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I have twice written proposals to the National Science Foundation for funds to hire a part-time graduate student to assemble an atlas of prehistoric and historic slags (most macroscopic and microstructural) on CD-ROM or DVD. Both times the idea has been shot down by reviewers (archaeologists), which goes to show that archaeometallurgy isn't even on the radar for most archaeologists in the USA. I'm very glad to hear that Evelyne is able to start putting together an on-line atlas and will be glad to contribute materials for the slag and ore microscopy sections. I would urge however that higher resolution micrographs be made available on CD-ROM / DVD, or else put in an archive from which they can be downloaded by fttp. The compromises adopted for reasonably fast web delivery of images in atlases of microstructures currently posted, such as the copper microstructures ( http://www.copper.org/resources/properties/ microstructure/homepage.html) or Rob Ixer's pioneering Atlas of Opague and Ore Minerals in their associations (http://www.smenet.org/ opaque-ore/) often make it hard to see exsolution laminae, eutectoid structures or the fine gradations in color typical of compositional zoning in crystals. This is the Achilles heel of web-hosted atlases of microstructures - note especially the Brtish Steel online altas of iron and steel microstructures at http://www2.umist.ac.uk/material/ research/intmic/mterials/britstel/britstel.htm#bainite. Unfortunately all the evident care that went into the construction of this site is negated by the fact that the micrographs are basically uninterpretable except by those who already have extensive knowledge of the relevant microstructures! Dave Killick On Apr 26, 2006, at 7:30 AM, James Brothers wrote: > Any recommendations on good books/articles on slag analysis? > Another list I'm on is asking. I know of some, but I'm hoping that > there are some newer ones. Audience is archaeologists and > historians, not archaemetallurgists, chemists and physicists. So > they are probably more interested in basics rather than phase > diagrams. Although a few advanced references for the brave of heart > would be a good idea. > > thank > James Brothers