Improvement of the PGAA analytical library
Applications of a new non-destructive geochemical method (PGAA) in archaeometry
Hungarian Scientific Research Fund, OTKA (2006-2009)Archaeometry,
which applies modern analytics in archaeology, is a relatively young
discipline. Knowledge of the chemical composition informs the
archaeologists about the provenance, the raw material sources, etc. The
routine methods (XRF, NAA, and ICP-MS) are more or less destructive
which inhibits the investigation of valuable objects. On the contrary,
Prompt Gamma Activation Analysis (PGAA) is non-destructive. It is
applicable for quantitative measurement of major and trace components.
Since 1997 we developed the routine for PGAA of metal-, stone-, glass-
and pottery objects. In this project we plan to perform a comparative
study of stone- and pottery archaeological objects. The basic rock
types show characteristic composition, and some important trace
elements (B, Sm, Eu, Gd, Nd) serve as fingerprints of the geological
source.
The main
goal is to identify raw material source of some remarkable
archaeological treasure in the Carpatian region. The material to be
investigated: (1) Volcanic origin (andesite, basalt, obsidian) chipped-
and polished stone tools, (2) pottery from the Prehistoric Collection
of the Hungarian National Museum. Geological reference samples will be
chosen from the Comparative Raw Material Collection of the Museum
(Lithoteca), and from field surveys. Our goal is to establish and
develop archaeometrical databases.
The principal
method is PGAA, but we plan complementary and comparative geochemical
and mineralogical investigations (EPMA, XRF, NAA). The results can be
utilized in basic geochemistry research and also in development of the
PGAA database. The project has strong relations with several international co-operations.
