Protocol for lapis lazuli provenance determination: evidence for an Afghan origin of the stones used for ancient carved artefacts kept at the Egyptian Museum of Florence (Italy)

Alessandro Lo Giudice,Laurent Pichon,Maria Cristina Guidotti,Brice Moignard,Alessandro Re,Claire Pacheco,Francesco Taccetti,Gianluca Gariani,Giovanni Pratesi,Thomas Calligaro,Quentin Lemasson,Lorenzo Giuntini,Lisa Castelli,Mirko Massi,Alessandro Borghi,Silvia Calusi,Debora Angelici

doi:10.1007/s12520-016-0430-0

Abstract

Despite that the Badakhshan Province (Afghanistan) remains the most plausible hypothesis for the lapis lazuli used in antiquity, alternatives proposed in literature are worth to study to confirm or disprove their historical reliability. In this work, a protocol for determining the provenance of lapis lazuli rocks used for carved artefacts is described. Markers for the univocal attribution of the raw material to a source were identified analysing 45 rocks of known provenance (among which 15 georeferenced) from 4 quarry districts. To the best of our knowledge, this reference database is the widest in provenance studies on lapis lazuli. All the markers are recognisable by means of Ion Beam Analysis (IBA) techniques, in particular micro-proton-induced x-ray emission (PIXE) and micro-ionoluminescence (IL). These techniques are non-invasive and applicable in air, allowing to analyse artworks and rocks of practically any shape and dimension without sample preparation. The protocol was applied to determine the provenance of raw material used for carved lapis lazuli artefacts kept at the Egyptian Museum of Florence, the second most important Egyptian museum in Italy, second only to the museum of Turin. The collection in Florence has a great historical value and includes several lapis lazuli pendants, scarabs, small statuettes and amulets ascribable mainly to the first millennium BC. Following the protocol, 11 of these artefacts were analysed by means of IBA techniques. Results ascribe the raw material to the Afghan quarry district.

Highlights

Introduction and BackgroundHistorical contextLapis lazuli is a very attractive semi-precious stone
The earliest evidence of the use of lapis lazuli comes from archaeological finds in Mehrgarh (Pakistan) where ornaments in lapis lazuli have been discovered in VII millennium BC burials (Jarrige 1991)
Another work was made by Delmas and Casanova (Delmas and Casanova 1990; Casanova 1992). They compared 21 rocks from 4 sources (Badakhshan, Pamir Mountains, Chagai Hills and Urals Mountains) with lapis lazuli waste products mainly found in the archaeological site of Shahr-i-Sokhta (III millennium BC) in the southeastern part of Iran. Another investigation by means of microdestructive techniques was made by Ballirano (2006) who analysed pigments used in the Sistina Chapel by Michelangelo comparing the results with those obtained on 10 rocks from 4 provenances (Badakhshan, Chagai Hills, Pakistan and Iran)

Summary

Introduction

Lapis lazuli is a very attractive semi-precious stone. The earliest evidence of the use of lapis lazuli comes from archaeological finds in Mehrgarh (Pakistan) where ornaments in lapis lazuli have been discovered in VII millennium BC burials (Jarrige 1991). During the Chalcolithic period, the number of objects made in lapis lazuli increased as confirmed by their dissemination through the Iranian plateau and the Indus Valley. Lapis lazuli played a key role as precious material in the Syro-Mesopotamian area, where the majority of archaeological findings of handworks made of this rock are concentrated. Lapis lazuli was cited many times along with gold, in the first-written poem, the Epic of Gilgamesh. Afterwards, lapis lazuli has been continuously used until the first millennium BC, when it was gradually replaced by other synthetic materials. Its use in glyptic, and as pigment from VII century AD, has continued onward

Methods

Results

Conclusion