Experimental Archaeology

Precision Lost Wax Casting

Author(s)
Nigel Meeks 1,
Caroline Tulp 2,
Anders Söderberg 3 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/3
1999 Wilhelminaoord Workshop
***The limits of precision casting were explored experimentally at the Bronze Casting Workshop at Wilhelminaoord, the Netherlands, by making wax models, moulds and lost wax castings using essentially early metalworking conditions. Geometrically patterned models of Dark Age type dies were used to...

The Experimental Reconstruction in Bronze of a Merovingian Treasure Box from Sixth Century A.D.

Author(s)
Frank Willer 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/3
1999 Wilhelminaoord Workshop
***Considerations about a lost ancient fabrication technique of bronze attachements from a merowingian treasure box pointed out that practical experiments had to be done to reconstruct the cast and coldwork. A self made oven and mould sould help to...

From the Object to the Mould: Is there a Connection between Microstructure of a Cast Bronze Object and its Mould Material Used?

Author(s)
Emanuela Jochum Zimmerman 1 ✉,
Nina Künzler Wagner 2,
Stefanie Osimitz 2
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/3
1999 Wilhelminaoord Workshop
***The question studied within the framework of the Wilhelminaoord Workshop was: In which way the mould material does influence the cast structure of a bronze object? For this, casts in two different mould materials...

Producing Silver Sheet According to Cellini

Author(s)
Martin Damsma 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/3

Experiment

When the subject of techniques of reproduction was raised these questions came back to me. Casting a slab of silver and subsequently hammering it might be a way to answer some of these questions. This would involve following the suggestions of certain treatises in combination with scientific research.

Ancient Repairs on Bronze Objects

Author(s)
Renske Dooijes 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/3
1999 Wilhelminaoord Workshop
***Bronze objects can be damaged in many ways, for example during casting or during their time of use. Often this damage was repaired using various techniques. In this paper, some examples of ancient repairs and their techniques are described and illustrated with examples published in the literature...

The Use of Metal Moulds to Cast Lead Weights onto the Wooden Shaft of a Plumbata

Author(s)
David Sim 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/2
Plumbata - Plural plumbatae. a projectile weapon used during the latter part of the Roman period – a fletched dart. They usually consisted of a barbed iron head with a lead weight fitted to a fletched wooden shaft. Plumbatae have been found on several sites in Britain and abroad and written evidence for their existence has been reported in the fourth century by Vegitius...

Probable Measure Estimating Tool Employed by the Aeneolithic Potters

Author(s)
Eva Lamina 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/2
The article proposes that an item, ornamented with a geometric pattern with inscribed diagonal cross and attributed to the Afanasievo culture (Aeneolithic, South Siberia), represents a primitive tool reflecting practical knowledge of basic geometry by the ancient potters. The article suggests an experimental reconstruction method for crafting the proposed instrument, and...

University of Exeter, Department of Archaeology (UK)

Member of EXARC
Yes

Exeter is a top UK university which combines world leading research with very high levels of student satisfaction. It is one of the UK’s most popular and successful universities with campuses in Exeter, Devon, and near Falmouth in Cornwall. The University also has Project Offices in Shanghai, Beijing and Bangalore.

Exeter is a top UK university which combines world leading research with very high levels of student satisfaction. It is one of the UK’s most popular and successful universities with campuses in Exeter, Devon, and near Falmouth in Cornwall...

The Theory of the Archaeological Raft: Motivation, Method, and Madness in Experimental Archaeology

Author(s)
P.J. Capelotti 1 ✉
Publication Date
EXARC Journal Issue 2012/1

Between 1947 and 2006, nearly forty expeditions set out in recreated maritime drift vessels to demonstrate hypotheses with varying levels of relevance to archaeology and cultural diffusion. This paper divides the motivations of these expeditions into four major categories...