"New high-tech archaeometry tools at the Philistine site of Tell es-Safi (the Biblical city Gath) will take in-field analysis to a new level of specificity as team members examine the material culture on an atomic scale.
The combination of a new handheld X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectrometer with the Tell es-Safi field lab’s Fourier Transform IR spectrometer (FTIR, shown in the photo above) and optical microscopy will provide “the ability to identify the composition of many materials at the atomic level,” ....Material science can be used to answer questions about a site’s subsistence and industrial economies and the provenience of material remains. In most cases, archaeologists receive the results of their scientific inquiries between field seasons. By using their non-destructive archaeometry toolkit in the field, the Tell es-Safi team can make quick and informed decisions based on material science analyses during the excavation.
Researchers in Israel have helped lead the way in applying a wide range of techniques to characterize artifacts and archaeological contexts. They have analyzed microscopic environmental data (bones and seeds) to reconstruct subsistence and economic strategies. A special subfield has evolved that is referred to as geo-archaeology or microarchaeology. The “game changer” of characterization studies has been the development of handheld X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and portable Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR) units that make it possible to answer questions in “real time” that previously took months or years of laboratory work. We use the Bruker Tracer III-V+ to characterize artifacts and measure the bulk chemical composition of materials. The Nicolet IS5 Spectrometer FTIR is employed to identify mineralogy, sedimentology, diagenesis and ancient pyrotechnology."
BibleHistoryDaily
Researchers in Israel have helped lead the way in applying a wide range of techniques to characterize artifacts and archaeological contexts. They have analyzed microscopic environmental data (bones and seeds) to reconstruct subsistence and economic strategies. A special subfield has evolved that is referred to as geo-archaeology or microarchaeology. The “game changer” of characterization studies has been the development of handheld X-ray fluorescence (XRF) and portable Fourier Transform Infrared Spectrometry (FTIR) units that make it possible to answer questions in “real time” that previously took months or years of laboratory work. We use the Bruker Tracer III-V+ to characterize artifacts and measure the bulk chemical composition of materials. The Nicolet IS5 Spectrometer FTIR is employed to identify mineralogy, sedimentology, diagenesis and ancient pyrotechnology."
BibleHistoryDaily
And there went out a champion out of the camp of the Philistines,
named Goliath,
of Gath,
1 Samuel 17:4
