ancient Maya. Prior chemical-characterization studies of obsidian from the lowland Maya area provide a foundation for the study of Tikal-Yaxha obsidian presented here. The samples used in this analysis came from middens associated with 12 res…
Interregional Contacts Between Tell En‐nasbeh and Littoral Philistine Centres in Canaan During Early Iron Age I
Philistine bichrome ware from Tell en‐Nasbeh, an Israelite village in the hill country, has been characterized by instrumental neutron activation analysis. A group of pottery stylistically indistinguishable from wares made in Philistia is shown to be of local origin, while other sherds match kiln wasters found in the littoral Philistine city of Ashdod. These findings attest to complex and reciprocal interregional contacts between the Philistines …
The Northern Colossus of Memnon
Chemical and petrographic studies of the two 720‐ton ‘Colossi of Memnon’ located near Luxor, and of Egyptian quartzite quarries indicate that the rear pedestal blocks of the northern statue were quarried at Aswan, while the other, main components of the monuments were quarried near Cairo. Our studies suggest that the rear pedestal blocks of the northern statue were part of the reconstruction project undertaken by Roman emperor Septimius Severus. …
Chemical Composition Patterns of Ceramic, Wares From Fustät, Egypt
Sources of the Quartzite of Some Ancient Egyptian Sculptures
This article reports the results of analysis of samples collected from some Egyptian quartzite artifacts. such as statuary, dating from the New Kingdom. Most of the artifacts are located in Upper Egypt, but the results of analysis suggest that, until the middle of the fourteenth century B.C., the quartzite came from a more distant quarry near Cairo rather than from the quartzite quarries located near Aswan in Upper Egypt
News and Short Contributions
Kostas Kotsakis, Anthony P. Andrews, Frank Asaro, Helen V. Michel, Fred H. Stross, Pura Cerrera Rivero, Thomas H. Guderjan, James F. Garber, Herman A. Smith, News and Short Contributions, Journal of Field Archaeology, Vol. 16, No. 3 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 355-376
A Lyons Branch of the Pottery‐making Firm of Ateius of Arezzo
S Fifty‐one waster sherds of Terra Sigillata (∼20‐0 b.c. ) from Arezzo, Italy and Lyons, France have been chemically analysed for twenty‐eight elements by neutron activation and seven by X‐ray fluorescence. Most of the elemental abundances were measured with high precision and cross‐comparisons of the two techniques of measurement (and sample preparation) give added insight as to their relative precision, the calibration differences and the exten…
Chemical Composition Patterns of Ceramic, Wares From Fustät, Egypt
Sources of Some Obsidian Flakes from a Paleoindian Site in Guatemala
Neutron activation analysis was used to determine the chemical composition of sources of obsidian artifacts from the Paleoindian site of Los Tapiales in Guatemala with an occupation date of around 10,700 radiocarbon years ago. Three different sources were detected, all between 50 and 75 km from Los Tapiales. The predominant source represented in our ten samples was in the Rio Pixcayá area, and another was in the Tajumulco area. A third source, id…
Mayan Obsidian
High‐precision neutron activation measurements have been made on mesoamerican obsidian from Ixtepeque and El Chayal which are thought to be the major sources of volcanic glass artifacts in pre‐Columbian times. These results are compared with measurements on obsidian artifacts from Lubaantun, Wild Cane Cay, Frenchman's Cay and Moho Cay
Comparison of Neutron Activation Analysis From the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory and the Hebrew University
Neutron activation measurements for Eu, Sc, Cs. Th, Ta, and Fe on 6 samples of pottery and rock by the Hebrew University and the Lawrence Berkeley Laboratory have been compared. The average disagreement exclusive of counting errors was 1.1%. The practical importance of this study to archaeology is that data taken on source materials in one laboratory can be used by the other. Methods of determining the consistency of measurements within a laborat…
High-Precision Chemical Characterization of Major Obsidian Sources in Guatemala
The important Mesoamerican obsidian source El Chayal has been carefully explored and sampled. Forty new source specimens have been subjected to neutron activation analysis, and the composition patterns are recorded and compared. The westernmost of the known Guatemalan obsidian sources, Tajamulco, has also been studied. Precise analytical data are also reported for the important Ixtepeque and Rio Pixcaya sources. In addition, the complete analytic…
Chemical Study of the Plate of Brass
The Plate of Brass is an inscribed brass artifact which has been attributed to the landing of Francis Drake on the California coast in 1579 A.D. In the present study the chemical abund~nces of the major and trace constituents in the Plate of Brass were quantitatively measured.These values were compared with measurements on both medieval and modern brasses and with the levels of impurities expected in brass making processes from medieval times to …
Extraterrestrial Cause for the Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction
Platinum metals are depleted in the earth's crust relative to their cosmic abundance; concentrations of these elements in deep-sea sediments may thus indicate influxes of extraterrestrial material. Deep-sea limestones exposed in Italy, Denmark, and New Zealand show iridium increases of about 30, 160, and 20 times, respectively, above the background level at precisely the time of the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinctions, 65 million years ago. Reasons a…
Precise Characterization of Guatemalan Obsidian Sources, and Source Determination of Artifacts from Quiriguá
For the determination of provenience of obsidian artifacts, precise and accurate measurements of composition patterns of the geologic sources are necessary for definitive and cost-effective assignments. Inter-comparison of data from different laboratories is often difficult. Suggestions for maximizing the usefulness of data already in the literature are made, contributions to a useful data bank of source composition patterns are recorded, and pro…
The Northern Colossus of Memnon
Chemical and petrographic studies of the two 720‐ton ‘Colossi of Memnon’ located near Luxor, and of Egyptian quartzite quarries indicate that the rear pedestal blocks of the northern statue were quarried at Aswan, while the other, main components of the monuments were quarried near Cairo. Our studies suggest that the rear pedestal blocks of the northern statue were part of the reconstruction project undertaken by Roman emperor Septimius Severus. …
Provenience Analysis of Obsidians from the Central Peten Lakes Region, Guatemala
A set of 296 obsidian artifacts from the lakes area of the Department of Peten, Guatemala, has been provenienced by X-ray fluorescence and neutron activation analysis. The obsidians come from socioeconomic contexts (primarily rural/domestic) and time periods-from the Middle Preclassic period, ca. 800 B.C., up to the time of Spanish contact, A.D. 1525-that have been poorly represented in previous Lowland provenience studies. Thus they provide new …
The Chipped Stone Industry of Cihuatan and Santa Maria, El Salvador, and Sources of Obsidian from Cihuatan
The chipped stone industry of Cihuatan and Santa Maria, Postclassic sites of north-central El Salvador, is discussed briefly in terms of behavioral/technological typology. The industry was based almost exclusively on obsidian and emphasized specialized production of prismatic blades. Source determinations by X-rayfluorescence and neutron activation analysis of 20 obsidian specimens from Cihuatan indicate that at least three highland Guatemalan so…
Sources of the Quartzite of Some Ancient Egyptian Sculptures
This article reports the results of analysis of samples collected from some Egyptian quartzite artifacts. such as statuary, dating from the New Kingdom. Most of the artifacts are located in Upper Egypt, but the results of analysis suggest that, until the middle of the fourteenth century B.C., the quartzite came from a more distant quarry near Cairo rather than from the quartzite quarries located near Aswan in Upper Egypt
Maya Maritime Trade and Sources of Obsidian at San Juan, Ambergris Cay, Belize
San Juan is a small Late and Terminal Classic transshipment point on the north end of Ambergris Cay, Belize. It was well situated to have participated in the Maya maritime trade network that served large population centers on Corozal and Chetumal bays and those communities linked to these bays by the New River and Rio Hondo. A sample of Terminal Classic obsidian was sourced using visual, x-ray fluorescence, and neutron activation techniques. Alth…
News and Short Contributions
Kostas Kotsakis, Anthony P. Andrews, Frank Asaro, Helen V. Michel, Fred H. Stross, Pura Cerrera Rivero, Thomas H. Guderjan, James F. Garber, Herman A. Smith, News and Short Contributions, Journal of Field Archaeology, Vol. 16, No. 3 (Autumn, 1989), pp. 355-376
Special Studies
Provenience analysis of a small sample of obsidian artifacts from Isla Cerritos, a Terminal Classic/Early Postclassic Itzá trading port on the north coast of Yucatán, indicates a wide range of raw material sources from Central Mexico to the Guatemalan Highlands. The overwhelming predominance of Central Mexican obsidian reinforces the notion that Isla Cerritos was the main trading port of Chichén Itzá. The analysis also provides an indirect approx…
Sources of Obsidian from El Mirador, Guatemala
Obsidian Sources and Elemental Analyses of Artifacts in Southern Mesoamerica and the Northern Intermediate Area
Obsidian sources, and the proportions of those sources represented in site collections, are known poorly in the southeast mesoamerican periphery. The Honduran sources of La Esperanza and Güinope are described and 'fingerprinted' chemically, and their utilization is explored in selected sites in Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica. Although prehistoric Nicaraguans and Costa Ricans used obsidian from sources as far away as Honduras and Guatemala, m…
Interregional Contacts Between Tell En‐nasbeh and Littoral Philistine Centres in Canaan During Early Iron Age I
Philistine bichrome ware from Tell en‐Nasbeh, an Israelite village in the hill country, has been characterized by instrumental neutron activation analysis. A group of pottery stylistically indistinguishable from wares made in Philistia is shown to be of local origin, while other sherds match kiln wasters found in the littoral Philistine city of Ashdod. These findings attest to complex and reciprocal interregional contacts between the Philistines …
An Initial Consideration of Obsidian Procurement and Exchange in Prehispanic Ecuador
We have examined the role of long-distance trade in Prehispanic Ecuador using X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and neutron-activation analysis (NAA) of obsidian artifacts from the archaeological sites of El Inga, Chobshi Cave and Site OGSE-46 on the Santa Elena Peninsula. Results indicate that two geological sources east of Quito, Yanaurco-Quiscatola and Mullumica, were the principal source of raw obsidian at these sites. We situate our findings within a…
Ecuadorian Obsidian Sources Used for Artifact Production and Methods for Provenience Assignments
A study by neutron activation analysis and X-ray fluorescence measurements of 116 Ecuadorian obsidian artifacts as well as primary and secondary source samples has shown that the material originated from two Andean sources in north-central Ecuador, a flow in the valley of Mullumica, and deposits found on Yanaurco Chico and the nearby Quiscatola crest. The Yanaurco-Quiscatola deposit complex, homogeneous within our ability to measure, is represent…
Obsidian Procurement and Distribution in the Tikal-Yaxha Intersite Area of the Central Maya Lowlands
Obsidian from known outcrops in the Mesoamerican highlands has been recovered from lowland Maya sites, providing significant evidence for long-distance procurement and local redistribution of obsidian by the ancient Maya. Prior chemical-characterization studies of obsidian from the lowland Maya area provide a foundation for the study of Tikal-Yaxha obsidian presented here. The samples used in this analysis came from middens associated with 12 res…
Does the Different Layout of the Late Bronze Age Tombs at Laish/Dan and Akko in Northern Canaan Reflect Different Trade Relations? An Instrumental Neutron Activation Study on Mycenaean Pottery
Archaeology (21 obras) · Geography (17 obras) · Archaeology and ancient environmental studies (15 obras) · Geology (13 obras) · Geology (11 obras) · History (10 obras) · Latin American history and culture (7 obras) · Art (6 obras) · Ancient history (5 obras) · Cultural Heritage Materials Analysis (5 obras)