Archaeological science by Yoshinari Abe
116KeVの高エネルギー放射光を用いた蛍光Ｘ線分析による古代ガラスの非破壊重元素分析法の開発 Development of Nondestructive Heavy Elemental Analytical Method of Ancient Glass Artefacts using High-Energy (116 keV) Synchrotron Radiation X-ray Fluorescence Spectrometry
Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry, 2009
Blue-painted pottery was produced in the New Kingdom, Egypt, and decorated with blue, red, and bl... more Blue-painted pottery was produced in the New Kingdom, Egypt, and decorated with blue, red, and black pigment. In this study, two newly developed portable instruments, a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer and a portable X-ray powder diffractometer, were brought to the site on the outcrop at Northwest Saqqara, an archaeological site in Egypt, to verify their performance in on-site analysis of excavated artifacts at the site. Pigments used for the blue-painted pottery and plasters in the New Kingdom were analyzed by these instruments on the basis of both their chemical compositions and crystal-structural information. The blue pigments were identified as two different pigments, Egyptian blue and cobalt blue. The diffraction pattern of the blue pigment of the painted pottery exhibited that of spinel structure. The XRF spectrum of the blue pigment obtained by the same instrument from the same position indicates the presence of Mn, Co, Fe, Ni, and Zn. The possibility of compositional transitions of the cobalt blue pigment with time was revealed on by detailed analysis of the XRF data. The reason for the transitions is considered together with the archaeological background of the New Kingdom, Egypt.
Portable X-ray powder diffractometer for the analysis of art and archaeological materials
Applied Physics A, 2011
ABSTRACT Phase identification based on nondestructive analytical techniques using portable equipm... more ABSTRACT Phase identification based on nondestructive analytical techniques using portable equipment is ideal for the analysis of art and archaeological objects. Portable(p)-XRF and p-Raman are very widely used for this purpose, yet p-XRD is relatively rare despite its importance for the analysis of crystalline materials. This paper overviews 6 types of p-XRD systems developed for analysis of art and archaeological materials. The characteristics of each system are compared. One of the p-XRD systems developed by the authors was brought to many museums as well as many archeological sites in Egypt and Syria to characterize the cultural heritage artifacts, e.g., amulet made of Egyptian blue, blue painted pottery, and Islamic pottery from Egypt, jade from China, variscite from Syria, a Japanese classic painting drawn by Korin Ogata, and oil paintings drawn by Taro Okamoto. Practical application data are shown to demonstrate the potential ability of the method for analysis of various art and archaeological materials.
Journal of Archaeological Science, 2012
Cobalt-blue colorant was first used in the 18th Dynasty in the New Kingdom of Egypt. The source o... more Cobalt-blue colorant was first used in the 18th Dynasty in the New Kingdom of Egypt. The source of this cobalt was cobaltiferous alum from the Western Oases of Egypt. The use of this alum, especially in glass, was suddenly limited at the end of the 18th Dynasty. There is little evidence of the production of cobaltblue glass in the Ramesside Period (the 19the20th Dynasties) in the New Kingdom of Egypt. In this study, we brought a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer to two archaeological sites located in the Memphite region and used it for onsite analyses of Ramesside cobalt blue-colored glasses and faiences. This method revealed that the compositional characteristics of the cobalt-blue colorant in these Ramesside glasses and faiences is different from the colorant derived from cobaltiferous alum used in the 18th Dynasty, based on the comparison of transition metal composition and alumina content with those of the cobalt blue-colored artifacts from the 18th Dynasty. This result suggests that a new cobalt source other than cobaltiferous alum from the Western Oases was utilized in Egypt during the Ramesside Period.
Heritage Science, 2017
This paper reports on how the application of macro X-ray fluorescence (MA-XRF) imaging, in combin... more This paper reports on how the application of macro X-ray fluorescence (MA-XRF) imaging, in combination with the re-examination of existing paint cross-sections, has led to the discovery of a new pigment in Rembrandt's palette: artificial orpiment. In the NWO Science4Arts 'ReVisRembrandt' project, novel chemical imaging techniques are being developed and applied to the study of Rembrandt's late paintings in order to help resolve outstanding questions and to gain a better understanding of his late enigmatic painting technique. One of the selected case studies is the Portrait of a Couple as Isaac and Rebecca, known as 'The Jewish Bride' , dated c. 1665 and on view in the Rijksmuseum. During the re-installation of the Rijksmuseum in 2013, the picture was scanned using the Bruker M6 Jetstream MA-XRF scanner. The resulting elemental distribution maps made it possible to distinguish many features in the painting, such as bone black remains of the original hat (P, Ca maps), and the now discolored smalt-rich background (Co, Ni, As, K maps). The arsenic (As) map also revealed areas of high-intensity in Isaac's sleeve and Rebecca's dress where it could be established that it was not related with the pigment smalt that also contains arsenic. This pointed to the presence of a yellow or orange arsenic-containing pigment, such as realgar or orpiment that is not associated with the artist's palette. Subsequent examination of existing paint cross-sections from these locations taken by Karin Groen in the 1990s identified isolated, almost perfectly round particles of arsenic sulfide. The round shape corresponds with published findings on a purified form of artificial orpiment glass obtained by dry processing, a sublimation reaction. In bright field, the particles characteristically exhibit a dark cross in the middle caused by internal light reflections. The results of additional non-invasive techniques (portable XRD and portable Raman) are discussed, as well as the implications of this finding and how it fits with Rembrandt's late experimental painting technique.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2018
The Niizawa Senzuka Tumulus Cluster is one of the most famous large tumulus clusters consisting o... more The Niizawa Senzuka Tumulus Cluster is one of the most famous large tumulus clusters consisting of over 600 burial mounds located at Kashihara City, Nara Prefecture, Japan (Archaeological Institute of Kashihara, 1977). The burial mounds were constructed from the end of the 4th century through to the 7th century AD, and were especially in active use from the middle of the 5th century to the end of the 6th century. In 1963, two pieces of glassware, comprising a transparent facet-cut glass bowl (Fig. 1a and b, No. J-37204 at Tokyo National Museum) and a deeply blue-colored glass dish (Fig. 2a, b and c, No. J-37205), were excavated as grave goods from Tumulus No. 126 in the cluster. They had been placed together, overlapping, in a wooden coffin, resembling "a tea cup and a saucer" set. The burial date of Tumulus No. 126 is considered to be in the late 5th century based on the structural features and associated artifacts of the tumulus. Because no evidence of the primary glass production from raw materials in Japan dating prior to the late 7th century has previously been found (Koezuka, 2009; Nara National Research Institute for Cultural Properties, 1992), it is believed that all earlier glass products were imports produced overseas. In addition to the glassware, a lot of grave goodssuch as gold or silver ornaments, iron swords and precious stones, indicating the deep connection between ancient Japan and the overseaswere excavated at Tumulus No. 126 (Archaeological Institute of Kashihara, 1977). All of these grave goods, including the glassware, are now designated as important national cultural properties in Japan and are stored in the Tokyo National Museum. The glass bowl (Fig. 1a and b) is transparent pale-green in color,
Microchemical Journal, 2018
A portable X-ray powder diffractometer (p-XRD) PT-APXRD III has been developed for on-site analys... more A portable X-ray powder diffractometer (p-XRD) PT-APXRD III has been developed for on-site analysis of paintings and archaeological samples. By using a Cu anode X-ray tube and a silicon drift diode (SDD) detector, diffraction patterns with a high signal-noise (S/N) ratio can be recorded. The X-ray tube can be operated at a maximum voltage of 60 kV, which makes it possible to simultaneously record X-ray fluorescence spectra up to the highenergy region. The total weight of this instrument is 16 kg, which can be carried anywhere and the goniometer unit (5.6 kg) can be placed on a tripod for analysis of mural paintings. We brought the instrument to the Rijksmuseum in the Netherlands to examine its applicability for the analysis of oil paintings. We successfully analyzed two seventeenth-century oil paintings by Johannes Vermeer and Jan Davidsz de Heem (copy after). Ultramarine blue, lead-tin yellow type I, and Naples yellow were identified from the diffraction patterns, demonstrating the high practicality of this instrument. Furthermore, it was found from the SEM-EDX analysis of a paint cross section that the yellow pigment was applied in separate layers rather than being mixed. This diffractometer will be commercially available in the near future and will have many applications in the field of material analysis.
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2019
Variscite is a green, lustrous mineral similar to turquoise. While both variscite and turquoise a... more Variscite is a green, lustrous mineral similar to turquoise. While both variscite and turquoise are aluminumbearing, hydrated phosphate minerals, variscite contains no copper. We applied three kinds of portable analytical instruments to a nondestructive, on-site analysis of Late Bronze Age (LBA) artifacts excavated from a royal tomb at Qatna, Syria, including a portable micro-Raman spectrometer, an X-ray powder diffractometer, and an X-ray fluorescence spectrometer. Variscite was positively identified as the raw material for a number of items from the Qatna tomb. Our analytical result is the first scientific evidence of the use of variscite for personal ornaments during the LBA in the Middle East. Because differentiating between variscite and turquoise is difficult with the naked eye, it is possible that variscite artifacts were misidentified as turquoise among Middle Eastern LBA items excavated from other archaeological sites.
Did ancient glassware travel the Silk Road? X-ray fluorescence analysis of a Sasanian glass vessel from Okinoshima Island, Japan
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 2021
The use of a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer revealed the provenance of a shard of a rel... more The use of a portable X-ray fluorescence spectrometer revealed the provenance of a shard of a relief-cut glass bowl which was dedicated to ancient ritual on the sacred island of Okinoshima, Japan over a thousand years ago. The shard was unearthed from one of the ritual sites on the island in the 1950s and is now designated as a national treasure in Japan. A nondestructive and on-site X-ray fluorescence analytical technique was applied to the Okinoshima glass shard to establish where and when it was originally manufactured based on its chemical composition. Clear correspondence of chemical composition between the shard and glass excavated from a Sasanian city site in Mesopotamia demonstrated that the shard was derived from a type of glassware primarily produced in glass workshops within the Sasanian Empire between the fifth and seventh centuries AD. This is the first scientific evidence demonstrating that glass was imported from overseas across thousands of kilometers and then dedicated for the ritual on Okinoshima Island. This simultaneously gives us a glimpse of the specific details of divine rituals conducted on Okinoshima Island in ancient times.
Acta Crystallographica Section A Foundations of Crystallography, 2008
The Nabeshima ware was Japanese porcelain produced in Arita,Saga Prefecture, under the feudal loa... more The Nabeshima ware was Japanese porcelain produced in Arita,Saga Prefecture, under the feudal load of Nabeshima,in Edo period for some 200 years until 1871. The original form of it is Imari ware,exported to Europe. Since the Nabeshima ware was produced by a clan klin, it was not sold and used mainly as gift among shougun and feudal loads. The patterns are investigated by symmetry, chiefly in two dimensions using point group,plane group and color group. Some dishes show 16, 8mm symmetry, and Seikaiha cm, Shitihoutunagari p4mm, c2mm or p6mm and Bishamon p31m. Here one example of tricolor group is shown. It is Iroe bishamon-kikkou monnyou sara, Nabeshima, 17-18C. It is trigonal p31m as monocolor and tri-color R3m symmetry, derived by Belov et al.(1964 Shubnikov). In this conference, some photos and symmetrical aspect will be shown. I thank Toguri Museum of Art,Tokyo and Dr.Yumi Mori of it for giving photos and information of Nabeshima ware.
Acta Crystallographica Section A Foundations of Crystallography, 2008
deformation of unit cell of the cubic lattice by iterative arithmetic operation of CAD system. It... more deformation of unit cell of the cubic lattice by iterative arithmetic operation of CAD system. Iteration of CAD operation is carried out between the object space and the complimentary space. A creating process of the two animals is given and discusses the techniques of CAD system and an artistic sense of creator. 3DES is shown as follows.
Acta Crystallographica Section A, 2017
Analysis of a painting is important to understand the techniques of drawing and for the conservat... more Analysis of a painting is important to understand the techniques of drawing and for the conservation of the art. Since a painting is composed of pigments with multilayer structure and pigments are a complex mixture of organic and inorganic chemicals, precious identification of pigments requires multi analytical techniques. Moreover, for study of precious art work, we have to bring analytical instruments to the artwork and non-contact analysis is required. Therefore, we have developed p-XRD, p-XRF, and p-UV-VIS-fluorescence spectrometer suitable for analysis of paintings. We also adopt commercially available micro-Raman spectrometer, portable IR spectrometer, and portable digital microscope. We have been developing p-XRF [1] and p-XRD [2] since 2001 jointly with two X-ray manufacturers: i.e., OURSTEX Co. Ltd. and TechnoX Co. Ltd., respectively. Recently, we have also developed portable UV-VIS-fluorescence spectrometer jointly with Tokyo Instruments Co. Ltd. Our p-XRF developed is equ...
Provenance analysis of gold and electrum by chemical composition and its archaeological application
シルクロードを旅したガラス器 2)-新沢千塚古墳群126号墳出土の紺色ガラス皿由来とされる破片の化学組成分析
日本文化財科学会大会研究発表要旨集, 2015
Report of chemical compositional characterisation of glass fragments excavated from Dariali Fort (Georgia) by non-destructive X-ray fluorescence analysis
Oxbow Books, Apr 30, 2020
A total of 212 pieces of glass fragments from Dariali Fort were scientifically analysed and class... more A total of 212 pieces of glass fragments from Dariali Fort were scientifically analysed and classified into 12 compositional types by means of non-destructive X-ray fluorescence analysis. Twenty-eight pieces of plant ash glass and a piece of lead silicate glass were identified as imports, manufactured in Islamic territories, although some fragments were possibly recycled. Sixty-six pieces, including ten fragments of glass bangles, showed a characteristic composition, with a higher content of alumina, which suggests that they might be related to Byzantine Anatolian glass. The remaining 117 pieces of vessel glass are possibly local products made in Georgia or the surrounding area. Our scientific investigation of this glass has, therefore, demonstrated the import of glass products from both the Islamic world and Byzantine Anatolia into Georgia and raised the interesting possibility of large-scale glass production, using various colourants, in Georgia or the wider Transcaucasus region; although further verification focusing on production technique is needed. Especially, as pointed out above, quantification of light elements (B and Li) of these glasses will be necessary to evaluate the possibility that their raw material(s) were derived from borate deposits in Western Anatolia.
Annales du 22eme Congres de l’Association Internationale pour l’Histoire du Verre, 2025
Okinoshima is an island located in the sea between Japan and Korea. It is considered sacred land,... more Okinoshima is an island located in the sea between Japan and Korea. It is considered sacred land, whose deity people have offered prayers for maritime safety since ancient times. Approximately 80,000 offerings discovered on the island are designated as a national treasure. In the present study, the authors examined two types of glassware unearthed from ritual site No. 8 (late-5th to 7th centuries AD): a shard of a relief-cut glass vessel and facet-cut glass beads. The glass shard has a distinctive cylindrical relief-cut decoration on the exterior surface. Similar relief-cut decorations have been found on glass vessels from Northern Iran, indicating that the shard may have originated from the Sasanian Empire. The glass beads are green in color and cut to an octagonal shape in cross-section. Although they could be direct evidence of ancient East-West trade including Japan, there has been no scientific investigation of these glass objects since their excavation half a century ago. The authors therefore conducted a nondestructive and on-site X-ray fluorescence analysis of the glasses using a portable spectrometer brought into Munakata Taisha (Munakata Grand Shrine). Their chemical composition, consisting of more than 20 elements, was quantified and compared to literature data on ancient glass artifacts. Results showed that all the glassware had a typical soda-lime glass chemical composition, characterized by higher contents of magnesia and potash, i.e., they belong to the plant ash glass type. It is thought that during the first millennium AD West Asia and Central Asia were the primary production areas of plant ash glass and major production centers of glass products, including vessels. Since the chemical composition of the glassware showed good similarities to that of Sasanian glass from Mesopotamia, it is highly likely that it was produced primarily at a glass workshop within the Sasanian Empire.
Color and Radiance: Glass Treasures of Silla and Ancient Korea, 2021
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Archaeological science by Yoshinari Abe