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Applications of Sr Isotopes in Archaeology

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Handbook of Environmental Isotope Geochemistry

Part of the book series: Advances in Isotope Geochemistry ((ADISOTOPE))

Abstract

The inclusion of radiogenic strontium isotope (87Sr/86Sr) analysis in archaeological and bioarchaeological research has resulted in the creation of new data by which to evaluate models of migration, culture change, colonization, trade, and exchange. Overwhelmingly, archaeologists have used radiogenic strontium isotope signatures in human enamel and bone apatite to reconstruct ancient mobility patterns and to distinguish between individuals of local and non-local origins at archaeological sites. The method also has been employed to establish the provenience of artifacts, ancient building materials, and foodstuffs as well as to track the origins and migratory patterns of prehistoric animals. The present chapter provides an introduction to the fundamental principles, approaches, applications, and future directions of radiogenic strontium isotope analysis in archaeology.

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Notes

  1. 1.

    Traditionally, many scholars have used the expression “stable strontium isotopes” when referring to 87Sr/86Sr signatures. In the present chapter, we prefer to employ the phrase “radiogenic strontium isotopes” in reference to 87Sr/86Sr values so as to distinguish this kind of data from recent paleodietary research (Knudson et al. 2010) that utilizes stable δ88Sr/86Sr signatures.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to Dr. Mark Baskaran (Wayne State University) for inviting us to contribute to this volume. We also thank the various grant agencies, especially the National Science Foundation, for their continued financial support of isotopic studies in archaeology. Thanks as well to Elsevier for granting permission to reprint various figures from the Journal of Archaeological Science free of charge. We appreciate Kelly Knudson and colleagues’ willingness to share their then unpublished δ88Sr/86Sr data and methodology with us for inclusion in this chapter. Finally, we thank two anonymous reviewers for their thoughtful comments and suggestions.

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  1. Department of Behavioral Sciences, Santa Rosa Junior College, 1501 Mendocino Avenue, Santa Rosa, CA, USA

    N. M. Slovak

  2. University of California, Santa Cruz, CA, 95064, USA

    A. Paytan

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  1. N. M. Slovak
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  2. A. Paytan
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Correspondence to N. M. Slovak .

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  1. Dept. Geology, Wayne State University, Detroit, 48202, Michigan, USA

    Mark Baskaran

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Slovak, N.M., Paytan, A. (2012). Applications of Sr Isotopes in Archaeology. In: Baskaran, M. (eds) Handbook of Environmental Isotope Geochemistry. Advances in Isotope Geochemistry. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-10637-8_35

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