85-97

Articles

• Iordanidis, A.
• Garcia‐Guinea, J.

Black, red and brown coloured surfaces of several ancient potsherds from an archaeological site of northern Greece, dated from the prehistoric (16th c. BC) to the Hellenistic (3rd c. BC) era were analysed by Raman microspectroscopy, non‐destructive X‐Ray Diffraction (XRD), Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy coupled to Energy Dispersive system (ESEM‐EDX) and Thermogravimetry (TG). Black colour comprises of amorphous carbonaceous material and iron oxides (hematite and/or magnetite), red colour is due to hematite (the raw material being iron oxides and hydroxides either from an ochre deposit or an iron‐rich clay deposit) and brown from a mixture of hematite and calcite. The decoration seems to have been applied before firing, and the colours were obtained of mixtures of specific proportions of the main constituents and by controlling the kiln atmosphere (combined reducing and oxidizing). The possibility of post‐firing decoration on the prehistoric sample is also discussed.

• History and Archaeology
• Earth and related Environmental sciences

• Αρχαιολογία

pigments, Raman, XRD, ESEM‐EDX, TG/DTG

Corresponding author: aiordanidis@yahoo.co.uk, We acknowledge the financial support of project CGL2009‐09247 of the Spanish Plan Nacional I+D+i and the SYNTHESYS Project ES‐TAF‐258 of the European Community, giving access to the research infrastructures of the Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), Madrid, Spain. We are also grateful to the Greek archaeological authorities (Archaeological Museum of Aiani) for providing the samples. The help of the technicians Rafael Gonzales‐Martin, Laura Tormo and Manuel Castillejo Magarin of the MNCN is gratefully acknowledged. We are also indebted to two anonymous referees for their constructive comments.