Abstract
This paper discusses results obtained from in situ analysis of the tesserae of the Roman mosaic of Los Amores (Cástulo site, Linares, Spain) dating back to the turn of the 1st to the 2nd century AD. Specifically, it focuses on the scene The Judgment of Paris. In view of the exceptional state of preservation of the mosaic, from which very few tesserae had fallen off, non-invasive methods with portable Micro Raman Spectroscopy (MRS) and hand-held X-ray fluorescence (hXRF) and data assessment by use of principal component analysis and binary representations were selected. The results obtained allow to evaluate both the analytical method and the portable equipment used, as well as to classify the raw materials, the colouring agents and the opacifiers used. MRS analysis proved crucial for the identification of stone tesserae (ironstones, carbonate and siliciclastic rocks) and for the identification of the type of glasses used (soda-lime-silicate and lead type glasses) based on the analysis of two detached tesserae. hXRF analysis of the glass tesserae identified both colouring agents (Co, Cu, Pb, Zn) and opacifiers (calcium antimonate). The data obtained lend themselves to an assessment of the degradation process that threaten the integrity of the mosaic. The identification of tessera made of specific stone materials (especially ironstone) and of lead glass tesserae suggest the existence of a mosaic workshop in the Upper Guadalquivir (Eastern Andalusia, Spain).
Highlights
The Cástulo Archaeological Zone is located on the right bank of the River Guadalimar, 5 km from the city of Linares (Spain) (Additional file 1: Figure S1)
In contrast to other Roman mosaics [42,43,44], no ceramic tesserae were identified in the Judgement of Paris mosaic
Types of glass matrix In the case of the glass tesserae, is the nature of the chromophore interesting and the type of glass. In this respect, considering the limitations of in-situ Micro Raman Spectroscopy (MRS) and held X-ray fluorescence (hXRF) analyses, we carried out a thorough analysis using MRS laboratory equipment of two individual tesserae that were found detached from but close to the Judgement of Paris mosaic
Summary
The Cástulo Archaeological Zone is located on the right bank of the River Guadalimar, 5 km from the city of Linares (Spain) (Additional file 1: Figure S1). Following the town’s participation in the Second Punic War in 206 BC, it was definitively conquered by Rome under the general Publius Cornelius Scipio From on it was part of the Roman Empire until the crisis that began in the third century AD led to its fall. Cástulo built a water supply network that included aqueducts, pipes, tanks and fountains This period of great splendour in Cástulo during the early Roman period contrasts with the decline it suffered in parallel with the general crisis in Sánchez et al Herit Sci (2021) 9:8 the Empire during the third century AD [1, 2]. The mouth of an ox, Paris’ hand, Hermes’ hair, Athena’s helmet. 18, 19, 20, 23, 45, 59, 60, 87, 88 Clothing, the ear of an ox, the dog at Paris’ side
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