Deciphering bone depositional sequences in caves through the study of manganese coatings

López-González, Fernando; Grandal-d’Anglade, Aurora; Romaní, Juan Ramón Vidal

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2005.10.006

Cited by 122 publications

(91 citation statements)

References 19 publications

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“…The formation of these oxides indicates alkaline and oxidising conditions of the environment of preservation during dry periods (López-González et al 2006;Marín Arroyo et al 2008;Tomassini et al 2014).…”

Section: Mammal Burrows As Taphonomic Modementioning

confidence: 99%

Microvertebrates preserved in mammal burrows from the Holocene of the Argentine Pampas: a taphonomic and paleoecological approach

et al. 2016

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Section: Mammal Burrows As Taphonomic Modementioning

confidence: 99%

Microvertebrates preserved in mammal burrows from the Holocene of the Argentine Pampas: a taphonomic and paleoecological approach

et al. 2016

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“…Schleswig in Germany or Svendborg in Denmark [18]. The likely explanation is that the Al originates from adhered soil [50,[56][57][58] and that Fe is deposited on the bones by the passing groundwater and precipitated by changes in pH [50,[58][59][60]. It is therefore likely that Al and Fe represent two different diagenetic processes.…”

Section: Contamination and Diagenesismentioning

confidence: 99%

Convento di San Francesco a Folloni: the function of a Medieval Franciscan Friary seen through the burials

et al. 2015

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Background:The Franciscan Friary in Montella near Avellino in Southern Italy is of special interest because according to historical sources it was founded by St. Francis himself in AD 1221-1222. Human remains of several hundred individuals interred in the cloister walk have been unearthed during two excavation campaigns conducted in 2007-2008 and 2010. The environs of the friary have remained rural since the foundation preventing much modern contamination. The state of preservation of the skeletons is fair to good making a suite of analyses worthwhile. Results:The skeletons have been examined anthropologically and tissue samples have been subjected to radiocarbon dating, stable isotope measurements and trace element analyses by Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectrometry and Cold Vapour Atomic Absorption Spectrometry. Conclusions:The radiocarbon dates are consistent with the historical sources and show that the cemetery in the cloister walk has been in uninterrupted use from the foundation of the friary in AD 1221-1222 and until the cemetery went out of use in AD 1524. The anthropological investigations show that the individuals interred at the friary would have been shorter than other Italians from the same time, and it seems that tuberculosis was more prevalent than leprosy. Isotopic measurements show a mixed agricultural and pastoral diet and none of the individuals were consuming marine protein. Based on the trace element analysis it seems that the people resided mainly at two distinct geographical areas, one of which was Montella. One individual stands out from the rest, because he was born and raised at some third geographical location distinct from Montella and because he sports the second oldest radiocarbon date of AD 1050-1249 (two sigma calibrated range). This date is consistent with the first generation of the founders of the friary-perhaps one of St. Francis' fellow travellers from Assisi.

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“…At some hydrological locations the groundwater carries large amounts of Fe and Mn [16][17][18], and the lay cemetery of Svendborg Franciscan Friary is such a place. The landscape rises steeply to the west of the friary, and the hillside running north-south here carries and releases a lot of groundwater.…”

Section: Diagenesismentioning

confidence: 99%

The distribution of mercury and other trace elements in the bones of two human individuals from medieval Denmark -- the chemical life history hypothesis

et al. 2013

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Excavating human skeletons is the closest archaeologists can get to the people who lived in the past. Once excavated the bones are often analysed chemically in order to yield as much information as possible. Most archaeometric analyses performed on samples of human skeletal remains have been performed on a single sample from a tooth or a long bone. In this paper we investigate how a suite of elements (Mg, Al, Ca, Mn, Fe, Zn, As, Sr, Ba, Hg and Pb) are distributed in two medieval skeletons excavated at the laymen cemetery at the Franciscan Friary in Svendborg, Denmark. The analyses have been performed using CV-AAS for Hg and ICP-MS for the rest of the elements. We find that in general Hg concentrations are highest in the trabecular tissues and in the abdomen region. Our data also show that the elements Al, Fe and Mn concentrate in the trabecular tissue and on the surfaces of the bones. The two individuals can be clearly distinguished by Principal Component Analysis of all the measured trace elements. Our data support a previously published hypothesis that the elemental ratios Sr/Ca, Ba/Ca and Mg/Ca are indicative of provenance. Aluminium, Fe and Mn can be attributed to various forms of diagenesis, while Hg is not present in sufficiently large amounts in the surrounding soil to allow diagenesis to explain the high Hg values in the trabecular tissue. Instead we propose that Hg must originate from decomposed soft tissue.

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Deciphering bone depositional sequences in caves through the study of manganese coatings

Cited by 122 publications

References 19 publications

Microvertebrates preserved in mammal burrows from the Holocene of the Argentine Pampas: a taphonomic and paleoecological approach

Microvertebrates preserved in mammal burrows from the Holocene of the Argentine Pampas: a taphonomic and paleoecological approach

Convento di San Francesco a Folloni: the function of a Medieval Franciscan Friary seen through the burials

The distribution of mercury and other trace elements in the bones of two human individuals from medieval Denmark -- the chemical life history hypothesis

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