Hostname: page-component-8448b6f56d-c47g7 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-04-18T00:50:34.593Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

DIRECT RADIOCARBON DATING OF CHARCOAL-BASED INK IN PAPYRI: A FEASIBILITY STUDY

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  23 September 2020

Mariaelena Fedi Open the ORCID record for Mariaelena Fedi [Opens in a new window] ,
Serena Barone ,
Luca Carraresi ,
Simona Dominici Open the ORCID record for Simona Dominici [Opens in a new window]  and
Lucia Liccioli
Mariaelena Fedi*
Affiliation:
INFN Sezione di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy
Serena Barone
Affiliation:
INFN Sezione di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy Dipartimento di Chimica Ugo Schiff, Università di Firenze, via della Lastruccia, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy
Luca Carraresi
Affiliation:
INFN Sezione di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy
Simona Dominici
Affiliation:
Dipartimento di Fisica e Astronomia, Università di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy
Lucia Liccioli
Affiliation:
INFN Sezione di Firenze, via Sansone 1, 50019 Sesto Fiorentino, Firenze, Italy
*
*Corresponding author. Email: fedi@fi.infn.it.
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

When dating documents by radiocarbon (14C), what we typically measure is the concentration of the support (e.g. paper, parchment, or papyrus). This can however lead to a possible misinterpretation of results because the support may be older than the writing itself. To minimize such a possible ambiguity, the ideal approach would be direct dating of the ink or color (if organic). Here we propose a feasibility study to date carbon-based black inks when deposited on papyrus, one of the most widespread writing supports used in the past. We prepared test samples, using a commercial papyrus and a homemade black ink, obtained combining modern charcoal fragments and Arabic gum. Even though the ink binder might have represented the best candidate to be dated, we verified by FTIR that the molecular composition of its soluble fraction is very similar to papyrus extractives, thus identifying the residual charcoals recovered after extraction as the most suitable material for the measurement. Enough charcoal material was extracted from the test samples and processed using our new setup optimized for microgram-size samples. The overall experimental procedure was found to be reproducible, and measured 14C concentrations were coherent with the data obtained from larger samples and raw materials.

Keywords

inkspapyriradiocarbon AMS datingsmall samples
Type
Conference Paper
Information
Radiocarbon , Volume 62 , Issue 6: Proceedings of the 9th International Symposium , December 2020 , pp. 1707 - 1714
Check for updates
Copyright
© 2020 by the Arizona Board of Regents on behalf of the University of Arizona

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

Footnotes

Selected Papers from the 9th Radiocarbon & Archaeology Symposium, Athens, GA, USA, 20–24 May 2019

References

REFERENCES

Bonani, G, Ivy, S, Wolfli, W, Broshi, M, Carmi, I, Strugnell, J. 1992. Radiocarbon dating of fourteen dead sea scrolls. Radiocarbon 34:843–849.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Christiansen, T, Buti, D, Dalby, KN, Lindelof, PE, Ryholt, K, Vila, A. 2017. Chemical characterization of black and red inks inscribed on ancient Egyptian papyri: the Tebtunis temple library. J. Archaeol. Sci. Rep. 14:208–219.Google Scholar
Donahue, DJ, Olin, JS, Harbottle, G. 2002. Determination of the radiocarbon age of parchment of the Vinland map. Radiocarbon 44:45–52.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fedi, ME, Carraresi, L, Grassi, N, Migliori, A, Taccetti, F, Terrasi, F, Mandò, PA. 2010. The Artemidorus Papyrus: solving an ancient puzzle with radiocarbon and ion beam analysis measurements. Radiocarbon 52:356–363.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fedi, ME, Cartocci, A, Manetti, M, Taccetti, F, Mandò, PA. 2007. The 14C AMS facility at LABEC, Florence. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 259:18–22.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fedi, ME, Bernardoni, V, Caforio, L, Calzolai, G, Carraresi, L, Manetti, M, Taccetti, F, Mandò, PA. 2013. Status of sample combustion and graphitization lines at INFN-LABEC, Florence. Radiocarbon 55:657–664.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Fedi, ME, Barone, S, Barile, F, Liccioli, L, Manetti, M. 2020. Towards micro-samples radiocarbon dating at INFN-LABEC, Florence, Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 465:19–23.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Goler, S, Hagadorn, A, Ratzan, DM, Bagnall, R, Cacciola, A, McInerney, J, Yardley, JT. 2019. Using Raman spectroscopy to estimate the dates of carbon-based inks from Ancient Egypt, Journal of Cultural Heritage 38:106–117.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hendriks, L, Hajdas, I, McIntyre, C, Kuffner, M, Scherrer, NC, Ferreira, ESB 2016. Microscale radiocarbon dating of paintings. Appl. Phys. A 122:167.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hendriks, L, Hajdas, I, Ferreira, ESB, Scherrer, NC, Zumbühl, S, Smith, GD, Welte, C, Wacker, L, Synal, H-A, Günther, D. 2019. Uncovering modern paint forgeries by radiocarbon dating. PNAS 116:13210–13214 CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Lichtfouse, E, Lichtfouse, M, Kashgarian, M, Bol, R. 2005. 14C of grasses as an indicator of fossil fuel CO2 pollution. Environmental Chemistry Letters 3:78–81.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lucarelli, R, Müller-Roth, M. 2014. Forgeries for the Dead: fake specimens of the ancient Egyptian Book of the Dead. IBAES XV – Authentizität:41–49.Google Scholar
Oliveira, FM, Araujo, CAR, Macario, KD, Cid, AS. 2015. Radiocarbon analysis of the Torah scrolls from the National Museum of Brazil collection. Nuclear Instruments and Methods in Physics Research B 361:531–534.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Turnbull, JC, Keller, ED, Norris, MW, Wiltshire, RM. 2016. Independent evaluation of point source fossil fuel CO2 emission to better than 10%. PNAS 113:10287–10291.CrossRefGoogle ScholarPubMed
Steier, P, Liebl, J, Kutschera, W, Wild, EM, Golser, R. 2017. Preparation methods of µg carbon samples for 14C measurements. Radiocarbon 59:803–814.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Winter, J. 1983. The characterization of pigments based on carbon Studies in Conservation 28:49–66.Google Scholar