Radiocarbon dating of Angkorian art and monuments - Direct dating of iron reinforcements

International audienc

Radiocarbon dating of Angkorian art and monuments - Direct dating of iron reinforcements

International audienc

Radiocarbon dating of Angkorian art and monuments - Direct dating of iron reinforcements

International audienc

Radiocarbon dating of Angkorian art and monuments - Direct dating of iron reinforcements

International audienc

The iron bars trade between Mediterranean and Gaul in the Roman period: 14C dating of semi-products from shipwrecks discovered off the coast of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer (Bouches-du-Rhône, France)

International audienceSince the 90s, the large number of iron-laden wrecked ships discovered off Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer (south of France), enriches our knowledge of both maritime trade in the Mediterranean and the ferrous bars used during Antiquity. This exceptional corpus has spawned numerous studies in the fields of archaeology, history and archaeometallurgy (Pagès et al. 2011), but, despite a relatively well-documented context, the chronology of wrecks is still to be clarified. So far, the chronology of the corpus was mainly supported by the archaeological remains found in the cargo of the wrecks, bringing a chronological range from the first century BC to the first century AD. However, the 14C dating of an iron bar from Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer, older of more than a century from the expected chronological range, has revived discussions about the chronology of all the wrecks. Thanks to the development of a new protocol for dating ferrous alloys, based on an extensive study of the ferrous material (Leroy et al. 2015a), 34 samples of iron extracted from 13 ferrous bars constituting the cargo of 7 ships could be 14C dated. The radiocarbon results and the archaeological and historical data were implemented in the Bayesian tool Oxcal to build a chronological framework for the antique shipwrecks of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer. It appears that all these ships could belong to a larger phase than the one deduced from archaeological remains alone. In consequence, this study helps to support a new vision of the trade between the north-eastern Mediterranean and Western Europe

First direct dating for the construction of three temples in Angkor, Cambodia

International audienceArchitecture represents key evidence of dynastic practice and change in the archaeological world. Chronologies for many important buildings and sequences, including the medieval iconic temples at Angkor (Cambodia) are based solely on indirect associations from inscriptions and architectural styles. Establishing direct techniques to verify construction episodes is complicated by the lack of datable remains from secure contexts. Iron crampons are the most consistently available material both in Angkorian and pre-modern architectural traditions however previous attempts at radiocarbon dating were fraught by methodological difficulties. Using a newly-developed approach based on AMS radiocarbon dating to directly date iron crampons integrated into the structure we present the first direct evidence for the history of three major temples in Angkor: the Royal Palace, the Baphuon and the Preah Khan. The Baphuon is particularly crucial both for the context and date of its construction and the period when its western façade was modified into a gigantic Reclining Buddha. The first absolute dates recovered from these temples provide important, new insights into the developmental history of Angkor. Accurately dating iron with relatively low carbon content is a decisive step to test long-standing assumptions about architectural histories and political processes for states that incorporated iron into buildings

First direct dating for the construction of three temples in Angkor, Cambodia

International audienceArchitecture represents key evidence of dynastic practice and change in the archaeological world. Chronologies for many important buildings and sequences, including the medieval iconic temples at Angkor (Cambodia) are based solely on indirect associations from inscriptions and architectural styles. Establishing direct techniques to verify construction episodes is complicated by the lack of datable remains from secure contexts. Iron crampons are the most consistently available material both in Angkorian and pre-modern architectural traditions however previous attempts at radiocarbon dating were fraught by methodological difficulties. Using a newly-developed approach based on AMS radiocarbon dating to directly date iron crampons integrated into the structure we present the first direct evidence for the history of three major temples in Angkor: the Royal Palace, the Baphuon and the Preah Khan. The Baphuon is particularly crucial both for the context and date of its construction and the period when its western façade was modified into a gigantic Reclining Buddha. The first absolute dates recovered from these temples provide important, new insights into the developmental history of Angkor. Accurately dating iron with relatively low carbon content is a decisive step to test long-standing assumptions about architectural histories and political processes for states that incorporated iron into buildings

L'apport des analyses chimiques à la connaissance des armatures de fer de Notre-Dame de Paris

International audienc

L'apport des analyses chimiques à la connaissance des armatures de fer de Notre-Dame de Paris

International audienc