TY - JOUR
T1 - Bayesian mixing models as a tool to explore Bronze Age bitumen trade from Tell Lashkir (Erbil, Iraq)
AU - Breu, Adrià
AU - Rosell-Melé, Antoni
AU - Molist, Miquel
AU - Bach-Gómez, Anna
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 The Authors
PY - 2022/9
Y1 - 2022/9
N2 - Bitumen from north-eastern Mesopotamian seeps was exchanged across the Tigris and the Euphrates in antiquity. Nonetheless, recent research proposed a decline in its trade during the Bronze Age alongside the boost of central Mesopotamian (Hit) seeps trade. This paper presents new provenance studies from ancient bitumen recovered at Tell Lashkir, a 4th-2nd millennium BC settlement between the lower and upper Zab Tigris tributaries. The novel application of Bayesian mixing models to biomarker and isotopic data has narrowed down the identification of the bitumen putative sources and improved the apportionment of mixtures. This placed Tell Lashkir within the pathway of bitumen active trade routes in the Bronze Age. Thus, the population inhabiting Tell Lashkir participated in exchange networks which reached southern Mesopotamia, and traded with natural resources most probably originating from central and north-eastern Mesopotamia. From a methodological standpoint, the appraisal of the Bayesian mixing models in our study with modern and archaeological reference samples has provided a better understanding of the strengths and limitations of such an approach to apportion bitumen sources from several Bronze age territories.
AB - Bitumen from north-eastern Mesopotamian seeps was exchanged across the Tigris and the Euphrates in antiquity. Nonetheless, recent research proposed a decline in its trade during the Bronze Age alongside the boost of central Mesopotamian (Hit) seeps trade. This paper presents new provenance studies from ancient bitumen recovered at Tell Lashkir, a 4th-2nd millennium BC settlement between the lower and upper Zab Tigris tributaries. The novel application of Bayesian mixing models to biomarker and isotopic data has narrowed down the identification of the bitumen putative sources and improved the apportionment of mixtures. This placed Tell Lashkir within the pathway of bitumen active trade routes in the Bronze Age. Thus, the population inhabiting Tell Lashkir participated in exchange networks which reached southern Mesopotamia, and traded with natural resources most probably originating from central and north-eastern Mesopotamia. From a methodological standpoint, the appraisal of the Bayesian mixing models in our study with modern and archaeological reference samples has provided a better understanding of the strengths and limitations of such an approach to apportion bitumen sources from several Bronze age territories.
KW - Bayesian mixing models
KW - Bitumen trade
KW - Bronze age mesopotamia
KW - Petroleum biomarkers
KW - Tell lashkir
KW - Bayesian mixing models
KW - Bitumen trade
KW - Bronze age mesopotamia
KW - Petroleum biomarkers
KW - Tell lashkir
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85134825187&partnerID=8YFLogxK
UR - https://www.mendeley.com/catalogue/ac515ec4-8c4f-3187-a417-9ee0d3f71b16/
U2 - 10.1016/j.jas.2022.105643
DO - 10.1016/j.jas.2022.105643
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85134825187
SN - 0305-4403
VL - 145
JO - Journal of Archaeological Science
JF - Journal of Archaeological Science
M1 - 105643
ER -