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Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology pp 5605–5611Cite as

Organic Residue Analysis in Archaeology

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Introduction

Organic residues of substances that were used in the past can survive as visible amorphous residues or trapped in the porous of archaeological materials, such as ceramic matrix or plasters. The study of these residues has relied on the possibility of identifying markers or indicators of the different substances (biomarkers) that survive through time and different postdepositional environments (Evershed 1993, 2008a).

The study of these residues that can be performed with a number of analyses, instruments, and extraction methods has provided archaeologists with interesting data on different aspects of the ancient way of life.

Historical Background

As Evershed has recently shown, a major influence in the development of the field was the emergence of a new generation of analytical chemical methodologies in the middle of the twentieth century that enabled complex environmental materials to be studied in increasingly fine detail (Evershed 2008a). Nevertheless, it was the...

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Equip de Recerca Arqueològica i Arqueomètrica de la Universitat de Barcelona (ERAAUB), Departament de Prehistòria, Història Antiga i Arqueologia, Facultat de Geografia i Història, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain

    Alessandra Pecci

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  1. Alessandra Pecci
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Correspondence to Alessandra Pecci .

Editor information

Editors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Archaeology, Flinders University, Adelaide, SA, Australia

    Claire Smith

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Pecci, A. (2014). Organic Residue Analysis in Archaeology. In: Smith, C. (eds) Encyclopedia of Global Archaeology. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-1-4419-0465-2_334

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