GlobaLID – Global Lead Isotope Database (Version 12/2023)

Cite as:

Westner, Katrin J.; Rose, Thomas; Klein, Sabine; Hsu, Yiu-Kang; Becerra, María Florencia; Nezafati, Nima; Renson, Virginie; Stephens, Jay (2023): GlobaLID – Global Lead Isotope Database (Version 12/2023). V. 1.1. GFZ Data Services. https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2023.043

Status

I N R E V I E W : Westner, Katrin J.; Rose, Thomas; Klein, Sabine; Hsu, Yiu-Kang; Becerra, María Florencia; Nezafati, Nima; Renson, Virginie; Stephens, Jay (2023): GlobaLID – Global Lead Isotope Database (Version 12/2023). V. 1.1. GFZ Data Services. https://doi.org/10.5880/fidgeo.2023.043

Abstract

This dataset is a continuously growing collection of lead isotope reference data. Lead isotopes are an
established method to reconstruct the raw material provenance of archaeological objects. They are
typically applied to artefacts made of copper, lead, silver, and their alloys. However, also the raw ma-
terial provenance of other materials such as glass, pigments and pottery was already investigated us-
ing lead isotopes.

To successfully reconstruct the origin of the raw material, lead isotope signatures from as many as
possible suitable raw material occurrences must be known. In the past, large-scaled research projects
were carried out to characterise ore deposits especially in the Mediterranean area and Western Eu-
rope. However, many of these data are dispersed in the literature and were published in scientific
articles or monographs. Consequently, each researcher or at least each research group had to build
their own up-to-date database of reference data from the literature. To overcome these restrictions,
to facilitate work with lead isotope reference data and particularly to make the data FAIR, i.e., finda-
ble, accessible, interoperable and reusable (Wilkinson et al. 2016), these published data are compiled
and transferred into a uniform layout. They are further enhanced with additional metadata to facili-
tate their use in raw material provenance studies.

Currently, the database is restricted to ores and minerals as these are the most relevant materials for
provenance studies of ancient metals. Future updates will include hitherto uncovered regions but
also additional data from countries already present. Slag and other metallurgical (by-) products from
ancient sites in close vicinity to ore deposits generally are a genuine representation of the ores uti-
lised in historic times. As such, they are highly relevant for provenance studies and an extension to
these materials is therefore planned.

GlobaLID is a representation of the collective work of researchers on Pb isotope studies. As such, the
database is seen as a community engagement project that invites scientists all over the world to be-
come active contributors of GlobaLID. The initiators of the database dedicate their effort to the con-
tinuation and maintenance of the database but only the support of the whole community will allow a
rapid and successful growth of GlobaLID.

Authors

Westner, Katrin J.;Forschungsbereich Archäometallurgie, Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum, Bochum, Germany
Rose, Thomas;Goethe-Universität Frankfurt, Institut für Geowissenschaften, Frankfurt, Germany
Klein, Sabine;Forschungsbereich Archäometallurgie, Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum, Bochum, Germany;FIERCE, Frankfurt Isotope &Element Research Center, Goethe Universität, Frankfurt am Main, Germany;Institut für Archäologische Wissenschaften, Ruhr-Universität Bochum, Bochum, Germany
Hsu, Yiu-Kang;Forschungsbereich Archäometallurgie, Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum, Bochum, Germany
Becerra, María Florencia;CONICET (Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas) - División Arqueología, Museo de La Plata, Facultad de Ciencias Naturales y Museo, Universidad Nacional de La Plata, Argentina
Nezafati, Nima;Forschungsbereich Archäometallurgie, Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum, Bochum, Germany
Renson, Virginie;Archaeometry Laboratory, Research Reactor Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA
Stephens, Jay;Archaeometry Laboratory, Research Reactor Center, University of Missouri, Columbia, MO, USA;School of Anthropology, University of Arizona, Tucson, AZ, USA

Contact

GlobaLID Core Team; Forschungsbereich Archäometallurgie, Leibniz-Forschungsmuseum für Georessourcen/Deutsches Bergbau-Museum Bochum, Germany;

Contributors

GlobaLID Core Team; Fischer-Lechner, Sabine; Killick, David; Pryce, T. O.; GlobaLID Core Team

Keywords

raw material provenance, chemical > isotope, chemical element > element of group IV > lead, chemical element > transition element > copper, chemical element > transition element > silver, industrial process > metal working > metal smelting, industry > metallurgical industry > non-ferrous metal industry, lithosphere > mineral > metallic mineral > non-ferrous metal, resource utilisation, resource utilisation > extraction, resource utilisation > extraction > mining