ARCHAEOMETRIC APPROACHES TO THE FUNCTIONALITY OF COMBUSTION

MARÍA JOSÉ OTS Y PABLO CAHIZA

Vessels Explored: Applying Archaeometry to South American Ceramics and their Production

Archaeopress

Lugar: Londres; Año: 2014; p. 1 - 27

In this paper we explore the possibilities offered by archaeometric approaches in identifying the firing temperature reached by the clay walls of archaeological combustion structures. Some types were identified in several areas of southern San Juan and northern Mendoza provinces (central western Argentina), but the functionality of these structures has not yet been established. The methods applied here include micro topographical description of samples of structure walls through SEM and EDX coupled to the SEM. Samples were refired to different temperatures ranging from 400° to 1100°C by 100°C intervals previous to microscopical observation in order to identify microtextural changes. Internal microtextures of refired samples were compared with unfired samples. Physical properties relating to sample firing temperature were analyzed. Although this approach to determine firing temperature reached by structures, estimated to have ranged between 600 and 800°C, is explorative and not conclusive, other contextual data support this result.