Raman Microspectroscopic study of Iberian pottery from the La Vispesa archaeological site, Spain

Abstract

Raman microspectroscopy has been employed for the characterization of 16 samples of ancient Iberian pottery. These sherds of vessels were found in the archaeological site of La Vispesa in Tamarite de Litera (Huesca, Spain) and correspond to the Iberian time. The composition of certain mineral phases such as non-plastic inclusions has been particularly considered with a view to obtaining information on the source materials and their provenance, as well as the technological conditions of ceramic production. Typical minerals such as calcite and quartz were found in most of the samples. The presence of anatase in a group of the samples suggested the use of different clays in the production of the vessels. Furthermore, the absence of rutile in these samples, together with the identification of calcite, is indicative of a mild firing temperature. Hematite was identified in all samples, both in the ceramic body and in the decoration. Differences in the position of the bands and relative intensities characterized hematite in terms of crystallinity and origin. An attempt to assign the samples to different production centers was made according to their chemical composition and morphology.

Microanalysis of clay‐based pigments in painted artworks by the means of Raman spectroscopy

“…The intensity of the main anatase band at 143–154 cm −1 is further increased by the high symmetry of the O‐Ti‐O bending vibration . Therefore, the kaolinite's O‐Al‐O symmetric bend at 143 cm −1 is usually overlapped in the presence of any anatase admixture, which is very common in kaolinite‐rich products of intense weathering (e.g. kaolins or laterites) …”

Raman spectroscopy of minerals and mineral pigments in archaeometry

“…For that reason, the coupling of Raman spectroscopy with optical or electron microscopy and a diffraction technique is the most typical combination in publications involving Raman study of ceramics. Very often, Fourier‐transform infrared absorption (FTIR) and elemental techniques such as scanning electron microscope, coupled with energy dispersive X spectroscopy (SEM‐EDS) or X‐ray fluorescence (XRF), are also present. Sometimes other techniques are present, as LIBS, proton‐induced X‐ray emission spectroscopy, XAS, AAS and ICP‐OES.…”

“…In a similar way, the couple quartz–cristobalite is used to assess the temperatures in a higher range . Calcite, easily detected by Raman spectroscopy, indicates a low firing temperature, as it starts to decompose into CaO and CO 2 around 650 °C and it disappears completely at about 900 °C . Many minerals, easily identified by Raman spectroscopy, including dolomite, diopside, wollastonite and titanium dioxides were used to define the firing temperature in Lancaster delftware .…”

Infrared spectroscopic characterization of residues on archaeological pottery through different spectra acquisition modes

“…Gas Chromatography -Mass Spectroscopy) [2][3][4][5][6]. Most of the studies concerning such research topics proved the effectiveness of FT-IR analyses for the detection of organic residues in archaeological materials, as well as for investigations of the fabrication conditions [7][8][9][10][11] and for provenance studies [12][13][14].…”

“…Analyses performed in Diffuse Reflectance (DRIFT) [5,[26][27] or in Attenuated Total Reflectance (ATR) mode (sometimes coupled with a microscope, that is, the µ-ATR mode) [6,9,28] are also used in these studies. However, despite the fact that the results depend on the sample, on its collection and preparation, as well as on the analysis methods, the different acquisition modes have been frequently used with no distinction.…”