Les carrières de pierre de Caromb

Identifiant de l'opération archéologique : 8265 Date de l'opération : 2007 (PC) Inventeur(s) : Bernardi Philippe (CNRS) ; Mignon Jean-Marc (SAR) ; Bromblet Philippe (COL) Le projet de ce PCR est de suivre l’évolution de la production des carrières de Caromb sur la longue durée (de l’Antiquité à l’époque contemporaine), par l’apport conjoint d’études archéologiques, archivistiques et géologiques. Il entend cerner une exploitation importante par sa durée et par son rayonnement, à travers une ap..

Identification des provenances des marbres blancs des sculptures trouvées dans le Rhône à Arles

Une sélection d’une trentaine d’œuvres sculptées en marbre blanc trouvées dans le Rhône à Arles a été échantillonnée et étudiée dans le but d’identifier la provenance du marbre. Les pièces analysées qui ont été datées de différentes époques, s’avèrent être constituées de marbres blancs de diverses provenances. On constate une nette prédominance du marbre de Carrare (Lunense) avec une dizaine d’œuvres réalisées dans ce matériau. Les carrières d’Asie Mineure (Dokimeion, Aphrodisias, Proconnèse) et du Mont Pentéli sont aussi largement représentées. D’autres origines (îles de Thasos et Naxos) ne sont représentées que par quelques exemplaires.A selection of thirty sculptures in white marble that were found in the Rhône River was sampled and studied in order to identify the marble provenance. The analysed items which are dated to various periods, are in fact constituted of marbles from very different provenances. Carrara marble is predominant with ten sculptures made with this material. The quarries from Asia Minor (Dokimeion, Aphrodisias, Proconnesos) and Mount Penteli are also widely represented. Other origins (Thasos and Naxos islands) are identified on very few pieces

Identifying the origin of geomaterials of original and restored parts of a 14th century alabaster annunciation group through stable isotopes

International audienceThe origin of raw materials for sculpture is often obscure before the 17th century due to the scarcity of written sources. Identifying this origin provides hints to economic exchanges but also, potentially, allows for attributing sculptures to a specific context of creation (regional workshops, artists). Another challenge for art historians is the identification of restorations and their potential chronology. We present an example of a 14th century group of two statues, made of gypsum alabaster, representing an annunciation group, with the Virgin Mary and the angel Gabriel. Their original position was a near Troyes in the eastern Paris Basin, they are now separated being conserved at the Louvre Museum (Virgin Mary) and the Cleveland Museum of Art (Gabriel). Our multi-isotope study revealed the common origin of the material used for both sculptures, their isotope fingerprints being identical within the analytical error. These fingerprints are highly specific and point to an origin in a historical gypsum and alabaster quarry in the northern part of Provence, France, first mentioned at the end of the 13th century. We were also able to identify an unknown restoration of lower part of the Virgin Mary statue with an optically undistinguishable material, using Tuscan alabaster, most likely in the 19th century. Two other 14th century statues of the Virgin Mary originally situated in eastern and southeastern France can also be linked to this quarry. This underlines the potential and usefulness of independent geochemical evidence to underpin stylistic hypotheses on grouping of individual artworks, historical economic relationships between regions and on past restoration activities

Gamme de chaux dans les économies anciennes. Méthodes de prélèvement et d’identification des types de chaux dans les fours (DRX, MEB-EDS, pétrographie) (Antiquité, Moyen Âge, époque moderne)

La chaux provenant de plusieurs fours de l’Antiquité, du Moyen Âge et de l’époque moderne a été analysée par la diffraction des rayons X, au MEB-EDS et par la pétrographie. Cette chaux présente l’avantage d’être pure, et de ne pas avoir subie les changements chimiques qui ont lieu lors de l’ajout d’adjuvant pendant la fabrication des mortiers. Cette étude montre que les chaufourniers ont produit une grande diversité de chaux (grasses, maigres, hydrauliques, magnésiennes). La diffraction des rayons X, qui présente les résultats les plus prometteurs, éclaire de nombreux aspects des chaînes opératoires de production. Enfin, la mise en perspective de ces résultats avec les sources textuelles montre que la gamme des chaux répond à des besoins spécifiques à certaines filières économiques comme le bâtiment, l’agriculture ou l’industrie. Cet article pose donc les premiers jalons d’une histoire de la circulation et de la consommation des chaux entre l’Antiquité et l’époque moderne.Lime from ancient, medieval and modern lime kilns was analyzed with X-ray diffraction, SEM-EDS and petrography. Unlike lime from mortars, lime from lime kilns has the advantage of being pure , no admixtures being added yet. This study reveals that lime burners made a great diversity of limes (non-hydraulic, hydraulic, magnesian) The best results were obtained with the XRD method, which documents numerous aspects of the “chaîne opératoire” of lime production. The comparison with ancient, medieval and modern scientists treaties demonstrates that the lime range is essential to many economical sectors, such as construction, agriculture and industry. Through this approach, it is now possible to write a history of lime trade and uses, from Antiquity to the modern times

The spalling decay of building bioclastic limestones of Provence (South East of France): From clay minerals swelling to hydric dilation

International audienceMedieval historical monuments of the Provence region (South East of France) were erected with bioclastic limestones and display different sensitivities to spalling decay. The present study aims at understanding the physical processes at play as well as the internal properties governing its intensity. Limestones of contrasting sensitivity to spalling were compared to a reference type, unaffected by this decay, by means of petrography, petrophysic, mineralogy, and hydromechanics. The obtained results highlighted that the various sensitivities can be explained by the deformation recorded during water content variation (hydric dilation). A clay fraction was systematically detected within the mineralogical composition except for the reference material, and some swelling layers were identified in ontmorillonite/glauconite mixed layer minerals. A specific quantification procedure based on the combination of transmission electron microscopy coupled to an energy-dispersive X-ray spectrometer (TEM–EDX) and profile modeling of X-ray diffraction patterns was applied. A strong relationship between swelling layer content and hydric dilation of limestones was evidenced and corroborated the spalling sensitivity. Further interpretation of results showed that swelling layers localization within the texture significantly influence hydric dilation kinetics. Eventually, a mechanical softening was measured after water saturation. This behavior seems unrelated to the clay mineral content and its relative influence on spalling should be examined

Analyzing the evolution of deterioration patterns: A first step of an image-based approach for comparing multitemporal data sets

International audienceWhen documenting and analyzing cultural heritage, the monument states can be described by multitemporal data sets, which however present a complication for the elaboration and examination process. This difficulty leads to the necessity to improve the analyze process in order to expand the documentation process and help experts to enrich and share information about the historical buildings. Therefore an approach of change measurement, which supports the chronical comprehension of a building by visualizing and quantifying the dimensional temporal effects was elaborated, where the analyze process of a multitemporal data set was based on the interpretation of depth map images. These maps were obtained by generating ortho images of an object that was created on purpose by setting up an experimentation to acquire a multitemporal data set. This approach is the first step of a wider ongoing research about change detection processes on multitemporal data sets. Index Terms-Change measurements, multitemporal data set, depth map, ortho image, evolution of deterioration patterns

Étude interdisciplinaire des naïskoi du Musée d’Histoire de Marseille

Le présent article expose les résultats des analyses pétrographiques et physico-chimiques menées sur les petits édicules archaïques en calcaire, pour certains peints, découverts au xixe siècle à Marseille, grâce à une collaboration interdisciplinaire mise en place dans le cadre d’une étude archéologique.The present paper presents the results of petrographic and physico-chemical analyses carried out on small Archaic limestone aedicula – some of which were painted – discovered in Marseille in the 19th century. This interdisciplinary, collaborative project was set up within the framework of an archaeological study

Tanis

L’année 2019 a été particulièrement riche en activités diverses pour la Mission française des fouilles de Tanis (MFFT). La campagne de recherches proprement dite (fouilles, épigraphie, architecture) menée au printemps s’est en effet prolongée en s’articulant progressivement avec le projet de mise en valeur du site archéologique, faisant suite aux travaux initiés par la mission elle-même depuis quelques années, désormais portés, avec le concours étroit de celle-ci, par l’Ifao conjointement ave..

La sculpture romaine en Occident

Cet ouvrage réunit les résultats de deux manifestations complémentaires  : d’une part, la table ronde intitulée «  Rendre à César  », organisée le mercredi 20 juin 2012, à Paris, au Musée du Louvre et, d’autre part, les «  Rencontres autour de la sculpture romaine conservée en France  » qui ont eu lieu du 18 au 20 octobre 2012 au Musée départemental Arles antique. La richesse des interventions lors de ces deux manifestations permet de restituer un ouvrage composé de trente-huit articles, répartis en trois parties et une conclusion. La première partie, en écho et en développement de la table ronde du Louvre, porte sur le portrait du «  César du Rhône  », aussi bien que sur «  Le portrait romain en Gaule  ». La deuxième partie publie cinq études autour des «  nouvelles techniques d’investigations scientifiques  » et présente l’analyse des matériaux des sculptures en pierre et en bronze, découvertes dans le Rhône à Arles, ainsi qu’une étude ethnoarchéologique sur les techniques de production du portrait. Enfin une troisième partie présente les «  découvertes récentes et les nouvelles recherches  », déclinées en seize études qui sont consacrées à des études de cas (Autun, Vaison-la-Romaine, Nîmes, Metz-Divodurum, Apt), ainsi qu’à des relectures novatrices de sculptures méconnues (Plouarzel, Langres, Avignonet-Lauragais, Vernègues, vallée de l’Ubaye, Besançon, Lyon). Robert Turcan signe la conclusion. Ainsi, «  La sculpture romaine en Occident. Nouveaux regards   » reflète la variété et l’intérêt des questionnements actuels dans ce domaine

Glossaire illustré sur les formes d’altération de la pierre

The ICOMOS International Scientific Committee for Stone (ISCS) is providing a forum for the interchange of experience, ideas, and knowledge in the field of stone conservation. ISCS aims at facilitating the publication, dissemination and presentation of state of the art reviews on pre-identified issues. Simplification and demystification of scientific information for practitioners are also part of the main goals of the group. In studies on stone deterioration and conservation, terminological confusions lead to major communication problems between scientists, conservators and practitioners. In this context, it is of primary importance to set up a common language; if degradation patterns can be shown, named and described, then they can be recognised and compared with similar ones in a more accurate way in further investigations. The ISCS glossary constitutes an important tool for scientific discussions on decay phenomena and processes. It is also an excellent basis for tutorials on stone deterioration. It is based on the careful examination of pre-existing glossaries of English terms. It does not aim at replacing these glossaries, often set up originally in a language other than English, and for most of them done to a high standard. As President of ICOMOS I would like to congratulate the International Scientific Committee for Stone and its President Véronique Verges-Belmin for the results of years of research presented in this publication. Stone conservation is a crucial topic in monument conservation and many of our National Committees all over the world hope for advice and help from the specialists familiar with traditional and modern methods of conservation. The Illustrated Glossary on Stone Deterioration Patterns offers a wide range of suggestions and practical advice. Probably, after the English-French version becomes available the Glossary will also be translated into other languages. In view of the accelerating decay of our stone monuments worldwide this is an exemplary contribution which will promote the international cooperation so important in this field.peer-reviewe