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One of the most recognized decorations of the pick-up technique is the millefiori glass, which has been commonly attributed to Venetian production. However, Portugal is the country where the largest known assemblage of this type of glass artefact has been studied and published. In this work, two important archeological contexts were selected: (1) Santa Clara-a-Velha monastery (SCV) and (2) São João de Tarouca monastery (SJT). The fragments selection was made based on the diversity of decorative motifs, colors, and original forms that has been associated with Portuguese production. The compositional characterization was conducted by performing micro-particle-induced X-ray emission (µ-PIXE) mapping, which facilitated the visualization of the distribution of different oxides across the different glass layers and laser ablation inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) to obtain the major, minor, and trace elements composition, including rare earth elements (REEs) to determine which kind of raw materials were used. Additionally, µ-Raman spectroscopy was employed to investigate the opacifiers, while UV–Visible spectroscopy was used to study which chromophores are presented in the glass samples. All the analyzed glass layers can be considered to be of a soda–lime–silica type, and four different geological patterns (from GP1 to GP4) were detected and reported. This result can indicate that these objects were made by using silica sources taken from four different geological settings. Interestingly, the GP3 represents about 41% of the analyzed glass fragments and is compatible with the pattern detected in some production wastes found in two different archeological contexts located in Lisbon, which reinforces the veracity of the theory that this GP can be attributed to a Portuguese production. On the other hand, GP1 was probably attributed Granada provenance.

Little is known about the materials used in the manufacture of red window glass in the 19th and the first decade of the 20th century. Here, we have studied fragments from eight Spanish glasses from the 19th and 20th centuries. The red glasses consist of a single layer of red glass on a colourless glass substrate. The chemical composition, oxidation state, nature of colourants and crystalline precipitates were determined by a selection of microanalytical techniques. In the study, we have found that the red colour of the glass is due to the presence of Cu0 nanoparticles, the red glass layer has lower calcium content than the substrate glasses, which we found favours copper being present in the glass predominantly in Cu+. They also contain tin and iron while lead, described in historical and modern documentation, was absent. Tin must have been added to the glass as a Sn2+ compound and acted as a reducing agent for copper. Iron is also a well-known reducing agent, but does not act as such in the red glasses studied here. However, it may have facilitated the reduction of copper to Cu0 by promoting its incorporation into the glass as Cu+ rather than Cu2+. Resumen: Poco se sabe sobre los materiales utilizados en la fabricación de vidrios rojos planos en el siglo xix y primera década del xx, por ello se han estudiado ocho fragmentos españoles de la época. Todos ellos están formados por una sola capa de vidrio rojo sobre un sustrato de vidrio incoloro. La composición química, el estado de oxidación, la naturaleza de los colorantes y los precipitados cristalinos se han determinado mediante una selección de técnicas microanalíticas. Hemos encontrado que la capa de vidrio rojo contiene nanopartículas de Cu0, y que tiene un menor contenido de calcio menor que el vidrio sustrato, lo cual favorece que el cobre esté en el vidrio predominantemente como Cu+. Tal y como está descrito en la documentación histórica y moderna contienen estaño y hierro, pero no se ha verificado la presencia de plomo. El estaño se agregó al vidrio como un compuesto Sn2+ y actuó como agente reductor del cobre. El hierro a pesar de ser un agente reductor, no actúa como tal en los vidrios rojos estudiados. Sin embargo, su presencia podría facilitar la reducción del cobre a Cu0 al promover su incorporación al vidrio como Cu+ en lugar de Cu2+.

A questão da produção local de vidro romano em Conímbriga foi pela primeira vez levantada por Jorge de Alarcão em 1964. Em 2009, ao tratarmos da produção de vidro no noroeste peninsular, dedicamos‑lhe uma pequena nota de revisão onde se defendia que a produção de vidro em Conímbriga, sendo plausível, não havia sido comprovada de forma irrefutável. Já em 2013, a propósito da elaboração de um levantamento dos sítios de produção de vidro da Hispânia, tivemos a possibilidade de verificar pessoalmente os indícios de produção mencionados bem como proceder à análise química de uma pequena amostragem. São esses resultados arqueométricos que agora apresentamos e que permitem confirmar de forma inequívoca a existência de uma produção secundaria de vidro em Conímbriga durante o séc. III d.C., pelo menos.

In the last 25 years a conspicuous amount of plane glass – windowpane fragments – has surfaced on archaeological sites from the Viking Age. These finds have not received scholarly attention as they are not recognised as a genuine prehistoric (i.e. pre-1050 Scandinavia) occurrence. This paper aims to investigate a select group of archaeological localities that all have a significant amount of glass objects and fragments, and which also serve as mainstays for continental influences, commercial trade, as well as ritual activities. It offers the study of the chemical composition of these windowpane fragments, their distribution, provenience, and discusses their potential use as windows in Viking Age Scandinavia. Based on the chemical composition of the analysed plane glass (via LA-ICP-MS) the paper argues, firstly, that the glass most likely should be dated to the 9th to 11th centuries; secondly, that there are two possible import paths of raw material with one recognized at the early emporia based on east Mediterranean types of glass, and another with a continental type of glass found at the aristocratic sites. Finally, the paper argues that the windowpanes very likely could have been used in contemporary glassed windows placed in wooden buildings at these sites.

Located on the plateau of Larzac, the site of Soulages testify, for the first time in this area of medium mountains, a rural settlement which developed from the 6th to the 9th century. The remains are organised in a space that groups together all the places where people lived, mixed with the burials of the inhabitants. Within this space, the buildings are divided by function: the service buildings are gathered in areas surrounded by a palisade, the main house is secluded in height. In addition to the situation of the buildings, the analysis of the construction techniques and materials also makes it possible to distinguish the main dwelling house from the functionnal buildings, with the use of stone for the former and the use of wooden load-bearing structures and earthen walls mainly for the latter. Among burials, young children are over-represented. This kind of settlement yields few material remains documenting the life of a community settled ex nihilo.

The Colombier hill, located in the Chassezac valley (Ardèche, France), has been temporarily occupied during the High Middle Ages (11th and 12th centuries) in order to mine from a galena vein. Adjoining the mining networks, a building was erected. After several years of excavation, a conclusion has been reached, characterizing the hill’s occupancy and to establishing its functions. From an archaeological and morphological study, as well as the study of the furniture originating from the building (stone tools, slag, ceramic objects, glass, fauna, natural resources, manufactured objects), it has been possible to identify it as a mining site, built in order to process the ore and assist the workers. It was seemingly composed of workshop-houses that were regularly inhabited by small mining companies.

Zusammenfassung: Die auf der Hochebene Causse du Larzac gelegene Siedlung von Soulages liefert ein bislang unbekanntes Beispiel für eine ländliche Ansiedlung in mittlerer Höhenlage, die sich zwischen dem 6. und 9. Jahrhundert n. Chr. entwickelte. Die Hinterlassenschaften umfassen den gesamten Siedlungsbereich, sowie Gräber der Bewohner. Innerhalb der Ansiedlung waren die Gebäude nach ihrer Funktion angeordnet: die Nebengebäude waren in mit Palisaden umgebenen Bereichen gruppiert, das Hauptwohngebäude lag abgetrennt in höherer Lage. Neben der Lage innerhalb der Ansiedlung ermöglicht es auch die Untersuchung der Bautechniken und der verwendeten Baumaterialien, das Hauptwohngebäude von den Nebengebäuden durch die Verwendung von Stein zu unterscheiden, wobei die Nebengebäude hauptsächlich mit Holzgerüsten und Lehmwänden errichtet wurden. Unter den Bestattungen sind früh verstorbene Kleinkinder überrepräsentiert. Diese Art von Siedlung hat sehr wenig Artefakte geliefert, die jedoch das Leben einer Gemeinschaft in einem neugegründeten Weiler dokumentieren.

El yacimiento de Soulages, situado en la meseta calcárea del Larzac, ilustra, por primera vez en este sector de media montaña, una ocupación rural que se desarrolla entre los siglos VI y IX. Los restos se organizan en un espacio que agrupa el conjunto de los lugares de vida, mezclados con las sepulturas de los habitantes. En el seno de este espacio, los edificios se reparten según su función: los anexos están agrupados en sectores rodeados por una palizada y la casa principal se halla aislada y a una mayor altura. Más allá de la localización de las construcciones, el análisis de las técnicas de construcción y de los materiales utilizados permite también diferenciar la casa principal de los edificios anexos mediante el uso de la piedra, en lo que concierne a la primera, y el empleo de estructuras portantes de madera y muros de tierra cruda principalmente, para los segundos. En lo que se refiere a las inhumaciones, los niños fallecidos en edad temprana están sobrerrepresentados. Este tipo de ocupación proporciona escasos objetos que documentan la vida de una comunidad instalada ex nihilo.

Located on the plateau of Larzac, the site of Soulages testifies, for the first time in a low mountain area, a rural settlement which expand from the 6th to the 9th century. The remains are organised in an area that groups together all living quarters, mixed with the burials of the inhabitants. Within this area, the buildings are divided by activity: the service buildings are gathered in areas surrounded by a palisade, the main house is secluded above them. In addition to the locations of the buildings, the study of the construction techniques and materials also makes it possible to distinguish the main dwelling house from the service buildings, with the use of stone for the former and the use of wooden load-bearing structures and earthen walls for the latter. Among the burials, young children are over-represented. This kind of settlement yields few material remains documenting the life of a community settled ex nihilo.

The presence of glass beads in West African archaeological sites provides important evidence of long-distance trade between this part of the continent and the rest of the world. Until recently, most of these items came from historical Sub-Saharan urban centers, well known for their role in the medieval trans-Saharan trade. We present here the chemical analysis by Laser Ablation-Inductively Coupled Plasma-Mass Spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) of 16 glass beads found in three rural sites excavated during the past decade: the funerary site of Dourou-Boro and settlement sites of Sadia, in central Mali, as well as the settlement site of Djoutoubaya, in eastern Senegal, in contexts dated between the 7th-9th and the 11th-13th centuries CE. Results show that the raw materials used to manufacture the majority of the glass most probably originated in Egypt, the Levantine coast and the Middle East. One bead is of uncertain provenance and shows similarities with glass found in the Iberian Peninsula and in South Africa. One bead fragment found inside a tomb is a modern production, probably linked to recent plundering. All of these ancient beads were exchanged along the trans-Saharan trade routes active during the rise of the first Sahelian states, such as the Ghana and the Gao kingdoms, and show strong similarities with the other West African bead assemblages that have been analysed. Despite the remoteness of their location in the Dogon Country and in the Falémé River valley, the beads studied were therefore included in the long-distance trade network, via contacts with the urban commercial centers located at the edge of the Sahara along the Niger River and in current southern Mauretania. These results bring a new light on the relationships between international and regional trade in Africa and highlight the complementarity between centres of political and economic power and their peripheries, important because of resources like gold for eastern Senegal.

We geochemically characterize two chert formations outcropping in the Pyrenees and presenting similar characteristics at the visual and microscopic scale: The Montgaillard flysch cherts and the Montsaunès cherts. Cherts presenting identical textural and micropalaeontological features as both types have been found in several Magdalenian Pyrenean sites. We are face to a long distance chert type whose geochemical characterization is essential for knowing where the tracer comes from. Analyses have been done using Energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence (ED-XRF) and laser ablation inductively-coupled plasma mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS). Results show that despite obtaining similar data concerning major and minor elements, differences have been observed regarding trace elements. The establishment of differences between both formations at the geochemical level has allowed specifying the origin of this chert type recovered at the Magdalenian levels of Parco Cave (Alòs de Balaguer, Spain). Results demonstrate long lithic raw material circulation and thus, human mobility in the Pyrenees during the Upper Palaeolithic.

La colina del Colombier, situada en el valle del Chassezac (Ardèche, France), fue ocupada de forma temporal durante la Plena Edad Media (siglos XI y XII) con el objetivo de explotar un filón de plomo argentífero. Se construyó un establecimiento cerca de las redes mineras. Tras varios años de excavaciones arqueológicas, se presenta un balance para caracterizar la ocupación de la colina y precisar sus funciones. A partir de un estudio arquitectónico y morfológico, así como del conjunto del material recuperado en el establecimiento (útiles líticos, escoria, cerámica, vidrio, fauna, recursos vegetales y productos manufacturados), ha sido posible plantear que dicho establecimiento fuera un complejo minero construido para tratar el mineral y asistir a los obreros, y que estaría probablemente compuesto por casas-taller ocupadas de forma regular por pequeñas empresas mineras.

Der Hügel von Le Colombier im Tal von Chassezac (Ardèche, Frankreich) gelegen, wurde im Hochmittelalter (11.-12. Jh.) zeitweilig besiedelt, um dort eine Ader mit silberhaltigem Bleierz abzubauen. In der Nähe der Abbaustellen wurde eine Siedlung errichtet. Nach mehreren Jahren Ausgrabung wird hier eine Bilanz gezogen, um die Besiedlung des Hügels zu beschreiben und ihre Funktionen näher zu bestimmen. Ausgehend von einer morphologischen Untersuchung, einer Bauuntersuchung und einer Untersuchung des in der Siedlung geborgenen Fundmaterials (Steingeräte, Schlackenabfälle, Keramik, Glas, Fauna, Pflanzenressourcen, gefertigte Gegenstände) war es möglich, eine Interpretation als Abbaustelle vorzuschlagen. Die Siedlung wurde im Zusammenhang mit der Aufbereitung und Weiterverarbeitung des Erzes gegründet und die den Arbeitern als Wohnwerkstatt dienenden Gebäude wurden regelmäßig von kleinen Bergbaubetrieben genutzt.

The Colombier hill, located in the Chassezac valley (Ardèche, France), had been temporarily occupied during the High Middle Ages (11th and 12th centuries) in order to mine from a silver-lead vein. Adjoining the mining networks, a building was erected. After several years of excavation, a conclusion has been reached, characterizing the hill’s occupancy and establishing its functions. Building on an archaeological and morphological study, as well as the examination of the artefacts originating from the building (stone tools, slag, pottery, glass, fauna, natural resources, manufactured objects), it has been possible to identify it as a mining site, built in order to process the ore and assist the workers. It was seemingly composed of workshop-houses that were regularly inhabited by small mining companies.

The understanding of the glass trade in the first millennium CE relies on the characterisation of well-dated compositional groups and the identification of their primary production sites. 275 Byzantine glass weights from the British Museum and the Bibliothèque nationale de France dating to the sixth and seventh century were analysed by LA-ICP-MS. Multivariate statistical and graphical data analysis discriminated between six main primary glass types. Primary glass sources were differentiated based on multi-dimensional comparison of silica-derived elements (MgO, Al2O3, CaO, TiO2, Fe2O3, ZrO2) and components associated with the alkali source (Li2O, B2O3). Along with Egyptian and Levantine origins of the glassmaking sands, variations in the natron source possibly point to the exploitation of two different natron deposits. Differences in strontium to calcium ratios revealed variations in the carbonate fractions in the sand. At least two cobalt sources were employed as colouring agents, one of which shows strong correlations with nickel, indicating a specific post-Roman cobalt source. Typological evidence identified chronological developments in the use of the different glass groups. Throughout the sixth century, Byzantine glass weights were predominately produced from two glasses that are probably of an Egyptian origin (Foy-2 and Foy-2 high Fe). Towards the second half of the sixth century a new but related plant-ash glass type emerged (Magby). Levantine I was likewise found among the late sixth- to early seventh-century samples. The use of different dies for the same batch testifies to large-scale, centralised production of the weights, while the same die used for different primary production groups demonstrates the co-existence of alternative sources of supply. Given the comprehensive design of our study, these results can be extrapolated to the wider early Byzantine glass industry and its changes at large.

The Arabian Peninsula is a key region for understanding climate change and human occupation history in a marginal environment. The Mundafan palaeolake is situated in southern Saudi Arabia, in the Rub' al-Khali (the 'Empty Quarter'), the world's largest sand desert. Here we report the first discoveries of Middle Palaeolithic and Neolithic archaeological sites in association with the palaeolake. We associate the human occupations with new geochronological data, and suggest the archaeological sites date to the wet periods of Marine Isotope Stage 5 and the Early Holocene. The archaeological sites indicate that humans repeatedly penetrated the ameliorated environments of the Rub' al-Khali. The sites probably represent short-term occupations, with the Neolithic sites focused on hunting, as indicated by points and weaponry. Middle Palaeolithic assemblages at Mundafan support a lacustrine adaptive focus in Arabia. Provenancing of obsidian artifacts indicates that Neolithic groups at Mundafan had a wide wandering range, with transport of artifacts from distant sources.