25090
Accession Number
966
Title Of Article Chaper
High resolution gamma ray spectrographic analyses of fine orange pottery
Title Of Journal Book
High resolution gamma ray spectroscopic analyses of Mayan fine orange pottery
Issue
13133
Pages
14
Collation
14 p. : 27 pl., 29 cm
Publisher
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Publisher City
Upton
Language Of Text
English
Literature Type
Monograph
Literature Level
Monographic
Abstract
The new high resolution gamnia ray detectors permit the determination of a greater number of trace elements within the specimens. Questions which the analysis of the specimens might help answer: Whether Fine Orange ware (found at many Mayan sites) was an item of commerce originating from one or a few geographic regions instead of being made locally? Did such regions of manufacture remain constant with time? Were the Fine Orange and Fine Grey pastes indeed alike except for state of oxidation? Could the same clay have been used in utilitarian ware that was used to produce Fine Orange, and is there any evidence of commerce in utilitarian ware? Slices of the firm interior portions of the sherds were used as samples for activation. Squares of a standard glass, essentially identical in dimension to the pottery plate samples were used for flux monitors. The most significant and striking aspect of the analytical data on these specimens is the close similarity of composition of Fine Orange and Fine Grey ware from Mayan sites widely spread throughout the central region of Mayan culture. It is the contrast between the disparity of composition among the utilitarian specimens and the uniformity among the main body of Fine Orange specimens, along with the fact that not all Fine Orange specimens are matching in composition, that gives credence to the conclusion that the observed uniformity must be significant. By far the most simple logical explanation of the compositional uniformity of the matching Fine Orange specimens is that they were all made from the same clay, and hence were distributed through an extensive commerce from a single source. Since the compositional pattern appears to be a relatively unique local one, the use of a local clay is indicated.
Keywords
Spectroscopy, gamma ray; ceramic, technology; ceramic, analysis neutron activation; ceramic, history; trace, analysis ceramic; ceramic, analysis -- ICCROM
pub_id
25090