Feature Papers

Social media marketing communication is among the current strategies used to provide visibility to cultural heritage, sales promotions being especially relevant. Nevertheless, despite the fact that social media has now built significant momentum, there is still a dearth of research on the relationship between social marketing activities and brand equity. In this context, this study seeks to determine how the use of promotional discounts and free gifts on social media contributes to building heritage brand equity. To pursue this research aim, a quasi-experimental study was designed and carried out among online users, based on two promotional stimuli (discount vs. free gift). The findings suggest that gifts perform better in terms of increasing brand equity, except where the user presents a high level of sales promotion-proneness, in which case promotional discounts are more effective. Full article

The article presents two aspects of a project of high-resolution mapping of archaeological features in the southern region of Israel, which was conducted intermittently between 2003 and 2016. One aspect is archaeological, with emphasis on the dense features underlying the area on the periphery of ancient settlements; the second aspect is the objective of integrating the data in multidisciplinary environmental studies. The main conclusion derived from the mapping project is that the existing data in the databases and publications, despite their richness, will not suffice and that there is a need to return to the field and supplement the features in accordance with the aims of the study. Sorting the collected features is a no less complex challenge, as is the relationship with the settlements in question. This challenge calls for expertise gained from cumulative experience gained in fieldwork, for the simple reason that the features date from different periods, and the potential correlation of certain features with a specific settlement is the test. This kind of upgrading with regard to the archaeological aspect in multidisciplinary environmental studies is critical because, in our view, the archaeological data lag behind the technological development of accompanying research, including research that has employed remote sensing as well as a variety of laboratory tests. It has been found that quite a few of these advanced studies use terms such as “site”, which in many cases is no more than a point indicating the general location of feature distribution. The same applies to the use of dating as a preferred goal before investing the necessary effort in sorting the features. If this effort is not invested first, there is no way of conclusively determining what is being dated and how dating a specific object contributes to understanding the settlement distribution in a region. Full article

This paper is concerned with a morphological-stylistic and archaeometric study of two small pottery statues, confiscated by the Cosenza Carabinieri Unit for the Protection of Cultural Heritage and Anti-Counterfeiting (Calabria, Italy). The research aimed to establish the authenticity of the artworks and to verify a possible origin from the same workshop manufacturing, by providing indications about the textural features and raw materials used for their production. For these purposes, the analytical approach involved the use of minero-petrographic and physical analysis, as follows: petrographic analysis (OM), X-ray diffraction (XRD) and thermoluminescence tests (TL). The preliminary observation, which highlights differences in the stylistic features of the two statuettes as well as in the color, morphology and distribution of the white-greyish patina, is further confirmed by the TL investigations. The TL test revealed an ancient production only for one of the analyzed finds and the investigations on the raw materials allowed to relate this to a possible local historical-artistic context. The second statuette, on the other hand, is attributable to a modern production as confirmed by TL measurement. Full article

Urban art as a shared expression of street art between artists, citizenship and municipalities has always had an important role in the social life and appearance of modern cities. However, the durability of urban and street artworks is susceptible to the degradation processes that the employed commercial paint formulations undergo once outdoors. These are complex mixtures of compounds, differently sensitive to environmental agents according to their chemical nature. Starting from the colorimetric analysis of murals created in 2010, 2011 and 2018 in Reggio Emilia, Italy, documenting their degradation already after a few months, this study aimed at understanding the stability of the most unstable paints used by the artists in these artworks. A multi-analytical approach evaluated the commercial products under the chemical point of view, after natural and accelerated ageing. Additionally, two manufactured anti-UV varnishes were evaluated for their possible use as coatings. The results pinpointed the weaknesses of the selected paints and highlighted how the application of an anti-UV coating might slightly affect the visual aspect of the artwork, though ensuring a greater resistance to the outdoor conditions due to their minor chemical sensitivity to environmental agents. Full article

Francisco Conde-Valvís’s so-called “stone treasure” is a set of unique carved stone pieces, such as bases, column shafts, a mortar, and decorated fragments (trisqueles and rosettes), found during the 2018 excavation campaign in the Cibdá de Armea (Allariz, Ourense). They had been piled up and re-buried—no records existed as to where—at the western end of the Finca de A Atalaia, which was excavated in the 1950s under the direction of Conde-Valvís and began to be excavated again in 2011. The thorough review of the graphic and textual material available from the old excavations allowed us to determine the original archaeological context of the pieces. Most of these elements belonged to the atria of the so-called “Domus of Hexasquel” (North house) and “Domus of the Rosette” (South house). Once we established the origin of all the elements, especially with the aid of the old photographs, it was decided to reintegrate them into the site, to increase the educational and interpretive value of Armea, instead of burying them indefinitely in the warehouses of a museum. Full article

In the framework of the IH-AT (Invisible Heritage Analysis and Technology) project, a cluster of churches ranging from the 11th to the 16th centuries, located in the Troodos Mountain range of Cyprus, designated by UNESCO as World Heritage monuments, were investigated using Non-Destructive-Techniques (NDT) (geophysical and topographic survey), 3D modelling and visualisation methods, contextualised and interpreted by art-historical and archaeological research. A geophysical survey, performed using a Ground Penetrating Radar (GPR), specifically aimed to confirm the presence or absence of buried features of archaeological interest at each of these sites, in particular, evidence of monastic complexes and buildings that used to surround preserved churches. This paper describes the preliminary results of this survey and some initial interpretations concerning what new information can be discerned about the now lost monastery complexes, in advance of future excavation. Full article

The invention of European hard porcelain, which aims at imitating kaolin-containing white paste of Chinese porcelain, had been started by the development of the technology of “red porcelain”, so-called “Jaspisporzellan” by Johann Friedrich Böttger in the early-eighteenth century at Meissen (Saxony). The visual features of the earlier Böttger red stoneware were rather similar to the one produced in Yixing, China. The prominence of Böttger productions allowed the manufacturing to be expanded across Europe to different countries (Holland, England, France, etc.). In this study, the chemical characteristics of nine European unglazed objects produced in England, France, Russia, and Holland from the 17th to 19th century and 10 Chinese (unglazed or enameled) red stoneware have been studied by using an on-site characterization technique pXRF. The results were compared with the previous studies carried out on 25 unglazed, polished, and non-polished Böttger artefacts. This non-invasive, speedy technique allows a methodology to be created for distinguishing the technological differences related to the provenance and authenticity of the artefacts. The elemental measurements explicitly show the significant discrepancy of Dutch objects from the main group, which involves other European and Chinese ones. Both a Lambertus van Eenhoorn (Delft) statue and an Ary de Milde (Delft) teapot are distinguishable from other European red stoneware by the high content of iron and calcium and high content of titanium and potassium, respectively, found in their body compositions. An overall comparison was made between the measurements made at different times in order to evaluate the error range arising from the measurement procedure (e.g., energy resolution of other series of the same instrument model). Full article

This paper focuses on the Hellenistic Middle East, especially the age of Ptolemaic Alexandrian and Syrian Seleucid influence. It investigates and clarifies some of the Hellenistic-age historical and archaeological material culture within the Hellenisation and globalisation conceptions. Furthermore, it suggests that by reviewing the context of the local socio-cultural identities in the Hellenistic Oikoumene, mainly based on the lingua franca about local identity and how the local identity was expressed on coinage during Hellenistic times, many related insights issues can be revealed. In addition, it also attempts to discuss and reveal aspects of the cultural sharing achievements in Hellenistic art, architecture, and urban built environment planning. Finally, how did Eastern Hellenistic cities manage to benefit from the process of Hellenistic globalisation and localisation/globalisation while minimising identity risks? The focus is on the transnational socio-cultural and economic area of Ptolemaic Alexandria, the centre of the post-Classical Greek world, and the Syrian Seleucid influence. As an investment, mass migration and the transfer of goods, culture, and ideas increasingly transformed these Middle Eastern cities and shaped their translocal culture conception, local socio-cultural identities, cultural sharing, art and architecture edifice forms, and spatial patterns in the Hellenistic period. One of the main contributions and significance of this study is to continue the dialogue of how non-Greek influence in Hellenistic times impacted an area that has been traditionally seen as unaffected or minimally affected by years under foreign rule. This also sheds new light on some Greco-Macedonian topics not sufficiently debated in the Oikoumene discussion dialogue. These two aspects would furthermore contribute to better understanding and accepting the neglected role of the contribution of non-Greek culture to Greek achievements, as well as how the local non-Greek customs of the indigenous peoples of the Ptolemy and Seleucid kingdoms would affect how they assimilated Greco-Macedonian practices, and how the vision of Alexander the Great and Hellenisation worked in the different territories of these two kingdoms. Full article

This study focuses on Aomori, a prefecture situated in the northern part of the Japanese main island Honshu. Riding on the popularity of time-slip-themed entertainment, Aomori began to brand itself as a place where people can experience a time-travel journey to the Jomon, the Japanese prehistoric era. Through this study, we investigated the practice of Aomori to incorporate fantasy in its heritage tourism. Mixed-method research was used to retrieve and analyze information about Aomori and its Jomon-themed time-slip tourism, including desk research and word frequency analysis. While selling fantasy in tourism is a not-so-new topic, the Aomori case shed light on the alternative strategy that regional areas can consider. The prefecture showed us the prospect to combine fantasy and the local culture to attract younger tourists and dedicated pop-culture fans to visit the local attractions. It also demonstrated the potential of thematic fantasy in heritage tourism, especially archaeotourism, often perceived as boring by the younger generation. Additionally, the Aomori case indicated the importance of tourism infrastructure, creative marketing, and innovation in heritage tourism. It further signifies the importance of speeding up digital transformation for the future of heritage tourism. Full article

The Roman site of Carnuntum was once a flourishing center on the frontiers of the Roman Empire. In its heyday as the capital of the province of Pannonia superior, Carnuntum probably covered an area of almost 9 km². The whole site was divided into a military settlement (castra and canabae legionis) and a civil town (municipium/colonia). Through a large-scale archaeological prospection project, this huge area could be investigated and analyzed in great detail using a wide variety of nondestructive prospection methods. One of the main discoveries of the project was observed in the military settlement, where it was possible to identify a previously unknown military camp, interpreted as the garrison of the governor’s guard, the castra singularium. Through the topographic analysis of the immediate surroundings, the Roman fort was determined to be embedded in a large administrative complex related to the governor’s seat in Carnuntum. This article presents these new discoveries and shows what an important part they formed in the administration of the Roman province of Upper Pannonia. Full article

A diachronic, multi-analytical approach combining EDXRF, µFTIR, µRaman, SEM-EDS, and Py-GC/MS has been adopted with the aim to study for the first time the painting materials used to decorate Egyptian funerary masks and sarcophagi ranging from the Late Period to the Roman Period and stored in the Archaeological National Museum (MNA) and the Carmo Archaeological Museum (MAC) of Lisbon and the Natural History Museum of the University in Oporto (MNH-FCUP). Results indicate that yellow and red ochres, realgar, cinnabar, Egyptian blue, and Egyptian green were used as pigments while chalk served as the preparatory layer. Over the 1000-year timeline of the studied artifacts, the palette remained remarkably consistent with previous findings as exemplified by cinnabar being used for red pigments in samples only dated after the Ptolemaic period. The presence of Sn in Egyptian blue and Egyptian green pigments used in one sample suggests the use of recycled bronze scraps during pigment production. Black pigments in two Late Period masks were found to be produced by mixing Egyptian blue with red ochre suggesting either a hitherto unknown method for production of purple pigments in the Egyptian palette or, alternatively, an attempt to create a specific hue or shade of dark brown or black. The results of this study contribute to further expand the database of Ancient Egyptian painting materials while at the same time helping to valorize three important Egyptian collections in Portugal. Full article

Architectural heritage conservation in recent years has hinged on conventional methods and has failed to recognize innovative methods and emerging technologies. Consequently, in Nigeria, suboptimal conservation work results in the continual deterioration of architectural heritage, leading to the loss of heritage and its values and significance. The study, therefore, sought to examine challenges and prospects for implementing innovative techniques in the conservation of architectural heritage in Nigeria. The study examined three heritage conservation interventions in Nigeria, focusing on the applicability of innovative conservation methods for documentation, diagnosis, and treatment of deterioration of architectural heritage. Questionnaires were administered through purposive sampling to 40 heritage conservation professionals, with 31 (77.5%) completed and returned for analysis. A Cronbach’s alpha reliability test value of 0.76 established the validity of the research instrument. The findings affirmed that heritage professionals have low familiarity (mean value of 2.19) with innovative techniques for conservation of architectural heritage. Of the respondents, 41.9% had gained a minimal level of technical knowledge of how to implement innovative techniques in conservation interventions. Improving the performance of conservation interventions also ranked highly as a potential strength of implementing innovative techniques. Conclusively, there is a need to improve advocacy and training in innovative conservation techniques based on their ability to characterize architectural heritage materials and investigate their chemical composition, microstructure, and morphological features. Full article

Green contemporary art conservation cleaning methods are explored as sustainable museum practices, ensuring the conservator’s health and reducing the environmental impact. The performance of selected biodegradable cleaning agents, namely deionised (DI) water, a chelate based on trisodium salt of methylglycinediacetic acid (MGDA), Trilon^® M, a non-ionic surfactant based on alkoxylated fatty alcohols (Plurafac^® LF900), and two solvents, limonene and ethyl lactate, was evaluated for the surface cleaning of polymethyl methacrylate (PMMA), polylactic acid (PLA), polypropylene (PP), and plasticized polyvinyl chloride (pPVC). Plastic mockups were used untreated or artificially soiled, simulating particulate matter or sebum stains produced by handling. Furthermore, the efficacy of ink removal from the plastic’s surface was evaluated. Surface examination was carried out using optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy (SEM), and atomic force microscopy (AFM), while μ-Raman and gloss measurements complemented the cleaning assessment methodology. The cleaning agents’ potency depends on the type of plastic, precluding a general cleaning protocol. However, their cleaning efficacy is very promising, enriching the available choices for the cleaning of plastics, using sustainable materials and practices. This study offers valuable information to the conservation field regarding the effects of the selected biodegradable cleaning agents on each type of plastic, their application method, and their cleaning efficacy for the removal of different types of soil and ink. Full article

As a social species, humans have developed soundscapes that surround, and to some extent circumscribe, their daily existence. The concept of aural heritage, its conceptualization and its management represent a rapidly expanding area of research, covering aspects of both natural and human heritage. However, there have been no contemporary regional or supra-regional studies that examine the nature of sound making in Christian religious settings, nor the extent to which it is still used. This paper presents the results of a survey into the presence of bells and bell ringing practices among five major Christian denominations in New South Wales, and examines to what extent bell ringing is still practiced and what factors may determine any differentiation. In doing so, it provides an objective basis from which to investigate future changes in bell ringing practices, and provides a solid foundation with reference to aural heritage of sound in a religious setting. Full article

This article explores the role that heritage might play in the representation of ‘difference’, within the context of neoliberal cities. The case is a large-scale urban change in the former working-class neighborhood of Gamlestaden, Sweden. Interviews and on-site observations revealed how authorized heritage practices can enable the celebration of particular social and cultural values, while naturalizing the erasure of others. People’s cultural diversity, and diverging interpretations of the past, have been guided by the power of heritage into a process of subjectification, according to which only ‘unthreatening’ forms of cultural diversity were celebrated and revealed legitimate. The ‘fetishized’ difference and particular historical records have served to conceal the political interest at stake in its’ production and maintenance, and led to a politicised representation of cultural diversity through what Annie Coombes’ terms ‘scopic feast’. All this was made possible through BID, the first neoliberal business improvement district model in Sweden, and its investment in a deeply rooted process of heritageisation. Uncritical engagement with difference in the context of heritage management and neoliberal urban development, make it appear almost natural to erase the cultural values that fall outside the authorized narrative of value. Full article

A postcard ‘craze’ engulfed the developed world and colonial world during the end of the nineteenth and the beginning of the twentieth century, when over 2.3 million picture postcards were mailed in 1904 alone. Formally published picture postcards can provide a rich source of information for heritage studies as they depict landscape scenery, towns, individual buildings and public plantings such as parks. The evidentiary value of late nineteenth and early twentieth century postcards depends on the veracity of the depicted image. While based on photographs, processes of postcard production allowed the publisher to modify the original imagery to improve the messaging entailed in the image. Modes of image manipulation, such as retouching, can sufficiently alter the content of the image to create limitations to using published postcard imagery as a tool for historic landscape and building analysis. This is the first paper to systematically discuss the process of postcard production and the manipulation of images depicted on the view size of picture postcards. It demonstrates that where evidentiary emphasis is placed on postcard images, it is imperative that a systematic search for variants is carried out. Full article

The aim of this study was to identify the nature and cause of foxing spots in a historical manuscript. This manuscript was a Holy Quran from the beginning of the Qajar period and the end of the 18th century. Samples were incubated for 14 days and were evaluated for the presence of fungal activity. UV fluorescence photography, micro X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy were also used to investigate the characteristics and causes of foxing spots. The results showed that there was no fungal activity in the foxing spots of this manuscript. Based on the morphology of the stain in UV fluorescence photography, these foxing stains are of the Bullseye type, usually associated with metal ions. µXRF spectroscopy also showed a high accumulation of iron and copper at the site of these spots. This indicates abiotic foxing in this manuscript. Based on FTIR spectroscopy and peak deconvolution and fitting by Gaussian function, abiotic foxing increases the cellulose oxidation rate. Intensification of cellulose oxidation in foxing stains can be considered as one of the reasons for paper discoloration. Full article

Ground-penetrating radar has emerged as a prominent non-destructive evaluation tool for the study of inaccessible subsurface elements of cultural heritage structures. Often of central interest is the desire to image the remains of a pre-existing historic structure that is located directly beneath a more recently built one. The interpretation of GPR images in such cases is usually difficult due to ambiguities caused by the presence of pervasive clutter, environmental noise, and overlapping target signatures. Sites with abundant ground truth allow for more confident interpretations and serve as a useful testbed to assist similar studies at other places, where little or no ground truth is available. This study reports GPR interpretations of structures belonging to the 19th century Citadel beneath the main prison cellhouse at Alcatraz. At this site, lidar scans, direct observations, and historical documents are available to facilitate identification of radar target signatures. A general interpretation of the acquired radargrams is made in this paper, while the companion paper presents more advanced analysis of target signatures based on curvelet image processing. This study points to the development of a radar facies classification scheme that is specific to cultural heritage investigations. Full article

In the present report, we offer a novel way for studying (via optical and digital means) features in Renaissance and Leonardo’s (and of course any other painter who followed this canon) paintings, based on a software that separately recognizes white, red, green, blue colors and measures the intensity of single bright spots in canvasses. After mapping the distribution of individual colors, the software proposes a trajectory considering the different geometrical and topological aspects. What we propose here is not just a variant of known methods for discovering the color distribution in a painting; on the contrary, it represents a new way to find unknown parameters in any Renaissance painting. In addition, via multispectral and hyperspectral analyses and image processing, the developed software permitted us to monitor the decay of some pigments in these canvasses at macro- and microscopic levels. Full article

The consequences of the coronavirus pandemic are and will continue to be devastating for the tourism sector, especially for the cultural one. It is necessary to reflect on the new strategies to be adopted to deal with the heavy losses that the world of cultural heritage is suffering. The great archaeological attractions will no longer be able to accommodate the prepandemic numbers and therefore we must also think of alternative routes to present the minor heritage of our country. In recent years, our experience has allowed us to realize an open-air museum project in bioarchaeological sites (archaeological cemetery areas characterized by the recovery of human remains) that are part of an archaeological heritage that is little known, but which reserve great dissemination and fruition potential. The design of an archaeological itinerary, even a virtual one, which includes the bioarchaeological sites that we are musealizing, could offer a new visiting experience, especially in this difficult moment for all of us. Full article

In the late 19th century, ancient tombs were discovered near the village of Vohemar at the northeastern point of Madagascar, and subsequent excavations during the French period (1896–1945) revealed the presence of a major necropolis active from ~13th to 18th centuries. Some artefacts (Chinese ceramic shards and glass trade beads) recovered from these excavations was sent to France and now in part belong to the collection of the Musée d’Histoire Naturelle, Nimes. Carnelian and glass trade beads were analyzed with a mobile Raman spectrometer, which identified different materials (soda-lime glass, quartz/moganite, carnelian/citrine, chalcedony) and coloring agents (Naples yellow, cassiterite, amber chromophore, transition metal ions, etc.). The results are compared with those obtained on beads excavated at different sites of Southern Africa and at Mayotte Island, and it appears that (most of) the beads come from southern Asia and Europe. The results confirmed the role that northern Madagascar played within the maritime networks of the Western Indian Ocean during the 15th–16th century. Full article

The majority of architectural heritage consists of load-bearing masonry components made up of stone units and relatively weak mortar joints, yielding potential weak planes for masonry structures where tension and shear failures are expected to occur. Advanced nonlinear analyses are required to simulate these phenomena and predict the corresponding nonlinear structural behavior of historic masonry constructions. In this context, this paper presents a model of a stone masonry Roman aqueduct (the Valens Aqueduct), constructed in the fourth century A.D. in Istanbul, Turkey, to explore the seismic capacity and behavior using the discrete element method (DEM). The employed modeling approach comprises distinct rigid blocks interacting along their boundaries based on the point-contact hypothesis. Thus, the discontinuous stone skeleton of the masonry aqueduct is represented explicitly in the computational model. First, a validation study was conducted on the laboratory experiment to demonstrate the capabilities of the adopted modeling approach. Then, a discontinuum model representing the Valens Aqueduct was used to assess the seismic capacity of the structure under gradually increasing lateral forces. The numerical simulations gave insight into the structural response of the aqueduct from the elastic range to total collapse. Additionally, parametric research was performed considering joint properties, namely the joint tensile strength, contact stiffness, joint friction angle, and compressive strength of the masonry, to quantify the effects of contact parameters on the displacement response of the DEM model. Further inferences were made regarding the modeling parameters, and practical conclusions were derived. Full article

A physical process is characterized as complex when it is difficult to analyze and explain in a simple way, and even more difficult to predict. The complexity within an art painting is expected to be high, possibly comparable to that of nature. Herein, we apply a 2D stochastic methodology to images of both portrait photography and artistic portraits, the latter belonging to different genres of art, with the aim to better understand their variability in quantitative terms. To quantify the dependence structure and variability, we estimate the Hurst parameter, which is a common dependence metric for hydrometeorological processes. We also seek connections between the identified stochastic patterns and the desideratum that each art movement aimed to express. Results show remarkable stochastic similarities between portrait paintings, linked to philosophical, cultural and theological characteristics of each period. Full article

Important features required for gels used for the cleaning of paintings are viscoelastic properties ensuring good adaptability to the morphology of the surfaces and complete gel removal after application. Poly (vinyl alcohol) (PVA)-borax gels containing different liquid phases are often used as cleaning materials, but still little is known about their ability to leave no residues. This study reports the development of an analytical method based on attenuated total reflectance–Fourier transform infrared (ATR-FTIR) spectroscopy and pyrolysis–gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (Py-GC/MS) for the identification of PVA-borax gel residues on mock-ups and on works of art after cleaning treatments. The effect of additives in the formulation (i.e., poly (ethylene oxide)) and of clearing treatments with organic solvents after the gel removal was assessed both with respect to the effectiveness of the cleaning and the presence of residues on the painted surfaces. The results obtained show that clearing the surfaces with cotton swabs and organic solvents after the application of the gel is necessary to ensure a good removal of gel residues. Moreover, Py-GC/MS analyses in single-ion-monitoring (SIM) mode are more sensitive and selective, allowing the detection of gel residues even on surfaces where no residue is detected by ATR-FTIR. Full article

Salt inhibitors have been receiving increasing attention as potential innovative systems to counteract salt damage by preventing crystallisation of the salts within the natural stone structure—and related disruptive action—of built heritage. Especially, we focus on biomass-derived inhibitor systems featuring complete solubility in water or alcohol and intrinsic non-toxicity. Moving from the promising results obtained, the present study aims to develop research concerning the possibility of rationalizing the collected data sets and making them amenable to statistical analysis. This paper reports on an exploratory application of one of the most powerful methods in chemometrics, i.e., principal component analysis (PCA), in this area. It will be seen that this method is a promising tool to extract information from a series of tests to optimize them and to reduce the level of “noise” present in the data collected, i.e., unnecessary information or experimental errors, and to suggest new directions. Full article

The Washington Arms Limitation Treaty 1922 was arguably one the most significant disarmament treaties of the first half of the 20th century. It can be shown that the heritage items associated with this treaty are still extant. Ship’s bells are one of the few moveable objects that are specific to the operational life of a ship and are therefore highly symbolic in representing a vessel. This paper surveys which bells of the ships scrapped under conditions of the Washington Arms Limitation Treaty are known to exist. A typology of ship’s bells has been developed to understand the nature of bell provisioning to vessels newly commissioned into the U.S. Navy. Each of the countries associated with the Washington Treaty have divergent disposal practices with respect to navy property, and this is reflected in both the prevalence and nature of custodianship of ship’s bells from this period. Such procedures range from the U.S. requirement commanding all surplus Navy property to be deemed government property upon ship deactivation, to the British practice of vending ship’s bells to private parties at public sales. However, ship’s bells, like many obsolete functional items, can be regarded as iconic in terms of heritage and therefore warrant attention for future preservation and presentation in the public domain. Full article

Anthropogenic carbonates are pyrotechnological products composed of calcium carbonate, and include wood ash, lime plaster/mortar, and hydraulic mortar. These synthetic materials are among the first produced by humans, and greatly influenced their biological and cultural evolution. Therefore, they are an important component of the archeological record that can provide invaluable information about past lifeways. One major aspect that has been long investigated is the possibility of obtaining accurate radiocarbon dates from the pyrogenic calcium carbonate that makes up most of these materials. This is based on the fact that anthropogenic carbonates incorporate atmospheric carbon dioxide upon the carbonation of hydrated lime, and thus bear the radiocarbon signature of the atmosphere at a given point in time. Since plaster, mortar, and ash are highly heterogeneous materials comprising several carbon contaminants, and considering that calcium carbonate is prone to dissolution and recrystallization, accurate dating depends on the effectiveness of protocols aimed at removing contaminants and on the ability to correctly identify a mineral fraction that survived unaltered through time. This article reviews the formation and dissolution processes of pyrogenic calcium carbonate, and mineralogical approaches to the definition of a ‘dateable fraction’ based on its structural properties. Full article

In this paper, we present the web-based, open source software OpenAtlas, which uses the International Council of Museums’ Conceptual Reference Model (CIDOC CRM), and its possible future potential for the acquisition, analysis and dissemination of a wide range of archaeological and historical data on a landscape basis. To this end, we will first introduce the ongoing research project The Anthropological and Archaeological Database of Sepultures (THANADOS), built upon OpenAtlas, as well as its data model and interactive web interface/presentation frontend. Subsequently, the article will then discuss the possible extension of this database of early medieval cemeteries with regard to the integration of further archaeological structures (e.g., medieval settlements, fortifications, field systems and traffic routes) and other data, such as historical maps, aerial photographs and airborne laser scanning data. Finally, the paper will conclude with the general added value for future research projects by such a collaborative and web-based approach. Full article

Climate change increases not only the vulnerability of cultural resources, but also the cultural values that are deeply embedded in cultural resources and landscapes. As such, heritage managers are faced with imminent preservation challenges that necessitate the consideration of place meanings during adaptation planning. This study explores how stakeholders perceive the vulnerability of the tangible aspects of cultural heritage, and how climate change impacts and adaptation strategies may alter the meanings and values that are held within those resources. We conducted semi-structured interviews with individuals with known connections to the historic buildings located within cultural landscapes on the barrier islands of Cape Lookout National Seashore in the United States (US). Our findings revealed that community members hold deep place connections, and that their cultural resource values are heavily tied to the concepts of place attachment (place identity and place dependence). Interviews revealed a general acceptance of the inevitability of climate impacts and a transition of heritage meanings from tangible resources to intangible values. Our findings suggest that in the context of climate change, it is important to consider place meanings alongside physical considerations for the planning and management of vulnerable cultural resources, affirming the need to involve community members and their intangible values into the adaptive planning for cultural resources. Full article

The state of preservation of built heritage monuments is often evaluated by means of several destructive techniques, which are mainly focused on the analysis of small parts of the monuments’ construction materials. The necessary sampling for the accomplishment of these destructive analyses is usually restricted to confined parts of a monument, since monuments are usually under protective legislation, and therefore only indicative of larger areas. Current research attempts to enhance the results of provided by destructive methods, using non-destructive image processing techniques. Towards this end, the potential use of image processing based on rectified images is examined, along with material sampling and laboratory analyses as part of a multi-disciplinary methodology for the investigation of Paphos (Cyprus) Harbour Castle. This approach has been adopted in order to map the degradation patterns observed on the monument’s masonry walls, minimizing destructive methods and attempting to visualize the results of the monument as a whole. The combination of both analytical and non-destructive techniques resulted in the acquisition of large amounts of information, permitting the evaluation of applied non-destructive techniques for the study of the deterioration present on a monument’s external surfaces. This approach led to the assessment of the overall state of preservation of the masonry walls of the structure in an extended scale covering all external façades in a semi-automatic way. Full article