X-Ray Fluorescence (XRF) Spectroscopy

Between 300 CE and 1550 CE, the Isthmo-Colombian Area had one of the highest concentrations of stone artisans. This is reflected in the decorated metates that extend from Honduras to northern Colombia. The Chontales department, in central Nicaragua, plays an important role due to its geographic location between different cultural regions. In fact, archaeological investigations point to a strong tendency towards a local ethnic identity due to the style of its standing stone sculptures. However, the production of decorated metates appears to share similarities with broader regional styles from northern areas of the Isthmo-Colombian Area. Considering that most of the decorated metates were collected throughout the early half of the 20th century and belong to museums where no or limited information on their original context is contained, the study of these materials must rely mostly on alternative lines of evidence such as archaeometric studies. In this research, we explore the relationship between artisanal production and the selection of (volcanic) raw material sources in the Chontales archaeological landscape. In this paper, we present the (1) non-destructive characterization of the collection and (2) explore the correlation between geochemical sources and stylistic characteristics. Contrary to previous assumptions, the study finds that a wide variety of volcanic material sources were used in decorated metate manufacturing and may, in fact, have been widely circulated. Furthermore, the study suggests that specific sources were used for particular tasks. These results may provide insight into our understanding of persistent crafting traditions and intergroup interactions in Central Nicaragua.

Among glazed Arabian Gulf wares, Bahlā Ware stands out as one of the most documented objects of consumption at sites in Oman, the UAE, Qatar, and Bahrain from the sixteenth to the early twentieth century. Previous scientific studies of Bahlā Ware from UAE and Qatar formed the basis for understanding its production technology and provenance, as well as the unique composition of its lead-barium glaze. This paper presents the new results of petrographic and chemical analyses of thirty-two Bahlā samples from Oman, contributing to a better understanding of the compositional variability of ceramics, the provenance of raw materials, and techniques used for the application of lead-barium glazes. The compositional match between samples of Bahlā Ware from Oman, the UAE, and Qatar reveals the exploitation of the same geological source of raw materials over several centuries. Previous research has associated this source with the ophiolitic geological formation in Oman. The results of chemical analysis of glazes confirmed that the Omani samples were also coated with a lead-barium glaze of the same type as reported for UAE and Qatar.

Research on early medieval Piast coinage has traditionally concentrated on typological, chronological, and iconographic aspects. Knowledge of the origin of the raw material used for minting, however, has so far remained fragmentary and relied mainly on hypotheses about the circulation of precious metals in Central Europe (fig. 1). The application of Lead Isotope Analysis (LIA) to provenance studies opens up new research perspectives, enabling direct links between coins and specific mining regions.

Roman wall paintings at Ostia Antica were studied for the first time in situ in an integrated approach using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) depth profiling, portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and visible induced luminescence (VIL) in order to explore the materials used in their construction and gain insight into the evolution of the Roman painting technique over time. NMR revealed the signatures of covered wall paintings through details of the structure of the top painted mortar layers, and the loss of this information that can be encountered when paintings are detached from the wall for preservation purposes. XRF provided information about the pigment composition of the paintings, and VIL was used to identify Egyptian Blue. Egyptian Blue was only found in the earlier wall paintings studied dating from 1st century B.C.E. to the 1st century C.E. The pigment palette seems to become limited to iron-based pigments in the later paintings, whereas the palette of the earlier paintings ap...

The excavations at Stanwick, Northamptonshire, were carried out by Historic England in advance of gravel extraction. Trenching covered over thirty hectares and the resulting assemblage of finds and bioarchaeological material remains the largest archaeological collection from the county. The fieldwork revealed a prehistoric ritual landscape and field systems succeeded by rural settlement dating from the early Iron Age through the Romano-British period. Activity at the villa continued into the fifth century AD. The site produced a nationally significant assemblage of 12 Iron Age and 3,730 Roman coins. This report places this assemblage within its wider landscape context building of the assessment published by the author in Research Report Series 37-2021. This is undertaken utilising a new corpus of almost 500,000 Roman coins recorded from Roman sites across Britain which stemmed from this initial research into the environs of Raunds (Henry, 2023a; Henry, 2024).

This short paper reports on the absolute dating of a bone tool found in the Late Glacial Moervaart lake, NW Belgium (Crombe et al., 2012). A collagen sample, which was pretreated by means of a cross flow nanofiltration, yielded a radiocarbon date of 8671 ± 43 BP (RICH-20191). This situates the bone artifact in the first half of the 8th millennium cal BC, when the Moervaart area was densely occupied by Early Mesolithic hunter-gatherers.

The existence and distribution of persistent pollutants, such as heavy metals, in coastal sediment used for opportunistic beach nourishment, is a problem that has not received much attention. Here, we assessed the coastal sediments in one restoration project for the occurrence and distribution of heavy metals, by utilizing an Energy Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence (EDXRF) system. Heavy metal point sources included (i) the effluents of small industries (tanneries), (ii) wastewater treatment plant effluents, and (iii) paint and oil scraps from substandard ship maintenance activities that take place on ports breakwaters. A few neighboring beaches were found to have similar heavy metal concentrations, with mean values of Cu, Zn, and Pb ranging from 80 to 130, 15 to 25, and 25 to 40 mg/kg, respectively. Existing legislation regarding dredging activities in Greece appears insufficient for sustainable and environmentally friendly nourishment. We conclude that before opportunistic beach resto...

This paper, drawing on the framework of the Information-Cognitive Compression Field (ICCF) theory, presents a measurable, observable "smoking gun" evidence that differentiates it from the standard cosmological model (ΛCDM). In our previous work, we demonstrated that the cosmological redshift is not a violation of energy conservation but rather a result of an energy phase transition from "compressed energy" (EM/R) to "Hubble potential energy" (UH) in an expanding spacetime. This paper further argues that the efficiency of this phase transition, within the ICCF framework, necessarily has a subtle dependence on the frequency of the photons. We derive the specific mathematical form of the ICCF redshift correction term and predict that, in the spectra of distant objects (such as quasars), the redshift values in different energy bands (such as X-rays and radio wavelengths) will exhibit a small but systematic deviation, which the standard ΛCDM model cannot explain. This study provides a clear observational target for the next generation of high-precision spectroscopic surveys (such as SKA and Athena), aimed at directly testing the ICCF theory.

The Shroud of Turin is an important archaeological artifact that has been suggested to represent either the burial cloth of the historical Jesus of Nazareth or a clever hoax created during the medieval era. Previous studies have established that authentic blood components are present within the wound areas and shown that numerous serum borders exist, indicative of clotted blood being transferred to the cloth. Controversy exists regarding whether the body would have been washed prior to envelopment in the burial shroud. It has been suggested that Jewish burial customs would have prohibited washing of the body under these circumstances; in this case, resultant blood transfer would likely have occurred either when the blood was relatively fresh and in a liquid or gelatinous state, or after having dried and being remoistened via a high humidity, cave tomb environment. Alternatively, it has been proposed that the body was washed, followed by post-mortem emission from wounds, which were then transferred onto the cloth. Indeed, post-mortem blood has been found to rarely coagulate under these conditions, making such transfer possible even hours after death. The current study demonstrates that inhibition of coagulation precludes the formation of serum borders in bloodstains, an observation which is incompatible with what is observed on the Shroud. These data indicate that it is unlikely that the primary blood transfer mechanism involved washing of the body and subsequent post-mortem emission from wounds.

Kufel-Diakowska B., Chłoń M., Bronowicki W. and Borowski M. 2024. Hidden lithic treasures. Research perspectives on museum collections of Neolithic stone tools. Sprawozdania Archeologiczne 76/1, Museum collections contain numerous finds that are considered low-quality data and do not attract the proper attention of researchers. The most common reason is the uncertain context of the finds or lack of other precise identification. The main aim of this paper is to increase the scientific value of so-called stray finds. The collection of the Neolithic stone tools from two museums was subjected to multifaceted analysis combined with detailed archival research. The results allowed us to address two important aspects. At the level of objects, the use of microscopic observations proved the complexity and prolonged use-life of the Neolithic tools. At the cultural level, the re-evaluation of stray finds introduces changes in the range of Neolithic settlements in SW Poland.

290 more dynamic and optimistic and sadness and pessimism works to blur the aura bringing humans to the disease. The study dealt with the colors of "The aura" explanation and analysis, and the meanings of these colors, which is a creation of the Creator Almighty, and concluded that some of the results of the most important: -1. Color energy penetrates the body through the skin touching the operations and functions of the organs of the body as a contribution to the sunshine vitamin composition (d). 2. Each color from the color of Human Energy Field that God took the man for part interacts with a portion of the human body. 3. Exposure to strengthen the cheerful colors of the aura pulse and make man more dynamic and optimistic. 4. Avoid choosing colors faint "pastel" products. 5. Use colors that speak to members of the human body for the products you are dealing with, for example, computers, which deals with human as the longest possible period of her most suitable color is violet, where addresses the mind.

Glass beads are among the oldest objects in the glassmaking industry. In West Africa, archaeo- logical glass beads are evidence of short-, medium- and long-distance trade within the continent and with the rest of the world, in relation to social and geopo- litical circumstances. As glass beads relate to many aspects of the everyday life of a community, the interest of their study lies in gaining evidence about technological aspects, socio-cultural contexts, and politico-economic background. We present here the techno-stylistic and chemical analysis of 945 glass beads found in 9 archaeological sites in Senegal, Mali, and Ghana dated between the 7th–5th c. BCE and the 18th–20th c. CE. The cross-referencing of the analytical results with archaeological and histori- cal data has made it possible to identify three main clusters relating to the provenance of the glass, the commercial partners involved, and the trade networks exploited.

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.

We have investigated particulate matters containing radionuclides emitted by the Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant (FDNPP) Accident found in the environment. In this study, we summarize detailed physical and chemical natures of radioactive particles found by our investigations. Radioactive particles were sampled from aerosols collected at two institutions in Tsukuba, the Meteorological Research Institute (MRI) and the National Institute of Advanced Industrial Science and Technology (AIST), in March 2011. The detailed sampling procedures were described elsewhere. We also sampled radioactive particles from a sediment of an outdoor pool and soils collected in the Fukushima Prefecture. They were subjected to a scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive X-ray spectroscopy and a gamma-ray spectrometry. The synchrotron radiation (SR) experiments were nondestructively carried out at BL37XU, SPring-8. The SR-X-ray microbeam was used as an analytical probe for chemical compositio...

The Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power plant (FDNPP) accident released radioactive materials into the air environment over the entire Northern Hemisphere in March 2011. In order to elucidate environmental transfer of the radioactive materials from the FDNPP accident, a large number of studies have been carried out until today. However, we still do not know the exact physical and chemical properties of the radioactive materials. Such knowledge is necessary to construct the numerical models to estimate the geographical distributions and to evaluate the human exposures during and after the FDNPP accident. Therefore, we studied the radioactive materials which were released in the air environment by a FDNPP accident based on the multiple SR (synchrotron radiation) X-ray analyses of the single airborne particles with strong radioactivity trapped in Tsukuba, Ibaraki Prefecture at the time of the FDNPP accident. The samples were the radioactive single particles collected on quartz fiber filter...

Roman wall paintings at Ostia Antica were studied for the first time in situ in an integrated approach using nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) depth profiling, portable X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and visible induced luminescence (VIL) in order to explore the materials used in their construction and gain insight into the evolution of the Roman painting technique over time. NMR revealed the signatures of covered wall paintings through details of the structure of the top painted mortar layers, and the loss of this information that can be encountered when paintings are detached from the wall for preservation purposes. XRF provided information about the pigment composition of the paintings, and VIL was used to identify Egyptian Blue. Egyptian Blue was only found in the earlier wall paintings studied dating from 1st century B.C.E. to the 1st century C.E. The pigment palette seems to become limited to iron-based pigments in the later paintings, whereas the palette of the earlier paintings ap...

The aim of this work was evaluation of spectroscopi methods used for classification of bee pollen samples according to difference in their compositio n (FTIR, FT Raman, and FT NIR) and colour (diffuse reflectance VIS). Measured spectra were an alysed by hierarchy cluster analysis (HCA) and principal component analysis (PCA). Obtained result s confirmed that vibration based spectroscopic methods are sensitive to sample composition. FT Ram an and VIS spectra confirmed differences in specific pigments (flavonoids and carotenoids) refl ecting botanical origin of the raw flower pollens. The combination of spectroscopic methods used in th is work helps better classify bee pollens which is important for quality estimation and utilization of this agricultural and beekeeping product.

The pile-up of arsenic at the Si/SiO2 interface after As implantation and annealing was investigated by high resolution Z-contrast imaging, electron energy-loss spectroscopy (EELS), grazing incidence x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (GI-XRF), secondary ion mass spectrometry, x-ray photoelectron spectroscopy, Rutherford backscattering spectrometry, as well as Hall mobility and four-point probe resistivity measurements. After properly taking into account their respective artifacts, the results of all methods are compatible with each other, with EELS and GI-XRF combined with etching providing similar spatial resolution on the nanometer scale for the dopant profile. The sheet concentration of the piled-up As at the interface was found to be ∼1×1015 cm−2 for an implanted dose of 1×1016 cm−2 with a maximum concentration of ∼10 at. %. The strain observed in the Z-contrast images also suggests a significant concentration of local distortions within 3 nm from the interface, which, however, do...

The segregation and pile-up of arsenic atoms at the Si/SiO2 interface in steady state was investigated in detail by a combination of gracing incidence x-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (GI-XRF) measurements, electrical measurements, etching on the nanometer scale, and measurements of the step heights by interferometry. Using GI-XRF measurements and removal of the highly doped segregation layer by a sensitive etching process it was possible to distinguish clearly between the piled-up atoms and the arsenic atoms in the bulk over a large range of implantation doses, from 3×1012 to 1×1016 cm−2. The samples were annealed at different temperatures from 900 °C to 1200 °C for time periods long enough to make sure that the segregation reflects an equilibrium state. With additional step height measurements at line-space structures, the thickness of the layer with the piled-up arsenic and the shape of the segregation profile was determined. Electrical measurements indicated that the segregated a...

During the last years ancient DNA and stable isotope analyses has been currently used in archaeological research. These applications totally enlarged limits and possibilities of the zooarchaeological studies changing the historical meaning of the faunal assemblages recovered in archaeological sites. Ancient biomolecular analyses have different advantages from techniques and methods traditionally used in Zooarchaeology. First, the possibility to directly investigate the dynamics and way of life of the living animal populations (i.e. reproductive patterns, dietary habits and movility patterns), very difficult to achieve from traditional approaches. Secondly, broadening the temporal resolution of the samples, getting access to historical events in reduced timescales. These advantages allowed to fall on questions very difficult to evidence from archaeological studies, so far almost invisible. In this work are presented the main research lines and themes investigated from these analyses,...

The correlation of physical and chemical properties with structural characteristic is important in Materials Science. There are two methods destructive method first and non-destructive second. The destructive method requires dissolution into a fluid phase but non-destructive method does not require it. The non-destructive characterization methods of solid materials can be described in different categories depending upon the type of information required. For elemental analysis, the techniques XRF and EDXRF are used. Structural properties are known by XRD and XPS. To get the information of morphology and topography, SEM and AFM are the recommended techniques. Qualitative and quantitative characterization techniques for solids are discussed with limitations.

This study examines banded pendants discovered in the Germanic cemeteries of Očkov and Sekule, focusing on their material composition. This type of pendants come from the Przeworsk culture and is found only rarely in western Slovakia during the Roman period, mainly in the graves of women and children. Banded pendants, typically crafted from copper-based alloys, are most commonly made of bronze. The core filling of the pendants contain decorations made from various other materials, such as organics and shells, pebbles or glass beads. The paper includes an analysis of metal parts of banded pendants using X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF). The results of the XRF analysis confirmed the presence of copper alloys with varying proportions of tin and zinc, indicating that the pendants were manufactured from different types of bronze and brass. These findings provide new insights into the material diversity and resource utilization in the production of banded pendants within the Germanic cultural context.

This paper considers Ti-based carbo-nitride (TiCN) coatings deposited by Cathodic Arc Deposition (CAD/Arc-PVD) on Ti-6Al-4V alloy to improve its mechanical properties. The low-weight TiCN compounds are a competitive candidate for aerospace and the automotive industry, serving as protective coatings, improving hardness, and increasing the wear resistance of the treated elements. Despite the observed higher hardness values, these compounds also exhibit low friction coefficient (CoF) values. The structure, the morphology, and the composition of these coatings, analysed by XRD, XPS, AFM, and nanoindentation, are discussed in relation to their tribological properties.

Vincent van Gogh's still lifes Irises and Roses were investigated to shed light onto the degree to which the paintings had changed, both individually and in relation to each other since they were painted, particularly in regard to the fading of the red lakes. Non-invasive techniques, including macroscopic X-ray fluorescence mapping, reflectance imaging spectroscopy, and X-radiography, were combined with microanalytical techniques in a select number of samples. The in-depth microchemical analysis was necessary to overcome the complications that arise when evaluating by non-invasive methods alone the compositions of passages with complex layering and mixing of paints. The results obtained by these two approaches were complemented by color measurements performed on paint cross-sections and on protected edges, and with historical information provided by the artist's own descriptions, early reviews and reproductions, and the data was used to carry out digital color simulations that provided, to a certain extent, a visualization of how the paintings may have originally appeared.

The presented poster showcases a research project on regional charcoal production concerning its consumption in ironworks. The production peak is linked to the late modern period and the first century of the industrial era. The research adopts an interdisciplinary approach, combining archaeological and historical methods. The foundation of the study is the evaluation of a digital terrain model and the accompanying localization of relics in the field, sampling of selected relics, species determination, metal detector prospection, and archival research.

In the current phase of the research, a clear link is evident between charcoal production and a specific area of the former estate, whose owners, the noble Salm family, were operators of iron production. The research focuses on the immediate vicinity of a specific ironworks near the village of Jedovnice, located in the central part of the Drahany Highlands. Archival sources allow the tradition of professional charcoal burners to be localized to the village of Senetářov, which lies at the heart of regional charcoal production. The charcoal tradition is not well known to the public in the region, and an important part of the project is the communication of the outputs to the local communities through articles in local newspapers.

As an example for the potential use of multi-block chemometric methods to provide improved unsupervised characterization of compositionally complex materials through the integration of multi-modal spectrometric data sets, we analysed spectral data derived from five field instruments (one XRF, two NIR, and two FT-Raman), collected on 76 bedrock samples of diverse composition. These data were analysed by single-and multi-block latent variable models, based on principal component analysis (PCA) and partial least squares (PLS). For the single-block approach, PCA and PLS models were generated; whilst hierarchical partial least squares (HPLS) regression was applied for the multi-block modelling. We also tested whether dimensionality reduction resulted in a more computationally efficient muti-block HPLS model with enhanced model interpretability and geological characterization power using the variable influence on projection (VIP) feature selection method. The results showed differences in the characterization power of the five spectrometer data sets for the bedrock samples based on their mineral composition and geological properties; moreover, some spectroscopic techniques under-performed for distinguishing samples by composition. The multi-block HPLS and its VIP-strengthened model yielded a more complete unsupervised geological aggrupation of the samples in a single parsimonious model. We conclude that multi-block HPLS models are effective at combining multi-modal spectrometric data to provide a more comprehensive characterization of compositionally complex samples, and VIP can reduce HPLS model complexity, while increasing its data interpretability. These approaches have been applied here to a geological data set, but are amenable to a broad range of applications across chemical and biomedical disciplines.

This unified framework establishes 25 empirically validated, falsifiable constraints that any credible Shroud of Turin image-formation mechanism must satisfy simultaneously. Each constraint is expressed as a testable claim with standardized validation protocols and clear eliminative power over mechanism classes. Revisions here integrate key findings from Fanti (2025) 26 and Jackson et al. 27 , adding constraints for wrapping distortions, off-image bloodstains, forensic corpse alignment, and frontal/dorsal image parity. 1,2,6

This study presents a comprehensive archaeometric investigation of three jade figurines attributed to the Hongshan culture (ca. 4500-3000 BCE). Analytical methods included Raman spectroscopy, X-ray fluorescence (XRF), laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS), and scanning electron microscopy with energy-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), complemented by dynamic wet-dry observations of the patina. Mineralogical and geochemical signatures confirm Xiuyan (Liaoning) as the raw material source: tremolite-actinolite mineralogy, Raman detection of graphite inclusions, trace-element ratios (Ni/Cr, V/Cr), and extremely low, flat REE profiles. Carving traces match Hongshan technological traditions. Patina consists of Mg-O-C porous white zones and Fe-O-C reddish crusts. The reversible disappearance of reddish stains upon wetting and their reappearance upon drying is diagnostic of genuine Fe-hydroxide patina. The overall evidence confirms Neolithic authenticity (~5-6 ka) and introduces a novel validation criterion based on hydration-dependent optical response.

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L'archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d'enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés.

Nel campo della conoscenza e conservazione del patrimonio storico architettonico le tecniche di indagine non distruttive rappresentano un mezzo fondamentale per la sua caratterizzazione fisica, costruttiva e meccanica. Quando si è di fronte a manufatti fragili e con serie problematiche di degrado, il ricorso a tali metodiche di indagine è indispensabile. Il presente saggio ha come obiettivo quello di discutere delle potenzialità, dei limiti e delle opportunità di integrazione tra quelle tecniche di indagine non invasiva basate sull'osservazione ed elaborazione di onde di natura e frequenza diverse che attraversano la "materia" costitutiva di un bene culturale. L'argomentazione sarà effettuata con riferimento al rosone della Cattedrale di Troia che rappresenta una pregevole testimonianza di arte e di architettura di età medievale 1 . Le tecniche in questione sono il Georadar o Ground Probing Radar (GPR), le prove ultrasoniche e la termografia agli infrarossi. Ciascuna di esse presenta delle peculiarità che consentono di fornire dati utili per la conoscenza delle caratteristiche costitutive dei materiali. Nessuna di esse, però, è capace da sola di offrire un quadro conoscitivo esaustivo degli aspetti fisici, costruttivi e meccanici da correlare allo studio storico e alla valutazione dello stato di degrado. 2 1 Nel 2004 l'IBAM-CNR e il DiSGG dell'Universita della Basilicata, su incarico della Diocesi di Lucera-Troia, hanno condotto una campagna di indagini diagnostiche e conoscitive finalizzate al restauro statico del rosone della Cattedrale di Troia. Le indagini, coordinate da Nicola Masini (IBAM-CNR) e da Domenico Liberatore (DiSGG-UNIBAS) sono state effettuate da ricercatori dell'IBAM-CNR, del DiSGG,

Resumen: La colección numismática del MAN, la más importante de España y una de las más destacadas de Europa por su volumen, variedad y calidad, ofrece al visitante del nuevo museo un doble recorrido. Por un lado, la exposición temática "La moneda, algo más que dinero" y, por otro, la posibilidad de ver las monedas y otras piezas numismáticas en su propio contexto, a lo largo del itinerario histórico, rodeadas del resto de objetos que formaron parte de su «vida» en su propia época. Pese al desafío museográfico que supone, ocupan así el lugar que les corresponde como parte de la cultura material y como instrumentos fundamentales para la reconstrucción-y la construcción-de la Historia.

The numismatic collection of the National Archaeological Museum, the most important in Spain and one of the best in Europe in terms of volume, variety and quality, offers a double journey to the visitor of the new museum. On the one hand the thematic exhibition Coins, much more than money, on the other hand, the chance to see coins and other numismatic items in their own environment in the historical itinerary, with other objects which accompanied them during their «lifetime». Although this choice is a museographic challenge, they occupy the right place as a part of material culture and essential tools for reconstructing –and buiding– History.

The North American X-15 rocket-powered monoplane underwent intensive technical analysis and treatment at the National Air and Space Museum (NASM) before it was reinstalled as part of a multi-year, 23-gallery renovation. The renovation project offered an unprecedented opportunity for technical and scientific analysis to better understand its history of use, reuse, stewardship, and display. This paper will summarize the project history, technical findings, testing procedure, and treatment protocol employed to successfully document, conserve, and reinstall this iconic aircraft.

Conceived as a hypersonic research vehicle in test flight from 1959 to 1968, NASM's exemplar, the X-15-1, is one of only two extant and was flown by test pilot and astronaut Neil Armstrong. It was the first in a program integral to breakthroughs in hypersonic flight, aerodynamic performance, rocket propulsion, lifting re-entry, and ablative surface reuse. The plane was designed for operation both in atmosphere and at the edge of outer space, setting speed and altitude records and returning valuable data about hypersonic flight to be used in aircraft and spacecraft design.

The mission requirements for high strength, heat resistance, weight, reusability, and maneuverability during flight determined the use of specialized alloys, new manufacturing techniques, unique construction details, and specialized surface coatings throughout the aircraft. The nickel-chromium 'Inconel-X' superalloy chosen for the skin was designed to withstand temperatures up to 1300 F° and carried test applications of spray-on ablative cladding, absorptive coatings, and temperature-sensitive paints. Vehicle reuse resulted in a complex palimpsest surface with mixed-material characteristics, and a pattern of condition issues that needed to be characterized and addressed.

In addition to the technical study of the aircraft skin, treatment of a disfiguring, green, nickel-based corrosion product along the shoulders and undersurfaces of the plane was required before reinstallation. Although Inconel superalloys were designed to withstand oxidative and high-heat environments, they have been observed to corrode when in industrial or intended use, as well as during post-use display. As 'Inconel-X' superalloy and its degradation are infrequently described in the conservation literature, its material properties and degradation patterns were investigated using literature and archival review, close examination, and strategic non-destructive and micro-destructive sampling. Mineralogy and composition of use- and corrosion-related encrustations were examined using XRF, FTIR, and cross-confirmed with XRD, Raman, and SEM.

Mechanical and chemical methods for corrosion removal or stabilization were empirically tested using imaging and analysis to guide decision-making about appropriate treatment extent and final appearance. Treatment was performed using medical-grade chelators to best reduce the corrosion while leaving intact the metal finish, paint, test coatings, markings, and other surface strata important to the object's history, visual impact, and interpretation.

This study presents the results of the analyses of 15 structural mortars from the building at civ. 21, level +0 of the Sarno Bath complex in Pompeii. These samples were collected during recent stratigraphic excavations (year 2022) for detailed in-laboratory compositional characterization, aiming to trace the construction phases of the originating walls. The 2022 samples were firstly analyzed via quantitative phase analysis-X-ray powder diffraction. The resulting quantitative mineralogical profiles were then processed alongside those analyzed in previous studies from level +0 structures of the Sarno Baths using multivariate statistical methods, including principal component analysis (PCA) and discriminant analysis, applied to quantitative phase analysis (QPA)-X-ray powder diffraction data (XRPD), to identify and map the construction phases. This approach enabled the correlation of the 2022 samples with previously established construction phases. Polarized-light optical microscopy and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (EDS) were then primarily used for validation purposes. These methods highlighted the compositional differences between samples and revealed significant features related to the use of specific raw materials. These results confirm the reliability of the semiautomated sample processing proposed in this research, adopting discriminant analysis as a machine-learning-based tool for defining construction phases in Pompeian contexts.

Controlled assembly of nanoparticles at liquid crystal interfaces could lead to easily manufacturable building blocks for assembly of materials with tunable mechanical, optical, and electronic properties. Past work has examined nanoparticle assembly at planar liquid crystal interfaces. In this work we show that nanoparticle assembly on curved interfaces is drastically different, and arises for conditions under which assembly is too weak to occur on planar interfaces. We also demonstrate that LC-mediated nanoparticle interactions are strong, are remarkably sensitive to surface anchoring, and lead to hexagonal arrangements that do not arise in bulk systems. All these elements form the basis for a highly tunable, predictable, and versatile platform for hierarchical materials assembly.

Spanish Levantine Rock Art is a unique pictorial expression within the prehistoric European context. Located in shelters in the inland regions of the Iberian Mediterranean basin, this art form, which must be necessarily studied in the frame of the process of neolithization of this territory, still lacks direct dating, and therefore its authorship is still open to debate. In this paper we present the first characterization of black pigments used in the Cova Remigia shelters in the Valltorta-Gassulla area (Castell on, Spain) by means of EDXRF spectrometry combined with SEM-EDS and Raman spectroscopy. Our aim is both to identify the raw material used for the preparation of black pigments and to make a first approach to the cultural choices involved in its use. The results are relevant for several reasons. Firstly, carbon-based black pigments have been identified for the first time in northern regions of Levantine rock art. Secondly, the recurrent use of black pigments in Cova Remigia questions the assumption of its restricted use in Spanish Levantine art. Thirdly, posterior repainting and graphic re-appropriation of black figures have been observed in Cova Remigia, giving rise to the combination of two colours, black and red, fact that is extremely rare in this rock art tradition. Finally, the identification of organic matter in the black pigments opens the possibility of radiocarbon dating.

This work presents a pilot archaeometric study of Tang-style figurines with uncertain attribution contexts, with a focus on the ochre-containing paint layers. Tang dynasty burial pottery figurines are one of the most remarkable cultural heritage of ancient China, providing archaeologists with a valuable window into the cosmopolitan Tang times (618-907 A. D.). Many Tang-style artifacts are preserved in museums and private collections. Such tomb figurines frequently show polychrome traces, including ochres. However, the stratigraphy and paint materials have not been systematically investigated. Furthermore, there are often very little provenance information and doubts about authenticity. Here, a set of iron-containing micro-samples collected from ten Tang-style figurines were characterized by using a combination of laboratory and synchrotron radiation (SR)-based techniques (micro X-ray fluorescence, SR-µXRF, and powder diffraction, SR-µXRPD, mapping and micro Fe K-edge X-ray Absorption Near-Edge Spectroscopy, µXANES, coupled to statistical analysis) in order to shed light on the ochre composition, even in stratified micrometric layers, and to compare the execution technique with that of tomb figurines from archaeological excavation. Two main ochre typologies have been identified: i) red ochres, found in at least one layer per sample; ii) yellow ochres, detected in six samples. All the iron-based pigments collected from the statuettes showed a similar compositional pattern. However, the stratigraphic analysis reveals some inconsistencies with respect to the authentic Tang execution technique, like the presence of modern whites both underlying and mixed with the ochres, and the absence of Hg and/or Pb reds mixed with the iron oxides and oxyhydroxides. The results provide new knowledge about the paint materials of Tang-style pottery figurines found outside archaeological contexts. Additionally, the outcomes may offer an archaeometric contribution to further authentication studies of Chinese-style artifacts.

1. L'industrie du fer dans le massif des Pyrénées (du Canigou au Couserans / Antiquité -milieu XVII e s). 2. Le fer à Angkor : production, circulation, consommation du métal et expansion de l'empire Khmer, Cambodge (IX e -XV e siècles), une approche multidisciplinaire et intégrée. 3. Industries of Angor Project. 4. Un système de réduction est défini par le minerai, le fourneau, le combustible, les éventuels ajouts et les gestes techniques liés à la conduite de l'opération de réduction.

During the 2019 and 2020 seasons of the German-Israeli Tell Iẓṭabba Excavation Project a total of ca. 15 kg of Hellenistic stucco remains was documented. Representative samples of these fragmented remains were taken from two domestic contexts in Area C (L324 and L326) (Chapter 8). Coming from the destruction layers of 107 BCE, they belonged to the original painted walls of the Seleucid settlement and are comparable in style to what is known from typical Hellenistic houses. No ornamental, figurative, or vegetal motifs

პროექტის სამეცნიერო ხელმძღვანელი ირინა კოშორიძე Scientific director of the project Irina Koshoridze ქართული ტექსტის რედაქტორი ნინო ნადარაია კორექტორი ნანი მოდებაძე Editor of Georgian text Nino Nadaraia Corrector Nani Modebadze მთარგმნელები: მანანა ოდიშელი, ირინა კოშორიძე, გვანცა ფოცხიშვილი Translators: Manana Odisheli, Irina Koshoridze, Gvantsa Potskhishvili ინგლისური ტექსტის რედაქტორი მაიკლ ვიკერსი Editor of English text Michael Vickers დიზაინერი ირაკლი ხუციშვილი Design Irakli Khutsishvili ფოტოგრაფები: მირიან კილაძე, ბორის სკრინნიკოვი Photos: Mirian Kiladze, Boris Skrinnikov ავტორები Authors ირინა კოშორიძე Irina Koshoridze მარინა დგებუაძე Marina Dgebuadze გრიგოლ ბერაძე Grigol Beradze თამარ ბაკურაძე Tamar Bakuradze სესილი სორდია Sesili Sordia გვანცა ფოცხიშვილი Gvantsa Potskhishvili მარიამ ეხთიარი Maryam Ektiar ივან სანტო Ivan Szanto ტიმ სტენლი Tim Stanley ლიტერატურა / BIBLIOGRAPHY ადლი, შ. (2001). ქართული და აღმოსავლური ფერწერა შ. ამირანაშვილის სახელობის ხელოვნების მუზეუმში. ჟურ. ნარკვევები. ტ. VII. თბილისი. გვ.94-106.

The measurement of black hole spin is considered one of the key problems in relativistic astrophysics. Existing methods, such as continuum fitting, X-ray reflection spectroscopy and quasi-periodic oscillation analysis, have systematic limitations in accuracy, interpretability and scalability. In this work, a hybrid approach is proposed in which theoretical models based on the Teukolsky formalism are integrated with Physics-Informed Neural Networks (PINNs). A PINN model is developed to solve the linearized spin problem in the scalar case, with physical constraints directly embedded into the training process. Annotated data are not required; instead, the model is trained using the differential operator and boundary conditions as supervision. It is demonstrated that the PINN converges reliably, with residual loss values below 10 and a root mean squared error (RMSE) of the order of10-6 (final ≈ 5.4 × 10-8). Benchmarking results indicate that the proposed method outperforms both classical and data-driven machine learning approaches in terms of AUC and sensitivity, while also exhibiting superior interpretability, generalizability and adherence to physical principles, with moderate computational cost. Potential extensions include integration with general relativistic magnetohydrodynamics (GRMHD) solvers and application to real observational data. These findings support the viability of physics-based machine learning as a robust framework for accurate and interpretable black hole spin estimation.