When Red Turns Black: Influence of the 79 AD Volcanic Eruption and Burial Environment on the Blackening/Darkening of Pompeian Cinnabar

It is widely known that the vivid hue of red cinnabar can darken or turn black. Many authors have studied this transformation, but only a few in the context of the archeological site of Pompeii. In this work, the co-occurrence of different degradation patterns associated with Pompeian cinnabar-containing fresco paintings (alone or in combination with red/yellow ocher pigments) exposed to different types of environments (pre- and post-79 AD atmosphere) is reported. Results obtained from the in situ and laboratory multianalytical methodology revealed the existence of diverse transformation products in the Pompeian cinnabar, consistent with the impact of the environment. The effect of hydrogen sulfide and sulfur dioxide emitted during the 79 AD eruption on the cinnabar transformation was also evaluated by comparing the experimental evidence found on paintings exposed and not exposed to the post-79 AD atmosphere. Our results highlight that not all the darkened areas on the Pompeian cinnabar paintings are related to the transformation of the pigment itself, as clear evidence of darkening associated with the presence of manganese and iron oxide formation (rock varnish) on fragments buried before the 79 AD eruption has also been found.The research leading to these results has received funding from “la Caixa” Foundation (Silvia Pérez-Diez, ID 100010434, Fellowship code LCF/BQ/ES18/11670017). A.P.M. is a Serra Húnter fellow. A.P.M’s research was supported by a Beatriu de Pinós postdoctoral grant (2017 BP-A 00046) of the Government of Catalonia’s Secretariat for Universities & Research of the Ministry of Economy and Knowledge. This work has been supported by the project MADyLIN (BIA2017-87063-P) funded by the Spanish Agency for Research AEI (MINECO-FEDER/UE). The authors thank for the funding provided by University of the Basque Country through the Institutionally Sponsored Open Access

The nature and chronology of human occupation at the Galerías Bajas, from Cueva de Ardales, Malaga, Spain

The Cueva de Ardales is a hugely important Palaeolithic site in the south of the Iberian Peninsula owing to its rich inventory of rock art. From 2011-2018, excavations were carried out in the cave for the first time ever by a Spanish-German research team. The excavation focused on the entrance area of the cave, where the largest assemblage of non-figurative red paintings in the cave is found. A series of 50 AMS dates from the excavations prove a long, albeit discontinuous, occupation history spanning from the Middle Palaeolithic to the Neolithic. The dating of the Middle Palaeolithic layers agrees with the U/Th dating of some red non-figurative paintings in the entrance area. In addition, a large assemblage of ochre lumps was discovered in the Middle Palaeolithic layers. Human visits of the cave in the Gravettian and Solutrean can be recognized, but evidence from the Aurignacian and Magdalenian cannot be confirmed with certainty. The quantity and nature of materials found during the excavations indicate that Cueva de Ardales was not a campsite, but was mainly visited to carry out non-domestic tasks, such as the production of rock art or the burial of the dead

Archaeomagnetic study of a limekiln in the Les Ferreres Roman aqueduct, World Heritage Site of Tarraco

The aqueduct of Les Ferreres is a major element of the Archaeological Ensemble of Tarraco. Although the ashlars of the aqueduct are stacked without mortar, lime was used in some parts and lime was certainly used in later repairs. Worthy of note is a coating mortar used in a well-documented restoration (1854–1856). In this study, a limekiln found near the Roman aqueduct has been archaeomagnetically dated to determine if it was used for the construction of the aqueduct or in later repairs. The mean values for the measured archaeomagnetic direction from the limekiln were compared with two different archaeomagnetic models (SCHA.DIF.3k and GUMF1), and both indicate that the limekiln is modern with ages only slightly older than the well-documented restoration. The extensive use of the coating mortar in that restoration is consistent with the need of onsite lime production. Additional archaeomagnetic intensity has not contributed to constrain further the obtained archaeomagnetic age but the intensity datum can be added to archaeomagnetic intensity datasets to enhance geomagnetic intensity field models. The paper illustrates how archaeomagnetic dating can be useful to characterize secondary structures of major cultural heritage monuments. © 2020, Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature

Exercise of Rights Resulting from Drafts and Notes

Because of the fact that pigments are not ubiquitous in the archeological record, the application of noninvasive analytical methods is a necessity. In this work, pink and purple lake pigments recovered from the excavations of the ancient city of Pompeii (Campania, Italy) and preserved in their original bowls at the Naples National Archaeological Museum (Italy) were analyzed to characterize the composition of their inorganic binders (mordants). In situ preliminary analyses using a hand-held energy dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectrometer (HH-ED-XRF) allowed us to determine the use of an aluminosilicate enriched in Cu and Pb. Scanning electron microscopy coupled to energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry (SEM-EDS) and benchtop ED-XRF analyses confirmed these results, while inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICPMS) allowed one to determine the concentration of major, minor, and trace elements. The use of other techniques such as X-ray diffraction (XRD), and micro-Raman and infrared spectroscopies allowed one to characterize the pigments at the molecular level. The high concentration of Cu detected in the pigments (1228–12937 μg g–1) could be related to the addition of Cu salts to obtain the desired final hue. The concentrations of Pb (987–2083 μg g–1) was also remarkable. Lead isotopic ratio analysis (206Pb/207Pb) suggested a possible origin related to the leaching of the ancient lead pipes from Pompeii and the subsequent transfer to the buried pigments or to the inorganic binder. Molecular analysis also showed that the binder is composed of an allophane-like clay. Moreover, it was possible to determine that to obtain the final purple hue of a specific pigment, Pompeian blue pigment was also mixed into the dyed clay.The authors would like to thank the Naples National Archaeological Museum for the permissions given to perform the in situ measurements of the raw lake pigments contained in the original bowls and deposited in this museum and also for the permissions given to extract samples from these pigment bowls. This work has been funded by the Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness (MINECO) and the European Regional Development Fund (FEDER) through the Project DISILICA-1930 (ref BIA2014-59124-P). Iker Marcaida is grateful to the Basque Government who funded his predoctoral fellowship. Technical support provided by the General X-ray Service of the SGIKer (UPV/EHU, MICINN, GV/EJ, ERDF, and ESF) for the X-ray diffraction analyses and also by the Raman-LASPEA Laboratory of the SGIker (UPV/EHU, MICINN, GV/EJ, ERDF, and ESF) is also gratefully acknowledged

4D · arte rupestre. Monitorización del Abrigo del Buen Aire I (Jumilla), Cueva del Mediodia (Yecla), Cañaica del Calar II (Moratalla), Abrigo Grande de Minateda (Hellín) y Solana de las Covachas (Nerpio)

La gestión del patrimonio cultural y, en particular, del arte rupestre precisa de un conjunto de acciones que deben partir necesariamente del conocimiento que de ese bien se tenga en las administraciones públicas. La documentación nos permite valorar patrimonialmente el bien, el alcance de la intervención y los factores de riesgo. Otra aportación más de la documentación gráfica es la posibilidad que nos da la monitorización, es decir, apreciar la evolución en el tiempo y sus consecuencias para la gestión, pero también para la investigación. Para ello es necesario una toma de datos precisa a un nivel de gran detalle, capaz de advertir ligeros cambios en la morfología del bien, tanto de pequeños aportes como de pequeñas erosiones. El arte rupestre necesita de esta exactitud (precisión) y de un método de toma de datos indirectos que no afecte a estos bienes declarados de interés cultural y además, buena parte de ellos incluidos en la Lista del Patrimonio Mundial de la UNESCO. Esta es la línea de trabajo del Dr. Ruiz y equipo, en lo que se viene a llamar 4D y que es posible por la apuesta institucional del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, así como de las corporaciones locales en las que se han realizado los trabajos, una visión territorial en la cual prima el paisaje cultural por encima de las divisiones administrativa

4D · arte rupestre. Monitorización del Abrigo del Buen Aire I (Jumilla), Cueva del Mediodia (Yecla), Cañaica del Calar II (Moratalla), Abrigo Grande de Minateda (Hellín) y Solana de las Covachas (Nerpio)

La gestión del patrimonio cultural y, en particular, del arte rupestre precisa de un conjunto de acciones que deben partir necesariamente del conocimiento que de ese bien se tenga en las administraciones públicas. La documentación nos permite valorar patrimonialmente el bien, el alcance de la intervención y los factores de riesgo. Otra aportación más de la documentación gráfica es la posibilidad que nos da la monitorización, es decir, apreciar la evolución en el tiempo y sus consecuencias para la gestión, pero también para la investigación. Para ello es necesario una toma de datos precisa a un nivel de gran detalle, capaz de advertir ligeros cambios en la morfología del bien, tanto de pequeños aportes como de pequeñas erosiones. El arte rupestre necesita de esta exactitud (precisión) y de un método de toma de datos indirectos que no afecte a estos bienes declarados de interés cultural y además, buena parte de ellos incluidos en la Lista del Patrimonio Mundial de la UNESCO. Esta es la línea de trabajo del Dr. Ruiz y equipo, en lo que se viene a llamar 4D y que es posible por la apuesta institucional del Ministerio de Educación, Cultura y Deporte, así como de las corporaciones locales en las que se han realizado los trabajos, una visión territorial en la cual prima el paisaje cultural por encima de las divisiones administrativa