Sonia O'Connor

Technological Analysis of the World's Earliest Shamanic Costume: A Multi-Scalar, Experimental Study of a Red Deer Headdress from the Early Holocene Site of Star Carr, North Yorkshire, UK

Shamanic belief systems represent the first form of religious practice visible within the global archaeological record. Here we report on the earliest known evidence of shamanic costume: modified red deer crania headdresses from the Early Holocene site of Star Carr (c. 11 kya). More than 90% of the examples from prehistoric Europe come from this one site, establishing it as a place of outstanding shamanistic/cosmological significance. Our work, involving a programme of experimental replication, analysis of macroscopic traces, organic residue analysis and 3D image acquisition, metrology and visualisation, represents the first attempt to understand the manufacturing processes used to create these artefacts. The results produced were unexpected—rather than being carefully crafted objects, elements of their production can only be described as expedient.

Gristhorpe man: an early bronze age log-coffin burial scientifically defined

A log-coffin excavated in the early nineteenth century proved to be well enough preserved in the early twenty-first century for the full armoury of modern scientific investigation to give its occupants and contents new identity, new origins and a new date. In many ways the interpretation is much the same as before: a local big man buried looking out to sea. Modern analytical techniques can create a person more real, more human and more securely anchored in history. This research team shows how.

Towards a replacement for Xeroradiography

Abstract Xeroradiography has proven to be a powerful tool for the examination of archaeological finds and other cultural artefacts, but it is no longer readily available. Building on previous work by the authors, which outlined the basics of X‐ray image digitisation, it is shown here how the desirable characteristics of xeroradiographs (good resolution of detail, tolerance of scattered radiation, wide exposure latitude and edge enhancement) can be reproduced through the application of digital image processing (DIP) to good‐quality X‐ray film images. Radiographs with optimum resolution, image contrast and exposure latitude, and reduced levels of scatter, are gained through the careful selection of X‐ray energy and beam filtration, or with high‐energy X‐rays and the judicious use of lead screen intensifiers. The edge‐enhancement potential of some currently available computer software is explored. Details are provided of basic edge‐detection kernels and how they are applied to digitised images to provide edge enhancement.

The digitisation of X‐radiographs for dissemination, archiving and improved image interpretation

Abstract X‐radiography is an important tool in many areas of conservation, and the images produced are an integral part of the conservation record. Adequate access to the radiographs, however, is difficult to provide both because producing copies with the same image quality as the originals poses problems, and because it is easy to damage the irreplaceable original. These problems can be overcome by the digitisation of X‐ray images. While digitisation can be done with low‐cost hardware, much better results can be obtained with bespoke radiographic scanners. Once digitised, the wide availability of easy‐to‐use computers and software has made it possible for even the least computer literate both to bring the digitised radiographs to their own screens and to manipulate the images. Digitisation for archiving X‐ray images also has many other benefits, but care must be taken when setting up such an archive to choose systems that will remain accessible in the future. At present it is considered that TIF files stored on CD‐ROMs offer the most flexible access to high‐quality images. The principles of digital image capture, retrieval and storage are given in the article, as well as details of hardware and software options, and further sources of information.

Advances in identifying archaeological traces of horn and other keratinous hard tissues

Abstract Despite being widely utilized in the production of cultural objects, keratinous hard tissues, such as horn, baleen, and tortoiseshell, rarely survive in archaeological contexts unless factors combine to inhibit biodeterioration. Even when these materials do survive, working, use, and diagenetic changes combine to make identification difficult. This paper reviews the chemistry and deterioration of keratin and past approaches to the identification of keratinous archaeological remains. It describes the formation of horn, hoof, baleen, and tortoiseshell and demonstrates how identification can be achieved by combining visual observation under low-power magnification with an understanding of the structure and characteristic deterioration of these materials. It also demonstrates how peptide mass fingerprinting of the keratin can be used to identify keratinous tissues, often to species, even when recognizable structural information has not survived.

An Integrated Approach to the Taxonomic Identification of Prehistoric Shell Ornaments

Shell beads appear to have been one of the earliest examples of personal adornments. Marine shells identified far from the shore evidence long-distance transport and imply networks of exchange and negotiation. However, worked beads lose taxonomic clues to identification, and this may be compounded by taphonomic alteration. Consequently, the significance of this key early artefact may be underestimated. We report the use of bulk amino acid composition of the stable intra-crystalline proteins preserved in shell biominerals and the application of pattern recognition methods to a large dataset (777 samples) to demonstrate that taxonomic identification can be achieved at genus level. Amino acid analyses are fast (<2 hours per sample) and micro-destructive (sample size <2 mg). Their integration with non-destructive techniques provides a valuable and affordable tool, which can be used by archaeologists and museum curators to gain insight into early exploitation of natural resources by humans. Here we combine amino acid analyses, macro- and microstructural observations (by light microscopy and scanning electron microscopy) and Raman spectroscopy to try to identify the raw material used for beads discovered at the Early Bronze Age site of Great Cornard (UK). Our results show that at least two shell taxa were used and we hypothesise that these were sourced locally.

The use of Baleen for Arms, Armour and Heraldic Crests in Medieval Britain

The recent identification of whale baleen from a medieval archaeological context in Perth raises the issue of what uses were made of baleen in the medieval period. This note investigates the military uses to which this unusual material was put.

The preservation of archaeological brain remains in a human skeleton

The identification of biomass within the cranial cavity of a waterlogged human skeleton inside a fish-tailed wooden coffin from a nineteenth century burial has been confirmed as brain tissue. A comparison is made between the Raman spectra obtained in the current study with those from an Iron Age brain found in an isolated cranium dating from about 500 years BCE, the only other Raman spectroscopy study made of human brain recovered from waterlogged, archaeological excavations. The spectra give some surprisingly detailed information about the state of preservation of brain tissue in both burials, especially when it is realized that, unlike preserved bog bodies, no other soft tissue has survived. The biosignatures of proteinaceous brain material are well characterized. The presence of spectral signatures from extraneous cyanobacterial colonization in the depositional site of the Iron Age brain had been construed to be responsible in part for the unusual preservation of brain tissues in the waterlogged environment, but they were not detected in the current study of the nineteenth century brain. The challenges for Raman spectroscopic analysis of biomaterials under these conditions are reviewed in the light of the successful outcome of the experiments. This article is part of the themed issue ‘Raman spectroscopy in art and archaeology’.