Extremely magnified views of archaeological artifacts display their extraordinary hidden beauty and reveal intriguing clues as to how they were manufactured and used long ago.
For example, a Persian textile from the 17th century contains silk thread of silk thread wrapped separately with thin strips of metal. And the microstructure of a needle from Cyprus retains the touch of the person who formed it, in traces of dark corrosion that emerged when the needle was twisted and hammered.
These and other zoomed-in archaeological images are on display in a new exhibition called “Invisible Beauty: The Art of Archaeological Science, “which opens Jan. 16 at the Penn Museum in Philadelphia.
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In another striking image, a bit of basalt glistens in a ceramic roof tile from Gordion, a site in Turkey that was inhabited during at least 2300 BC during the Early Bronze Age (the tile dates from the first half of the sixth century BC). Basalt, a volcanic rock, looks dull and black to the naked eye. But when viewed in a polarized light under a microscope, it shines with vivid colors.
Inclusions such as basalt in a roof tile can tell archaeologists whether the tile was manufactured or imported locally, and this information can help them compile historical trade routes and exchange networks, said Marie-Claude Boileau, co-curator of the exhibition and director of the Penn Museum’s Center for the Analysis of Archaeological Materials (CAMM).
The image is not only because of the color-saturated crystals, but also for the story it tells, she tells WordsSideKick.com.
“We are also trying to figure out the technology of those who made the tiles – how they mixed the clay and how they added any kind of inclusions, including the pieces of basalt,” she said. All the images in the exhibition were executed at CAMM, mostly by undergraduate and graduate students.
Since the invention of the microscope in the 16th century, scientists used magnification and light to look at organisms and structures that are too small to be seen with the naked eye. Powerful modern microscopes provide a glimpse into worlds that researchers could only dream of seeing centuries ago, such as a water flea that gives birth, vessels that surround the brain of a juvenile zebrafish and proportionate footage of individual living cells in 3D.
Discoveries of ancient mummies, long lost present, tools, jewelry, and other articles help experts compile mankind’s past, and imaging technologies allow scientists to conduct non-invasive investigations that do not damage delicate materials. With microscopy, X-rays, magnetic radiometry, and infrared and ultraviolet light, scientists can have access to hidden evidence about ancient societies.
“People are really used to seeing archaeologists digging in the field; we really wanted to show the scope of the analysis we can do,” Boileau said. “Even from the smallest piece of an artifact or specimen, we get a lot of information about the past.”
Originally published on Live Science.