Dear ZOOARCHers: I am faced with a heap of shells (principally oysters)
from an inland southern English town, from both Roman and Saxo-Norman
deposits. The source(s) on the coast from which these are being imported
would be a great help in understanding trade connections and transport
efficiency. Epifauna are not likely to help, since all the likely routes
are to south and SW (i.e: warmer-water) coasts. I know that there are
metal isotope studies for bronze object provenance, and some on human
dentition which can discriminate between European and Near Eastern
populations. I also know that there are metal isotope studies on marine
shell, but these are mainly geo-chemical for sea-temperature
reconstruction. A search on ZOOARCH reveals Pb was suggested for sourcing
walrus ivory, but the results were not listed.
Does anybody know of studies of metal isotopes of biogenetic carbonate to
provide provenance, especially in marine shell?
Greg Campbell
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