Abstract
This research was focused on the analysis of material composition and organic residues present in three molds found in the Moravian region (Czech Republic) belonging to the Roman era. X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy pointed out the possible remelting of Roman objects in Barbarian territory. The analysis of organic residues retrieved from the internal part of mold #2 by pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry proved the presence of ozokerite wax (“earth wax”). Consequent analysis of this organic residue by Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe–ion mobility spectrometry–high-resolution mass spectrometry (ASAP-IMS-HRMS) confirmed the presence of ceresin, the main component of ozokerite. Ceresin was also detected in a sample of the organic residue from mold #1. Note that this is the first application of ASAP-IMS-HRMS in archaeological research. The remains of earth wax in molds suggest the production of wax models as an intermediate stage for the production of lost-wax ceramic casting molds.
Highlights
The study of the production of non-ferrous metal objects in Central European Barbaricum is one of main tasks in the current research of the Roman era [1,2,3,4,5,6]
The recent chemical analysis of a metal mold belonging to Urnfield culture (1300–800/750 BC) proved the presence of carbon and beeswax in the inner part of the mold using infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS)
The aim of this article is to perform detailed chemical analysis of three casting molds originating in the Roman era using pyrolysis-gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (PyGC/MS), Atmospheric Solids Analysis Probe–ion mobility spectrometry-high-resolution mass spectrometry (ASAP-IMS-HRMS) and X-ray fluorescence spectrometry (XRF)
Summary
The study of the production of non-ferrous metal objects in Central European Barbaricum is one of main tasks in the current research of the Roman era [1,2,3,4,5,6]. The recent chemical analysis of a metal mold belonging to Urnfield culture (1300–800/750 BC) proved the presence of carbon and beeswax in the inner part of the mold using infrared spectroscopy and gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). This study revealed that animal waxes (such as beeswax), and mineral ones were used. These waxes are commonly considered mineraloids (i.e., non-crystalline substances). The main representative of the group of mineraloids is ozokerite, called “earth wax” [10,11]. This mineraloid can be found in bituminous deposits of Miocene age, close to oil-bearing deposits (including huge natural deposits in southeastern Poland and the northwestern Ukraine) [12]. GC/MS [13,14,15,16], pyrolysis-GC/MS [13,17] and vibrational spectroscopy [12] were used
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