Provenance groups in a Roman jet jewelry collection at Aquincum (Budapest, Hungary) and comparison with jet and jet-like gemstones

Demény, Attila; Bondár, Mária; Karlik, Máté; Hegyi, István; Gábor Hatvani, István; Facsády, Annamária R.; Csontos, Katalin; Gugora, Ariana; Kara-Gülbay, Reyhan; Carlos García-Ramos, Jose; Caldwell Steele, Sarah

Abstract

Jet and jet-like gemstones are found in graves from the Neolithic, but they became particularly popular during the Bronze Age and the Roman period. To discover their provenance, several techniques were used to determine distinctions between organic materials and occurrences. The present study utilized a combination of Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscopic (FTIR) and stable isotope ratio analyses to compare a unique Copper Age black bead („Lelle bead”) with Roman period jet items from the Aquincum Museum’s collection and known jet samples from various locations (UK, Spain, Turkey). Visual and multivariate statistical analyses of FTIR spectra, combined with H%, C%, and stable hydrogen and carbon isotope ratio determinations enabled us to distinguish significant (p < 0.1) groups among the Aquincum collection: „Lelle-type” samples, „Whitby-type” jets, shales, and coals. Some gemstones were positively identified as Whitby jet, whereas some of the others were indistinguishable from the Lelle bead. This study shows that the coupled FTIR and stable isotope analyses can potentially be used to determine the provenance of archaeological artifacts.

Citation

Demény, A., Bondár, M., Karlik, M., Hegyi, I., Gábor Hatvani, I., Facsády, A. R., …Caldwell Steele, S. (2024). Provenance groups in a Roman jet jewelry collection at Aquincum (Budapest, Hungary) and comparison with jet and jet-like gemstones. Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, 54, Article 104413. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2024.104413

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Jan 24, 2024
• Online Publication Date: Feb 9, 2024
• Publication Date: 2024-04
• Deposit Date: Mar 13, 2024
• Publicly Available Date: Mar 13, 2024
• Journal: Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
• Print ISSN: 2352-409X
• Publisher: Elsevier
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 54
• Article Number: 104413
• DOI: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2024.104413
• Keywords: Archeology; Archeology
• Public URL: https://durham-repository.worktribe.com/output/2327262