Transparency at its best: neutrons probing archaeological glass finds from Romania

• Published in: Applied physics. A, Materials science & processing Vol. 130; no. 9
• Main Authors: Bugoi, Roxana, Ţârlea, Alexandra, Szilágyi, Veronika, Cliante, Laurenţiu, Harsányi, Ildikó, Kasztovszky, Zsolt
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.09.2024; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Characterization and Evaluation of Materials; Chemical composition; Condensed Matter Physics; Fragments; Machines; Manufacturing; Nanotechnology; Optical and Electronic Materials; Physics; Physics and Astronomy; Processes; S.I. : SR2A - Synchrotron radiation and neutrons in Art and Archaeology 2023; SR2A - Synchrotron radiation and neutrons in Art and Archaeology 2023; Stratigraphy; Surfaces and Interfaces; Thin Films; Romania; Histria; PGAA; Chemical composition; Roman glass; Glass recycling; Tomis
• ISSN: 0947-8396; 1432-0630
• DOI: 10.1007/s00339-024-07795-y

This paper demonstrates the suitability of Prompt Gamma Activation Analysis (PGAA) technique for the compositional study of ancient glass finds, illustrating this idea by presenting and commenting the chemical composition of 41 Roman glass fragments discovered in archaeological excavations at Tomis, Histria, and Beidaud, Romania. According to typological and stratigraphic criteria, most finds were dated to the 1st-4th centuries AD. The PGAA measurements were performed at the Budapest Neutron Centre (BNC), Hungary. Regardless of their color (or the lack of it), most of the analyzed vitreous items have compositional traits often encountered in coeval glass artefacts discovered at various sites all over the Roman Empire. The sample set turned out to include several examples of Foy Série 2.1 and a single HIMT glass item, in agreement with the later chronological attribution of the corresponding fragments. This study provides some information about the chemistry of the Roman glass finds unearthed during the archaeological research performed in the region of the western Black Sea coast.