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"Turquoise History."
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A study on the Neolithic turquoises in China
The turquoise objects of the Neolithic Age in China are mainly unearthed in the seven regions: the Central Plains, the Haidai cultural zone, the Gansu-Qinghai-Ningxia region, the Northern Frontier Zone, the upper and middle reaches of the Yangtze River, the lower reach of the Yangtze River and the South China. Their main functions are ornaments and burial objects, and their distribution was expanding constantly from the early to the late Neolithic Age: in the early period, they were only seen in the Central Plains and the Northern Frontier Zone; down to the late period, they were found in all of the seven regions. The forms and types of the turquoise objects were changing from simple to complex and from single object to parts and adornments inlayed or attached to other objects. At the beginning, the manufacturing techniques were relatively simple, but the engraving skill appeared. The turquoise objects were mainly unearthed from burials; when they just emerged, they were not the symbols of the statuses, positions and the wealth as well as genders and ages of the tomb occupants. However, during the Longshan Age, in some regions the turquoise was attached to some exquisite utensils or implements which might be used as ritual instruments, and began to become symbols of statuses and ranks, which was the most obvious in the Haidai area. As for the resources of the turquoise, it is still to be explored that they were imported from the peripheral area of present-day China or obtained locally.
Journal Article
Nothobranchius furzeri, an 'instant' fish from an ephemeral habitat
The turquoise killifish, Nothobranchius furzeri, is a promising vertebrate model in ageing research and an emerging model organism in genomics, regenerative medicine, developmental biology and ecotoxicology. Its lifestyle is adapted to the ephemeral nature of shallow pools on the African savannah. Its rapid and short active life commences when rains fill the pool: fish hatch, grow rapidly and mature in as few as two weeks, and then reproduce daily until the pool dries out. Its embryos then become inactive, encased in the dry sediment and protected from the harsh environment until the rains return. This invertebrate-like life cycle (short active phase and long developmental arrest) combined with a vertebrate body plan provide the ideal attributes for a laboratory animal.
Journal Article
Hierarchy and social inequality in the American Southwest, A.D. 800-1200
Chaco Canyon in northwestern New Mexico has been the focus of much recent archaeological research on Pueblo groups who lived during the 9th through 12th centuries in the American Southwest. Here, we examine variation in mortuary patterns in the canyon, focusing in particular on one mortuary crypt, to address questions of social differentiation and the chronology of important sociopolitical processes. Based on new radiocarbon dates as well as reanalysis of the stratigraphy and spatial distribution of materials in the mortuary crypt, we conclude that significant social differentiation began in Chaco ca. 150-200 y earlier than suggested by previous research. We argue that social inequality was sanctified and legitimized by linking people to founders, ancestors, and cosmological forces.
Journal Article
Age-dependent decline in sperm quality and function in a naturally short-lived vertebrate
Maximizing the life-long reproductive output would lead to the prediction that short-lived and fast aging species would undergo no – if any – reproductive senescence. Turquoise killifish (Nothobranchius furzeri) are naturally short-lived teleosts, and undergo extensive somatic aging, characterized by molecular, cellular, and organ dysfunction following the onset of sexual maturation. Here, we tested whether naturally short-lived and fast aging male turquoise killifish maximize reproduction and display minimal – if any, reproductive senescence. We analysed age-related changes in sperm traits, the proportion of fertilized eggs, as well as embryo survival. Contrary to the expectation of no reproductive aging, we found that turquoise killifish males undergo extensive reproductive aging, consisting in the age-dependent decline in sperm quality, decreased proportion of fertilized eggs and lower embryo survival. Our results indicate that male turquoise killifish do not trade-off age-dependent soma decline with life-long sustained reproductive fitness. Instead, somatic and reproductive aging appear to occur simultaneously. Our findings question generalized soma vs. reproductive senescence trade-off models and highlight the importance of integrating species-specific ecological and demographic constraints to explain observed life history traits.
Journal Article
Turquoise Ornaments and Inlay Technology in Ancient China
Most turquoise objects from early Neolithic sites in China are pendants made of a single material. From the later Neolithic period, however, people started to create turquoise ornaments with two or more composite materials. Ornaments were inlaid with turquoise and other materials using new techniques. In the Early Bronze Age, the turquoise production process reached its peak. At the Erlitou site, archaeologists found a large dragon-shaped turquoise mosaic, a variety of animal-shaped turquoise decorations, and turquoise workshops. The purpose of this paper is to understand the importance of turquoise products in the formation process of early state formation in China by analyzing the following topics: the technological evolution of turquoise manufacture, the combination of composite materials, the use of adhesive in turquoise inlay, and the associated production processes as they developed from the Neolithic to Early Bronze Age.
Journal Article
The Book of Hours of King Francis I of France: History and Gemmological Analysis
The book of hours examined for this study is an illuminated Renaissance masterpiece: a small prayer book bound in enamelled gold and gemstones that was bought in 1538 by King Francis I of France as a probable gift for his niece. In 2018, it was acquired by the Louvre Museum (Paris, France) from S. J. Phillips Ltd in London, and its nearly complete history is documented here. A first gemmological analysis of the stones adorning the book was conducted on site at the Louvre in 2020. The gems consist of carnelian (two intaglios and eight cameos), rubies (27 polished pieces), turquoise (24 cabochons) and rhodolite (one faceted stone in the book's clasp that has been described as tourmaline since 1942). We suggest that most of the rubies were mined from the Mogok area of Burma (now Myanmar). Based on historical considerations, the turquoise could have originated from Persia or possibly Uzbekistan, and the carnelian from either India or Saxony. The faceted rhodolite could have originated from India or Sri Lanka, and was most likely added to the clasp in more recent times, possibly between 1842 and 1884. The Journal of Gemmology, 37(6), 2021, pp. 580-595, [c] 2021 Gem-A (The Gemmological Association of Great Britain)
Journal Article
Exploring the Ubiquitous through the Unusual: Color Symbolism in Pueblo Black-on-White Pottery
One of the common design characteristics on black-on-white pottery from the eleventh and twelfth centuries in the northern American Southwest is the use of thin, parallel lines (hachure) to fill the interior of bands, triangles, or other forms. This essay explores a proposal offered by Jerry Brody that hachure was a symbol for the color blue-green. Brody's proposal is examined by exploring colors and color patterns used to decorate nonceramic material from the Chaco Canyon region of northwestern New Mexico. His proposal is supported and the implications of this conclusion for Chaco Canyon and for future studies of this nature are discussed.
Journal Article
La producción minera en San José del Abra durante el período Tardío atacameño
Este artículo revisa las evidencias arqueológicas asociadas a la explotación de minerales cupríferos en la localidad de San José del Abra durante el período Tardío (ca. 1450-1536 DC). Los sitios estudiados incluyen minas, áreas de trabajo, talleres de chancado, campamentos habitacionales y sitios de tarea, todos agrupados en torno a las principales fuentes de turquesa y de agua de la localidad de El Abra. A partir de una consideración de los sitios, sus materialidades y contextos, así como el patrón de asentamiento a nivel de la localidad, se reconstruyen la organización y el funcionamiento de la explotación minera. This paper analyze the archaeological evidences associated with copper mining in San José del Abra, Northern Chile, during the Late Period (ca. 1450-1536 AD). The sites under study include mining operations, working areas, domestic facilities and task-specific campsites, all of them grouped around the main turquoise and water sources in San José del Abra. Trough the description, analysis and discussion of the sites themselves, its archaeological materials and contexts and the settlement system of this locality, we attempt to reconstruct the organization and functioning of copper mining under Inka rule.
Journal Article