The medieval port city of Sīrāf (ca. 800-1050 CE) on the north coast of the Persian/Arabian Gulf ... more The medieval port city of Sīrāf (ca. 800-1050 CE) on the north coast of the Persian/Arabian Gulf linked the core lands of the 'Abbāsid caliphate with India, China, Africa, and beyond. 101 glass fragments recovered from the 1966-1973 excavations at Sīrāf and now at the Corning Museum of Glass were analysed using LA-ICPMS in order to explore the glassmaking raw materials and technology of the objects found within the city, as well as to address issues of the production and trade of glass during the Islamic period. The results indicate that the main groups of glass at Sīrāf likely date to the 9 th-early 11 th centuries and can be subdivided by the trace elements zirconium and chromium. Chemical matches with some likely Indian glass, and with glass finds from South and Southeast Asia, underline the pivotal role of the Gulf in the eastward movement of Islamic glass via the Indian Ocean trade network, as well as the influx of Indian glass into the Islamic world. Glass bangles and a small number of vessel fragments likely date to the late 11 th century or later, and their chemical compositions indicate different production origins. Keywords Sīrāf, Siraf; Iran; Gulf; Islamic glass; bangles; Indian Ocean trade; LA-ICPMS; zirconium; chromium; manganese; high alumina Highlights 90% are plant-ash glasses from 9 th-early 11 th centuries, with subgroups based on zirconium and chromium
Cage cups, also known as vasa diatreta, are widely recognized as being among the finest glass ves... more Cage cups, also known as vasa diatreta, are widely recognized as being among the finest glass vessels of the late Roman period. This distinctive and highly specialized production group covers a chronological framework of approximately a century, starting from around A.D. 250 (with a few early Roman exceptions), although most cage cups are datable to the fourth century A.D. In cases where findspots are known, they belong to late Roman provincial contexts. 1 Their delicate and fragile appearance continues to fascinate scholars and to attract the interest of wider audiences, with a major focus on creating comprehensive catalogs of the finds, as well as on discussing the mechanics of the elaborate openwork decoration. Nevertheless, little attention has so far been given to the chemical composition of the colored parts of the vessels made of non-dichroic glass, 2 and only limited information is Acknowledgments. The authors gratefully acknowledge the support of the following colleagues and institutions: Mario Ivanov and Georgi Mavrov for giving permission for the analyses of the Serdica fragments and for helpful discussions; the Regional Museums of History in Sofia and Yambol for providing access to the finds; the Ministry of Culture of the Republic of Bulgaria for granting export permits that allowed the fragments to be analyzed at the Institut de Recherche sur les Archéomatériaux (IRAMAT); Robert Brill for affording access to the samples of the Benaki Museum and Corning Museum of Glass cage cup fragments, and for his pioneering work in the chemical analysis of cage cup glasses; various readers for constructive feedback and helpful advice that improved the manuscript
Excavations in Campu Stefanu in Corsica have been conducted in 2005-2011 and concerned a large ho... more Excavations in Campu Stefanu in Corsica have been conducted in 2005-2011 and concerned a large house (structure 2) as well as the natural cave located beneath. The exploration of shelter 1 revealed a stratigraphy extending back to the Mesolithic until the end of Iron Age. In the context of this last phase a necklace made with 29 resinous beads, 25 blue vitreous beads and a small metallic ring was discovered. The fossil resin was identified as amber from Baltic deposits. Resinous beads can be tied with forms diffused in Aegean during the Late Helladic IIB/III. Vitreous artefacts resemble beads found in Corsica for which spectrometric analyses demonstrated a Near East origin of the raw material. The recognition of its eastern origin allows to substantiate the debate concerning the place of Corsica in the exchange networks linking up the two Mediterranean basins. It also permits a more accurate description of the forms of the Mycenaean presence in the western Mediterranean islands.
Paléontologie humaine et préhistoire Provenance d'artefacts en rhyolite corse : évaluation des mé... more Paléontologie humaine et préhistoire Provenance d'artefacts en rhyolite corse : évaluation des méthodes d'analyse géochimique
Knowledge about glass trading in protohistoric Southern Italy has been limited by the few archeom... more Knowledge about glass trading in protohistoric Southern Italy has been limited by the few archeometrical data available to date, which prevented a comparison between the well-known Northern trend. The aims of this work is, therefore, to fill the gap in data relative to the Bronze-Iron Ages Southern vitreous items, in order to make possible a general overview of the protohistoric Italian glassy supply routes. The paper presents physical-chemical data of sixty-one vitreous items coming from eleven Southern Italian sites, dated from the beginning of the Bronze Age up to the Archaic period (22 th-6 th century BC), ensuring a complete diachronic analysis. SEM-EDS, EMPA, LA-ICPMS and XRD analyses allowed the definition of raw materials and manufacturing techniques employed, and also the determination of the items provenance. The sample set shows a great variability of glass chemical types, being composed by plant ash glass, mixed alkali and natron samples. A complex picture, mostly related to the different natron glass typologies (High-Zr, Low-Zr, Black,…) and their fast technological evolution in the early 1 st millennium BC, emerges. Taking into account the data reported in this study and those available in literature relative both to Northern and Southern Italian Bronze-Iron Ages items, this work demonstrates, for the first time, the existence of different trade routes. This is especially true for the early periods-Early/Middle Bronze Ages, whit Northern Italy involved in the trades with Central Europe, while South already inserted in the Mediterranean interactions.
The geochemical characterization of several lacustrine chert formations outcropping in the Centra... more The geochemical characterization of several lacustrine chert formations outcropping in the Central-Eastern Pre-Pyrenean area is presented. Four geological formations were considered: one Upper Cretaceous (Tremp formation), two Oligocene (Castelltallat and Tartareu-Alberola formations) and one Miocene (Aragonian limestones formation). Furthermore, lacustrine cherts appearing in the Magdalenian levels of Forcas I and Cova Alonsé (Huesca, Spain) were also considered. Analyses were done using energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Results show different geochemical features between formations, in some cases also between outcrops, concerning major, minor and trace elements. Archaeological samples from Cova Alonsé and Forcas I fit in some of the stablished groups, being the dispersion area slightly different between sites. Consequently, results determine the presence of diversified lithic procurement strategies.
STAR: Science & Technology of Archaeological Research, 2017
We geochemically characterize two chert formations outcropping in the Pyrenees and presenting sim... more We geochemically characterize two chert formations outcropping in the Pyrenees and presenting similar characteristics at the visual and microscopic scale: The Montgaillard flysch cherts and the Montsaunès cherts. Cherts presenting identical textural and micropalaeontological features as both types have been found in several Magdalenian Pyrenean sites. We are face to a long distance chert type whose geochemical characterization is essential for knowing where the tracer comes from. Analyses have been done using Energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) and laser ablation inductivelycoupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Results show that despite obtaining similar data concerning major and minor elements, differences have been observed regarding trace elements. The establishment of differences between both formations at the geochemical level has allowed specifying the origin of this chert type recovered at the Magdalenian levels of Parco Cave (Alòs de Balaguer, Spain). Results demonstrate long lithic raw material circulation and thus, human mobility in the Pyrenees during the Upper Palaeolithic.
The understanding of the glass trade in the first millennium CE relies on the characterisation of... more The understanding of the glass trade in the first millennium CE relies on the characterisation of well-dated compositional groups and the identification of their primary production sites. 275 Byzantine glass weights from the British Museum and the Bibliothèque nationale de France dating to the sixth and seventh century were analysed by LA-ICP-MS. Multivariate statistical and graphical data analysis discriminated between six main primary glass types. Primary glass sources were differentiated based on multi-dimensional comparison of silicaderived elements (MgO, Al 2 O 3 , CaO, TiO 2 , Fe 2 O 3 , ZrO 2) and components associated with the alkali source (Li 2 O, B 2 O 3). Along with Egyptian and Levantine origins of the glassmaking sands, variations in the natron source possibly point to the exploitation of two different natron deposits. Differences in strontium to calcium ratios revealed variations in the carbonate fractions in the sand. At least two cobalt sources were employed as colouring agents, one of which shows strong correlations with nickel, indicating a specific post-Roman cobalt source. Typological evidence identified chronological developments in the use of the different glass groups. Throughout the sixth century, Byzantine glass weights were predominately produced from two glasses that are probably of an Egyptian origin (Foy-2 and Foy-2 high Fe). Towards the second half of the sixth century a new but related plant-ash glass type emerged (Magby). Levantine I was likewise found among the late sixth-to early seventhcentury samples. The use of different dies for the same batch testifies to large-scale, centralised production of the weights, while the same die used for different primary production groups demonstrates the coexistence of alternative sources of supply. Given the comprehensive design of our study, these results can be extrapolated to the wider early Byzantine glass industry and its changes at large.
Palestine and Egypt supplied the Mediterranean and Europe with virtually all of its glass for mos... more Palestine and Egypt supplied the Mediterranean and Europe with virtually all of its glass for most of the first millennium CE. While the Muslim conquest in the 7th century saw major political and economic adjustment, immediate changes to material culture appear to have been minimal. This paper examines the impact of the Byzantine-Islamic transition on the natron glass industry of Palestine from the 7th to 12th century. A series of 133 well-contextualised glass vessels from selected excavations in modern day Israel have been analysed for major, minor and trace elements using LA-ICP-MS. These glasses are assigned to previously established primary production groups, allowing the elucidation of the chronology of key changes in glass production in the region. Results indicate a relatively abrupt compositional change in the late 7th-early 8th centuries, covering the reforming reigns of al-Malik and al-Walid, which marks the end of "Byzantine" glass production and the establishment of the furnaces at Bet Eli'ezer. At about this time there was an influx of glass of an Egyptian composition. Production of Bet Eli'ezer type glass appears to have been limited to a short time span, less than 50 years, after which natron glass production in Palestine ceased. Plant ash glass is first encountered in the late 8th-early 9th century, probably as a result of reduced local natron glass production creating the conditions in which plant ash glass technology was adopted. Egypt continued to produce natron glass for up to a century after its demise in Palestine. It is reasoned that the change and then collapse in natron glass production in Palestine may well have been as a consequence of a reduction in the quantities of available natron. This affected Palestine first, and Egypt up to 100 years later, which suggests that the factors causing the reduction in natron supply originated at the source and were long term and gradual, not short term events.
The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this p... more The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use.
The Cide Archaeological Project: Surveying the Turkish Western Black Sea Region, 2015
Bleda S. Düring and Claudia Glatz 2 Remote Landscapes in Flux-The Cide and Şenpazar Region 9 2.1 ... more Bleda S. Düring and Claudia Glatz 2 Remote Landscapes in Flux-The Cide and Şenpazar Region 9 2.1 The Cide-Şenpazar Landscapes 9 2.1.1 Ecology and Climate 9 2.1.2 Geology 12 2.1.3 Coastal Changes of the Black Sea 13 2.2 Humans in the Cide-Şenpazar Landscapes 15 2.2.1 Transport and Communication in a Rugged Landscape 15 2.2.2 Resources and Livelihoods in the Cide-Şenpazar Region 21 2.3 A Landscape in Flux 26 2.4 Summary 31 Bibliography 31 Murat Karasalihoğlu and Bleda S. Düring 3 Traveller's Notes on the Cide Region through the Ages 36 3.1 Cide in Greek and Roman Sources 37 3.2 The Cide Region in the Ottoman Period 41 3.3 Conclusion 48 Bibliography 50 Claudia Glatz, Bleda S. Düring and Toby C. Wilkinson, with contributions by Bernard Gratuze, Richard Jones, Effie Photos-Jones, and Victor Klinkenberg 4 Developing an Adaptive Field Methodology for Challenging Landscapes 53 4.1 Traditions of Archaeological Survey in Turkey and Beyond 54 4.1.
Marine alkaloid Monanchocidin a overcomes drug resistance by induction of autophagy and lysosomal membrane permeabilization
Oncotarget, Jan 19, 2015
Monanchocidin A (MonA) is a novel alkaloid recently isolated from the marine sponge Monanchora pu... more Monanchocidin A (MonA) is a novel alkaloid recently isolated from the marine sponge Monanchora pulchra. The compound reveals cytotoxic activity in genitourinary cancers including cisplatin-sensitive and -resistant germ cell tumor (GCT) cell lines, hormone-sensitive and castration-resistant prostate carcinoma cell lines and different bladder carcinoma cell lines. In contrast, non-malignant cells were significantly less sensitive. MonA is highly synergistic with cisplatin in GCT cells. Induction of autophagy at lower and lysosomal membrane permeabilization (LMP) at higher concentrations were identified as the dominating modes of action. Cytotoxicity and protein degradation could be inhibited by 3-methyladenine, an inhibitor of autophagy. LMP was confirmed by loss of acridine orange staining of lysosoms and by release of cathepsin B. In conclusion, MonA exerts cytotoxiÑ activity by mechanisms different from "classical" apoptosis, and could be a promising new compound to over...
Aaptamine (8,9-dimethoxy-1H-benzo[de][1,6]naphthyridine) is a marine natural compound possessing ... more Aaptamine (8,9-dimethoxy-1H-benzo[de][1,6]naphthyridine) is a marine natural compound possessing antioxidative, antimicrobial, antifungal, and antiretroviral activity. Earlier, we have found that aaptamine and its derivatives demonstrate equal anticancer effects against the human germ cell cancer cell lines NT2 and NT2-R and cause some changes in the proteome of these cells. In order to explore further the mechanism of action of aaptamine and its derivatives, we studied the effects of aaptamine (1), demethyl(oxy)aaptamine (2), and isoaaptamine (3) on human cancer cell lines and on AP-1-, NF-κB-, and p53-dependent transcriptional activity in murine JB6 Cl41 cells. We showed that compounds1–3demonstrate anticancer activity in THP-1, HeLa, SNU-C4, SK-MEL-28, and MDA-MB-231 human cancer cell lines. Additionally, all compounds were found to prevent EGF-induced neoplastic transformation of murine JB6 Cl41 cells. Nuclear factors AP-1, NF-κB, and p53 are involved in the cellular response to...
Mapping bi-citère de pipelines pour le traitement d'image en parallèle Résumé : L'ordonnancement ... more Mapping bi-citère de pipelines pour le traitement d'image en parallèle Résumé : L'ordonnancement et l'allocation des workflows sur plates-formes parallèles est un problème crucial, même pour des applications simples comme des graphes en pipeline. Plusieurs critères contradictoires doiventêtre optimisés, tels que le débit et la latence (ou une combinaison des deux). Des applications typiques incluent le traitement d'images numériques, où les images sont traitées en régime permanent. Dans ce rapport, nousétudions l'ordonnancement et l'allocation d'une application de traitement d'image particulière, l'encodage JPEG. L'allocation de l'encodage JPEG pipeliné sur des plates-formes parallèles est par exemple utile pour l'encodage des images Motion JPEG. Comme le problème de l'allocation bi-critère est NP-complet, nous nous concentrons sur l'analyse etévaluation d'heuristiques polynomiales.
This paper deals with the study of a limited number of obsidian artefacts from the earliest FTN C... more This paper deals with the study of a limited number of obsidian artefacts from the earliest FTN Criş sites of the Banat and Transylvania. The first impression is that the first FTN farmers, who settled in the region at the turn of the 8 th millennium uncal BP, had a limited local supply of bad quality lithic raw materials. The pioneer search for workable stones, north of the maximum spread of the FTN, led to the discovery of the Slovak (Cejkov e Kašov: Carpathian 1) and Hungarian (Mád: Carpathian 2E), Tokaj deposits, which both started to be exploited on a very small scale. The pattern began to vary during the successive stages of the FTN and, more dramatically, since the beginning of the Middle Neolithic Vinča Culture. From this time on, the Slovak sources started to be more intensively exploited, as indicated by the recovery of a greater number of unretouched artefacts and functional tools, and the first of trans-Carpathian Volhynian flints to be imported. RIASSUNTO-Nuovi dati sulle ossidiane dei siti archeologici del Banat e della Transilvania (Romania). Il presente lavoro riguarda lo studio di un gruppo limitato di manufatti di ossidiana provenienti da siti del Neolitico più antico del Banat e della Transilvania appartenenti al gruppo culturale di Criş. L'impressione generale che deriva dall'analisi dei reperti è che le prime popolazioni di agricoltori-allevatori dell'FTN, che insediarono la regione subito prima dell'inizio del settimo millennio uncal BP, avessero a disposizione localmente pochissimo materiale litico scheggiabile, per di più di qualità scadente. La ricerca pionieristica di fonti di approvvigionamento portò alla scoperta di giacimenti di ossidiana ubicati ben oltre il limite più settentrionale dell'espansione più settentrionale dell'FTN, con un conseguente primo limitato sfruttamento dei depositi dei Monti Tokaj sia della Slovacchia (Cejkov e Kašov: Carpathian 1), sia dell'Ungheria (Mád: Carpathian 2E). Il quadro iniziò a mutare lentamente durante lo sviluppo dell'FTN, e più drasticamente durante la Cultura di Vinča, nel Neolitico Medio, con uno sfruttamento più intensivo principalmente delle fonti Slovacche, che si riflette nella maggiore quantità di prodotti rinvenuti nei siti archeologici e anche dalla confezione di oggetti funzionali, e nell'inizio dell'importazione di selce Volhynian dai giacimenti transcarpatici.
The Arabian Peninsula is a key region for understanding climate change and human occupation histo... more The Arabian Peninsula is a key region for understanding climate change and human occupation history in a marginal environment. The Mundafan palaeolake is situated in southern Saudi Arabia, in the Rub' al-Khali (the 'Empty Quarter'), the world's largest sand desert. Here we report the first discoveries of Middle Palaeolithic and Neolithic archaeological sites in association with the palaeolake. We associate the human occupations with new geochronological data, and suggest the archaeological sites date to the wet periods of Marine Isotope Stage 5 and the Early Holocene. The archaeological sites indicate that humans repeatedly penetrated the ameliorated environments of the Rub' al-Khali. The sites probably represent short-term occupations, with the Neolithic sites focused on hunting, as indicated by points and weaponry. Middle Palaeolithic assemblages at Mundafan support a lacustrine adaptive focus in Arabia. Provenancing of obsidian artifacts indicates that Neolithic groups at Mundafan had a wide wandering range, with transport of artifacts from distant sources.
Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research Section B: Beam Interactions with Materials and Atoms, 2000
Systematic investigation of the 16th century glasses of Ljubljana is motivated by the spread of I... more Systematic investigation of the 16th century glasses of Ljubljana is motivated by the spread of Italian glass-working technology into central Europe. The glass was probed using the external beam PIXE technique due to its non-destructiveness. Initial test measurements were performed by the methods of PIGE, XRF, electron probe microanalysis, and LA±ICP±MS. The PIXE data were evaluated statistically using the principal component analysis and minimizing the stress function. The manufacturing procedures were indicated by the Rb/Sr content in the glass: the investigated glasses were mainly produced with the ash (not potash) of halophitic plants.
For geological studies, interest in mass spectrometry with an inductively coupled plasma as an io... more For geological studies, interest in mass spectrometry with an inductively coupled plasma as an ion source and its association with laser ablation as a sample introduction technique (LA-ICP-MS) has steadily increased during the past few years and is now being developed in other fields such as archaeology. After a description of the analytical procedure and the calculation method, we show the potential of this technique to characterize, almost non-destructively, archaeological artefacts. Among the 70 elements that could be routinely analysed by LA-ICP-MS with detection limits below the ppm level, we choose to determine the more critical ones in order to evaluate the geochemical models of the magmatic process (major elements, rare earths and some transition elements). A detailed survey of Cappadocian obsidian flows is given, and includes the characterization of nine different sources. Evidence of complex trade activities is clearly shown by the obsidian tools found at different prehistoric sites (from Neolithic to Bronze Age levels) in the Mediterranean and the Near East. New results obtained on some archaeological sites located in Turkey, Syria and Cyprus are presented. They show the importance of Cappadocian sources in obsidian trade. Our results show that LA-ICP-MS allows a non-destructive analysis of archaeological objects and that it combines the advantage of the different classical methods used to characterize obsidian sources (mainly XRF and INAA) with high sensitivity and rapidity. Thus LA-ICP-MS appears to be a very powerful analytical tool and, at this time, this technique is the only one which can non-destructively determine such an important number of elements with such low detection limits.
The medieval iron market in Ariège (French Pyrenees) is characterised by its complexity leading t... more The medieval iron market in Ariège (French Pyrenees) is characterised by its complexity leading to many questions regarding the ore used in relation to the artefacts encountered in archaeological settings. Despite the conclusive study of the treaty that regulated iron vs. coal exchanges from the 14th to the 19th c. by Verna et al., many questions remain unanswered concerning provenance and circulation of ores and products. Based on a combination of trace elemental analysis and multivariate statistical methods (discriminant analysis, hierarchical clustering analysis), we propose to follow an elementalbased signature from ore to artefacts, suited to the direct iron process, to clarify provenance hypotheses. We define the chemical signature of the Ariège area and compare it to that of slag inclusions in artefacts uncovered in several main archaeological sites from the Ariège area but also outside of this region. The results from this study are consistent with prior knowledge from historical sources. In the Ariège region, results highlight the multiple origins of products encountered at Montréal-de-Sos, a site close to known trade routes, whereas the isolated Castel-Minier site primarily contained objects from local ores and most objects retrieved from the Mirabat castle (Couserans) are coming from outside Ariège, possibly an indirect consequence from the exchange treaty. The presence of pins made of Ariegean ores is also demonstrated in the far more distant Capestang collegiate (near Narbonne, outside Ariège). This opens the way to finer studies in the politico-economical control of the iron supply for the building of medieval monuments in Southern France.
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