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The Universitat de València brings together artistic collections of great value that embrace more than five centuries of history (1499–2022). Among them, the collection of contemporary painting stands out for its diversity of artists, artistic techniques and themes. One of the aims of the Vice‐rectorate for Culture and Society of the Universitat de València is the study, conservation and dissemination of its art collection, implementing innovative methodologies that will place these artworks at the research and transfer frontline. To achieve this, the Laboratory for Analysis and Diagnosis of Works of Art of the Universitat de València: Conservation, Legacy, InnOvation has recently optimized a multi‐analytical artistic diagnosis approach that combines the use of multiband technical photography (MTP) with digital radiography, infrared reflectography (IRR) and hyperspectral camera. The noninvasive methodology developed for the studied paintings, belonging to different historical periods, is completed by using a portable X‐ray fluorescence. The final goal is to obtain useful information on the composition and execution technique, issues of great interest for developing preventive conservation plans for the collections and for the design of innovative exhibition proposals of an immersive and accessible nature. This article presents the results obtained for three paintings that were made by one of the most unknown Valencian painters of the early 20th century, despite the great quality of his work: Manuel Moreno Gimeno (1900–1982). These paintings are part of the aforementioned art collection of the Universitat de València, and are housed at the Faculty of Medicine. In this study, the use of MTP, IRR and hyperspectral imaging techniques were combined with the analysis of the pictorial surface using a portable optical microscope and a portable X‐ray fluorescence. The results obtained indicate that Manuel Moreno Gimeno developed a landscape painting technique that was very close to that of other Valencian painters of the early 20th century. The handling of light and color was achieved using a rich color palette that included numerous contemporary innovative pigment such as chrome or cadmium. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The present work represents the first attempt using an archaeometric approach to characterize the potential chert outcrops and retrace the provenance of the chert raw materials in the Mesolithic and Neolithic contexts of the Eastern Iberia central site of Cueva de la Cocina (Dos Aguas, Valencia). Therefore, a research project aimed at identifying and characterizing potential sources in the surroundings of the site was carried out, as a first step, to test some hypotheses related to raw material provenance. Elemental profiles of several archaeological artifacts and of geological samples collected in different local and nonlocal outcrops were obtained using X‐ray fluorescence spectroscopy and inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry. These chemical data were processed using multivariate statistics to investigate the possible links between the outcrops and archaeological artifacts. Preliminary results point to the use of local raw materials and also the presence of rocks outcropping in a perimeter of more than 50 km around Cueva de la Cocina, opening a new window to investigate the socioecological dynamics of the last hunter‐gatherer and the first farmer inhabitants from a diachronic point of view in this region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigates the stratigraphical sequence of Cocina Cave (Spain) employing and testing for the first time the capability of rare earth elements as markers of human activities in caves. Located in Dos Aguas (Valencian Community, Spain), Cocina Cave is characterized by the presence of several Holocene archaeological deposits from the final Mesolithic to the present day and is a pivotal site for understanding the socio‐ecological dynamics of the last hunter‐gatherer inhabitants of the Iberian Peninsula and the transition to pastoral and agricultural economies in the Western Mediterranean. However, the identification of strata from particular time‐periods in the cave is often difficult due to the homogeneity of layers, the poor archaeological record in some strata and the presence of severe disturbance phenomena. The methodological approach of this study consisted of cross‐referencing rare earth elements and other chemical markers with the archaeological stratigraphical interpretation, in an attempt to not only support the identification of the anthropic contribution to the formation of Cocina Cave strata, but also to characterize and confirm different natural and occupational episodes, particularly those associated with hunter‐gatherer, early agriculturalist, and shepherd activities. Sediments were collected from different excavation areas and analysed for major elements, trace elements, rare earth elements (REE), soil organic matter (SOM) amounts and pH. Multivariate statistics were employed to group samples according to their elemental profile, and these were then compared to the archaeological temporal interpretation. The obtained results showed that REE amount and fractionation geochemical processes were regulated by carbonates, phosphates and pH. The use of REE as markers was particularly useful as their concentrations and their calculated ratios and anomaly distributions were demonstrated to be highly consistent with the archaeological stratigraphical interpretation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The origin of iron‐oxide materials found at Paleolithic and Neolithic sites in the Spanish Mediterranean region is a pivotal issue that has not yet been explored. The aim of this study is to investigate the exploitation of local ochre sources during the different archaeological phases identified at the site of Coves de Santa Maira (Valencian Region, Eastern Spain). A sampling strategy and a methodological approach were developed. Lumps of ochre and raw materials were sampled from the archaeological site and its surroundings. The archaeological materials studied are from the occupational phases dated to between 15 and 6 ka cal BP, whereas the raw materials sampled from the surroundings of the cave are red fine‐grained and earthy‐grained sedimentary materials and Late Triassic (Keuper) clays. Morphological, mineralogical, and chemical analyses of the samples were carried out, and quantitative data on ochre fragments and processing tools recovered at the site were also included. Finally, Fe‐normalized and log10 transformed data and multivariate statistical analysis, using major, trace, and rare earth elements as variables, were applied to compare the mineralogical and chemical profiles of the archaeological materials with those from geological sources. The results obtained have provided interesting data about iron‐based mineral exploitation during Prehistory in the studied region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]