New Evidence on the Reliable Use of Stable Isotopes of Bitumen Fractions in Archaeological Research.

ABSTRACT: One of the goals of archaeological studies is to determine how material goods and ideas moved among human populations, and bitumen is a worthy proxy because it has been used since prehistory. As a result, when bitumen is excavated from archaeological sites, determining its provenance is important because it sheds light on the trade and communication of populations at a given time. During the study of archaeological bitumen from coastal sites in central and southern Puglia (Italy), we observed that stable isotope ratios of saturated and aromatic fractions were incompatible with those obtained from asphaltenes, supporting the absorption of a foreign substance. Experiments showed that lipids are absorbed by bitumen and, in the case of oils, are distributed mainly in the saturated and aromatic

SUBMITTER: Pennetta A 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC9964228 | biostudies-literature | 2023 Feb

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature