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Recent transportation infrastructure works in Naples, Italy, provided important discoveries related to the production of pottery in the Hellenistic workshop area of Piazza Nicola Amore. A minero-petrographic investigation was conducted on 35 samples belonging to the widespread Campana A ware and production indicators (clayey raw materials, unfired Graeco-Italic amphorae, kiln wastes, workshop tools). Additional analysis was conducted on black-glaze and common ware samples for comparison. The analyses reveal compositional and technological homogeneity of Campana A ware. Samples are characterized by low CaO content with evidence of both volcanic and sedimentary components, suggesting that different clay sources were properly mixed to prepare a standard recipe. Production indicators, black-glaze and common wares, have a composition well consistent with the calcareous clays from the island of Ischia. Leucite- and garnet-bearing temper from the Somma Volcano were used for the preparation of coarse-grained pastes, unfired Graeco-Italic amphorae, and clayey raw materials, thus suggesting that they represented the clay sources for amphorae production. Our results reveal new technological and socioeconomic aspects of Hellenistic pottery production in the Bay of Naples, in particular for the Campana A ware, now representing a new reference group: Neapolis. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We performed petrophysical analyses on 34 clayey samples of different geological origin within the Campania region of Italy in order to determine possible sources of raw materials used to produce ancient pottery. Possible raw material sources can be grouped into high-CaO clays (HCC) and low-CaO clays (LCC). HCC are mainly represented by more recent (Miocene-Pleistocene) basinal sediments whereas LCC tend to be associated with basinal, alluvial, and pyroclastic deposits. A chemical comparison between clayey raw materials, modern ceramic replicas, and Campanian archaeological ceramics of several typologies (common ware, cooking ware, fine tableware, amphorae, and bricks) from 8th century B.C. to the Middle Ages (a total of 350 ceramic samples) indicates that HCC were extensively used for common wares and that these were either mixed with temper or levigated. In contrast, most of the LCC were used for the production of cookware. We also analyzed the technological potential of the sampled raw materials, taking into consideration their actual and possible uses. We observed that most HCC deposits were well suited for tableware and amphorae, whereas LCC were better for cookware and some fine tableware. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Natural resources, along with critical raw materials, are increasingly considered a focus for technological applications. Widely available and inexpensive natural resources, such as zeolite-rich geomaterials, possess minero-chemical characteristics that make them very useful in various technological applications, representing a strategic choice with a strong green connotation. In this research, the possibility of recycling waste powders from quarrying operations of zeolite-rich tuffs in technological applications for the construction sector and drug delivery was investigated. Waste powders collected from quarries operating on the Sorano Formation (Tuscany - Italy), were used for a preliminary characterization, performed to evaluate zeolite content and potential pollution deriving from industrial processing. Thereafter, the specific technological characterization was carried out to define the waste attitude to represent a promising candidate raw material for Lightweight Expanded Aggregates (LEA) production, partial substitution component with pozzolanic activity in cement formulations, carrier for active pharmaceutical molecules. Experimental results, obtained following European normative, proved that was possible to produce waste-based LEA with comparable features with those reported for currently marketed products, that waste powders exhibited pozzolanic activity evidencing the possible use as addition for blended cements and, finally, the use of a cationic surfactant determined a surface-modification of natural zeolites (contained in waste samples) which encouraged for an early loading trial of active pharmaceutical molecules. This research can be safely extended to other quarry waste, with similar mineralogical and chemical composition, leading to a strong contribution in the waste management of this sector. • The Sorano Formation is quarried and processed with a huge production of waste mainly composed of zeolites. • Zeolite-rich waste is suitable for production of lightweight aggregates meeting technical requirements for building sector. • Zeolite-rich waste can be considered as a partial substitutefor cement additions due to the pozzolanic activity index. • Functionalisation of the zeolites from the Sorano formation waste enables the loading of pharmaceutically active molecules. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The potentiality of isotope analysis has largely been explored in archaeological sciences to date objects, attribute their provenance and depict ancient human dietary habits. However, the potential of this technique for provenance studies of ancient ceramics has barely been explored, due to the fact that the ceramic process often involves the selection of different raw materials and, consequently, different sources of radiogenic isotopes. In this paper, 87 Sr/ 86 Sr and 143 Nd/ 144 Nd isotope ratios were measured on raw materials (clays and volcanic temper) that were exploited in antiquity for producing pottery in the Campania region of Italy and, for the first time, on experimental ceramic materials that replicate archaeological pottery. To validate the method, Sr and Nd isotope ratios were also measured on selected archaeological pottery from Cuma. The results of this pioneering approach clearly show that the synthetic mixtures used for the ceramic replicas plot exactly on the theoretical mixing curve between the clay and volcanic temper end-members. On the other hand, technological processes employed during pottery manufacturing such as firing and levigation induce no significant variations in Sr and Nd isotope ratios. Isotope characterisation represents an effective fingerprint of pottery that strictly depends on the geochemical affinity of the raw materials, thus providing a better discrimination among different ceramic productions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Bricks are the most common building materials of Madagascar due to the large availability of clayey raw material, the simple technology of production and the ease of use. The brick production is mainly organised in local workshops close to supplying site of clayey deposit where sediments are extracted, moulded in bricks, dried and then fired in open-air furnaces. Fuel varies from peat soils to wood depending on the local availability. Correspondingly, firing time varies from few days in wood furnaces to some weeks in peat fired furnaces. Samples of bricks and raw materials as well as peat fuel, from four workshops located in central and southwestern Madagascar were collected and analysed to infer the technological skills of the Malagasy traditional brick manufacture. Central Highlands Madagascar workshops use clayey lateritic soils formed from in situ weathering of basement rocks. The main plastic component of these deposits is kaolinite. Also the clayey sediments from southwestern Madagascar have kaolinite along with low-ordered clay minerals and carbonates such as calcite and minor Sr-rich dolomite. As far as fired bricks are concerned, experimental data evidenced quite low firing temperatures (below 600 °C) in the two different furnaces, regardless the type of fuel. As far as peat fuel is concerned, its low calorific value along with a large amount of furnace energy dispersion does not allow to achieve the temperatures required to produce good quality bricks, notwithstanding long firing time (some weeks). On the other hand, firewood powdered furnaces, although providing much higher energy and a consequent much shorter firing process (few days), also suffer of diffuse heat dispersions which concur to the bad quality of the final product. The specific energy input calculated for type 1 furnace (peat fuel) ranges between 0.09 MJ/kg and 0.18 MJ/kg of clayey material thus confirming a rather inadequate firing process for the production of good quality bricks, and a rough estimate indicates that volume ratios between peat and clayey material as low as 1:1 should be used in order to reach “modern” specific energy inputs. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This current research is focused on the mineralogical and petrographic characterisation of mortar-based materials from Villa San Marco in the ancient Stabiae (modern Castellammare di Stabia, Napoli), an outstanding example of Roman otium villae , and aims at recognising the technology used by the ancient skilled workers. Several analytical techniques were used such as digital videomicroscopy, optical microscopy, digital image analysis, scanning electron microscopy coupled with EDS analysis and Quantitative Powder X-ray Diffraction. A multi-layer technology characterised the plasters; the scratch coat was made with lime mortars mixed with a pozzolanic lightweight aggregate and cocciopesto , required ingredients providing a quick-setting and a better adhesion with the support. As far as the arriccio layer is concerned, the mix-design is a lime mortar with volcanic sand as the aggregate and a minor content of pozzolan and/or cocciopesto to enhance the workability of the mortar in order to correct any error due to the roughness of the scratch coat. The plaster s.s. was the removable support in case of mistakes, and gave a lighter colour to the preparation layer of the frescoes. The last thin layer, prepared with lime mortars and a carbonate aggregate, is characterised by low porosity in order to avoid pigment adsorption. The painting technique was a fresco with encaustication . In contrast, the mortars of the building structures were made with lime added to a pozzolanic aggregate (volcanics and cocciopesto ), giving a quick setting during the implementation of the yellow tuff opus reticulatum . The rudera and nuclei of the mosaics were built with abundant volcanic sand and cocciopesto mixed with the lime, producing a more resistant surface, and finally the tesserae were fixed exclusively with lime. The white and black colours of the mosaics were produced by local limestone and tephritic lava. The results permitted an evaluation of the high level of specialization of both the workers and the artists that built and decorated these maritime villas. Moreover, the collected data highlighted the wide potentiality of the materials cropping out in the environs of the Somma-Vesuvius volcanic complex. This research aims at furnishing a useful reference for future restoration action in Villa San Marco and the other Roman villas in this area. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: The features of two clayey raw materials from the Bay of Naples and their fired products were investigated via minero-petrographic and physical techniques. Clay preparation and firing dynamics were performed following a process similar to that performed by ancient and traditional potters. A high-CaO marine clay from Ischia was mixed with different amounts of volcanic temper in order to replicate most common ware. These mixtures show a fair mechanical resistance starting from relatively low firing temperatures (>850°C). The addition of temper resulted in different technological characteristics. A low-CaO weathered pyroclastics from the Sorrento Peninsula was prepared to simulate heat resistant and refractory ceramics. Fired products are characterised by a less resistant ceramic body up to 1000°C compared to Ischia ceramics. Despite worse strength these ceramics show a porous structure, yielding better refractory performances. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

[Display omitted] • Malagasy bricks production in urban and rural sites remained unchanged over time. • Available clayey resources and fuels are used for firing bricks in open-air furnaces. • Significant is the impact on the environment of the production of Malagasy bricks. • A relevant fraction of the thermal energy involved in bricks firing is dissipated. • Ceramic process contributes to the consumption of important natural resources. The history of brick manufacturing in Madagascar dates back to the early 1800 s when European colonisers imparted to the local population the basic knowledge for firing clayey sediment to obtain a more durable construction material. The evaluation of the entire production cycle accounting for the involved natural resources such as raw materials, fuels and derived bricks, represents the aim of this research started in 2015 and focused on both rural and urban contexts. Clayey raw materials from lateritic soils widely occur in central Madagascar whereas, in southern coastal sites, carbonate-bearing clays definitely prevail since their composition are influenced by the reef. Bricks are prepared on site with no additional manipulation of the base clay and, depending on the climatic conditions, the bricks are dried and fired from one week up to ten days. Furnaces are powered by rice husk in south-western part of the island whereas in central Madagascar the use of peat and wood was also recorded. The calorific performances of these common fuels allow achieving temperatures of 800–900 °C; however, the huge loss of heat due to the poor quality of the furnaces determine low equivalent firing temperatures (EFT) that negatively affect the quality of the bricks. The above described ceramic process has remained unchanged for more than 200 years and even if new social and economic opportunities arose, this unvirtuous system slowly (but inexorably) contributed to the impoverishment of important energy sources and, above all, of natural resources. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recent excavations of the Via dei Sepolcri ceramic workshop in Pompeii provide an exceptional window into ancient Roman material culture. The remarkable ceramic objects found here, and importantly, the raw geological materials used in their production, afford a unique opportunity to gather information about each aspect of the organisation of the workshop and the ceramics production cycle, including those which are normally erased by the firing process. The exceptional nature of this site provides interesting insights into the system of raw material procurement, a facet poorly explored thus far due to the lack of ancient historical sources. The study is based on the investigation of 40 samples including pottery fragments, unfired, fired and overfired sherds and their source materials by means of optical microscopy, X-ray diffraction, Inductively Coupled Plasma Mass Spectroscopy, Raman and FTIR spectroscopy; in addition, Sr–Nd isotopic and paleontological analyses completed the raw material characterisation. The workshop experienced two different periods of activity starting from the beginning of 1st century CE; in a first phase they produced a variegated repertoire of Thin Walled pottery using local alluvial sediments and clays imported from Ischia island. In a second phase (probably from 62 to 63 CE to 79 CE), the workshop became larger and more specialised, the Thin Walled types drastically decreased and the artisans exclusively utilized clayey sediments from outcrops near Mt. Picentini in the Salerno province. As complementary materials, the ceramic production also utilized local volcanic sands for tempering and decorative purposes along with a presumed imported red earth pigment for decorative finishing. Firing conditions, as inferred from mineral assemblages in the pottery, were not strictly controlled in either production phase as estimated firing temperatures vary widely from approximately 800 to 1000 °C. Likewise, atmospheric conditions in the kiln, as inferred from the variable occurrence of Fe2+ and Fe3+ oxides, were not carefully controlled in either production phase. When compared with data from the larger framework of coeval regional and extra-regional pottery productions, the data obtained suggest that the existing paradigm of the Exploitable Threshold Model, which implies a maximum distance of 7–8 km between the source of raw materials and their usage in production centres, may need to be revised by at least an order of magnitude where sea routes and ports were readily available, as was the case in Pompeii and the surrounding Bay of Naples. • Via dei Sepolcri workshop produced Thin Walled pottery in Pompeii until the 79 CE. • Different clayey raw materials were used for the pottery in the two production phase. • Ischia Clays and alluvial clays supported Phase 1 production. • High-CaO clays from Salerno province were exploited during the Phase 2. • A complicate pattern of raw materials trade existed in Campania region. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]