Source of Roman stone for Aquae Sulis (Bath, England): field evidence, facies, pXRF chem-data and a cautionary tale of contamination

The Roman town of Bath (Aquae Sulis), renowned for its Temple to Minerva and thermal baths complex, is estimated here to have required around 500,000 cu m of stone for its construction. This huge amount of stone was likely to have been supplied from quarries within 5 km of the town, located towards the tops of the hills around Bath. Observations at the many old quarries show few features indicating Roman exploitation except for one Lewis bolt-hole and reports of chisel marks. The features of the majority of the stone in the Roman Baths-Temple Complex all suggest that the stone was sourced largely from the Combe Down Oolite Member (CDO)(Jurassic, Bathonian stage), rather than the Bath Oolite Member (BO), of the Great Oolite Group. A portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) instrument, used to determine the trace element geochemistry of Bath Stone for comparison with the Roman stone, shows that the CDO and BO are very similar, except for different contents of Si, Al, Fe and Mn. These likely reflect variations in clay and organic matter content. However, with regard to the Roman stone and sculptures in the Baths-Temple Complex, all analyses of surfaces show enrichment in virtually all elements, but especially in P, Si, K, Al, S, Cl, Fe, Pb, Zn, Nb and As. This contamination is largely attributed to the buried nature of the site (5-8 metres) from the 5th century AD until the end of the 19th century, during which time the stone would have been affected by groundwater, mostly derived from the hot-springs with its high content of many elements. Analyses of cores cut into blocks of Roman stone show that the contamination is absent after 1-2 cm. This study demonstrates that care must be exercised in using geochemical analyses of ancient building materials for provenance studies, and that fresh surfaces of the material may well be required

Resource Procurement and Inter-regional Connections in pre-contact Taranaki, New Zealand: new evidence from geochemical analysis of obsidian

Early Polynesian colonists in New Zealand were quick to identify key economic resources. One such resource – obsidian – was transported widely during the early settlement phase of New Zealand. Here, we present the results of portable X-ray fluorescence analysis of obsidian artefacts from five early settlement sites and two later sites in Taranaki on the west coast of New Zealand’s North Island. Our research suggests obsidian from six source areas was present in Taranaki sites, with the majority of material coming from Mayor Island and the nearby Coromandel Peninsula. Low rates of cortical material suggest a down-the-line procurement process, although this result is made equivocal by evidence of relatively expedient use of obsidian in the early period. Finally, the marked variation between Taranaki sites and contemporary sites further north appears consistent with the development of regionally specific procurement strategies very early in pre-contact New Zealand

Salt of the earth: Disentangling natural and anthropogenic landscapes in the Poole Harbour catchment using deposit modelling

Poole Harbour and its wider catchment is internationally renowned for its natural beauty and biodiversity. Land to the north and east of the harbour form the urban areas of Poole and Bournemouth while the southern and western sides are regarded as undeveloped natural landscapes, consisting of heath, marsh and forested land. Such is the capital placed on this natural landscape that in 2021, over 3,000 hectares was designated as a ‘super’ National Nature Reserve (NNR). Operationally, the NNR has the overarching aim to restore ‘natural’ processes across the landscape making it more resilient to climate change and other pressures, yet the fundamental character of the Poole harbour catchment is arguably the product of millennia of human interaction and modification. In order to assess the impact of past human activities on modern landscapes, deposit modelling using geochemical and magnetic susceptibility analysis was undertaken at the site of Wytch Farm, Dorset. This project excavated a large-scale industrial complex that included salt production and metal working evidence. The programme of deposit modelling explored the wider landscape impact of these processes, mapping their extent and intensity, identifying a heavily modified, anthropogenically influenced landscape. The natural character of the Poole Harbour catchment, as visible today, is therefore the result of complex relationship between past coastal communities and natural resources. This study shows that the extent of the impact of human activity is often greater than the focal points of activities themselves and highlights the value of mid-scale landscape studies

An evaluation of the visualisation and interpretive potential of applying GIS data processing techniques to 3D rock art data

Rock art provides a tangible visual link to past communities and has significant value in building our under-standing of prehistoric societies. Its recording and interpretation has long provided a window to intangibleaspects of society, such as belief systems and folk narratives. Petroglyphic rock art has traditionally been re-corded through simple rubbing, or frottage, and the majority of interpretations and narratives to date have beenbased on this work. Recently, three-dimensional capture techniques have become readily available and theyreplace traditional approaches to rock art recording. These techniques are valuable, but the data-heavy outputslack the interpretive clarity of traditional methods. This paper explores these issues through a novel approachthat employs topographic landscape analysis techniques, initially developed for LiDAR processing, to produceclear images that have the precision and dimensional accuracy of 3D captured data, but the visual clarity oftraditional methods. Specifically, this paper outlines an approach based on local relief modelling (a techniquethat highlights subtle topographic features) and explores its efficacy through case studies of Bronze AgeScandinavian petroglyphs. This method was developed to aid the analysis of 3D models and to improve vi-sualising the results based on such investigations. This work offers a significant impact on rock art studies as itfacilitates the identification of previously unidentified motifs, and allows a clearer sense of petroglyphic worldviews. The technique can be applied to models of other archaeological surfac

Poole Harbour: current understanding of the later prehistoric to medieval archaeology and future directions for research.

Poole Harbour and its hinterland comprises a significant area of Dorset both spatially and in terms of influence. It contains numerous archaeological sites of various dates and types. Whilst the area has attracted a considerable amount of research in the last 50 years, information regarding the archaeology of the Poole Harbour basin occurs in disparate locations. This paper summarises and provides a synthesis of the current state of knowledge of the later prehistoric, Romano-British and medieval period. It then identifies threats to the archaeological resource of the area, identifies further research potential which can address local regional and national questions, and suggests future research priorities

Some preliminary notes on the limited 2020 campaign of the Palamas Archaeological Project (PAP)

This paper presents a short summary of archaeological operations carried out in 2020 in the area of the modern village of Vlochos on the western Thessalian plain, Greece, as part of the Palamas Archaeological Project (PAP). Initially, the project aimed to conduct a significant campaign of fieldwork during the 2020 season, but operations were severely scaled back by limitations imposed by the COVID-19 pandemic. Therefore, only a small-scale campaign, aimed at method testing and exploratory investigation, could be carried out. Fieldwork included an evaluation of complimentary geophysical techniques, cleaning operations, and oral history enquiries. The work—despite its limitations—highlighted the value of using multiple geophysical techniques, as well as proving the importance of a systematic cleaning of the site. Overall, the first season of PAP highlighted the productivity of the research project and will act as a strong foundation for the forthcoming field seasons.