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This paper presents results from the initial stage of an ongoing project exploring changes in pottery production at the Late Bronze Age/Early Iron Age transition in the south-western part of the Iberian Peninsula. For the chosen study area this period is of particular interest because of the introduction of new pottery types, manufacuring techniques, and possibly also different organisational models in the wake of the Phoenician expansion into the western Mediterranean. The initial stage of our project focused on samples from the key site of Setefilla, with a methodology based on both non-destructive and destructive analysis of ceramic samples: 1) non-destructive X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF), 2) very precise optical emission spectrometry (OES) and 3) petrography of pottery samples. The results of this research show a significant correlation between manufacturing techniques, type of clay paste used and elemental composition. Alongside this approach we also conducted a radiocarbon dating programme on cremated human remains from the site, to provide a chronological context for any changes observed in the pottery assemblage over time. Our results demonstrate that through systematic spectrographic and petrographic analysis we can overcome some of the basic problems relating to the chemical and petrographic identification of different pottery groups, with a view to establishing the provenance of so-called "imports". [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The aim of this paper is to present the first results of organic residue analysis of pottery from two Lebanese archaeological sites, Jiyeh and Chhîm. The standard approach in investigations of this type consists of mass spectrometry and gas chromatography technique, which enabled the detection of organic fractions absorbed by pores of the pottery. In the present paper, new method of liquid chromatography and tandem mass spectrometry has been used in order to identify organic fractions. Sixteen fragments of vessels from different forms, periods and archaeological contexts have been analysed. The selected samples came from three vessel categories, kitchen vessels for cooking and store liquids, transport amphorae and storage pithoi, dated from Persian to Byzantine period. The procedure of sample extraction and HPLC-MS/MS analysis allowed to find vessels with the potential traces of the use for food product preparation and/or storage and separate it from different vessels (without traces of organic residues). Organic substances have been detected in the majority of the investigated samples. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]