Golden Details of a Funeral Wreath and Clothing from the Roman Time Bosporan Crypt: X-ray and Mass Spectrometric Studies

Abstract

The results of a comprehensive study present the details of the funeral wreath and clothing from the crypt of the Roman period in the area of the modern Malyy Lane in the city of Kerch. A comparative analysis of the metal composition of similar items from synchronous sites of the Northern Black Sea region has been carried out. It has been established that the details of funeral wreaths and appliqués to them are made of a gold-silver alloy that can be easily worked, which was widely used in Roman times throughout the territory of the Bosporos. Items created in a local workshop for funeral vestments have traces of careless or not very skillful application of the image, and damage to the surface, as evidenced by X-ray tomography data.