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Kakuee O, Montazer Zohouri M, Abedi A, Biganeh A, Fathollahi V, Mesbahi S, et al . (2022). Analytical Archeometry: Facilities and Research Opportunities. Parseh J Archaeol Stud. 6(20), 345-372. doi:10.30699/PJAS.6.20.345
URL: http://journal.richt.ir/mbp/article-1-571-en.html

Abstract
Archeology is the scientific study of human activity through the recovery and analysis of the remained material culture. The prerequisite for the development of archeological knowledge in the country is access to equipped laboratories, hiring experienced specialists, and expanding national, and international cooperation. Due to rapid advances in instrumental analysis, relevant people in the fields of art and archeometry should be aware of the advantages and limitations of different types of instrumental analysis. In this paper, facilities and research opportunities in analytical archeometry using natural science in Iran are presented and discussed. To introduce the technical capacities of the country in this field, the available equipment and facilities for performing nuclear analysis techniques and their related data analysis are investigated. Moreover, to identify the materials used in the cultural heritage samples and to determine their origin, characterization of some of these samples has been done using nuclear analysis methods. The activities performed in this research include X-ray and neutron imaging of the structure of an ancient jar belonging to the early Qajar period, elemental analysis of miniature in an ancient manuscript using elemental analysis method, investigation of the golden threads in the precious carpet belonging to the Safavid period using elemental and structural, and elemental analysis of luster tiles belonging to the Kashan using elemental analysis. The results of this research show that the existing technical capacities in the country can provide new opportunities for archeologists to understand the nature of the cultural heritage samples in more depth and to provide more accurate analysis of the investigated samples.
Keywords: Analytical Archeometry, Cultural Heritage, Elemental Analysis, Structural Analysis.

Introduction
Archeology is an interdisciplinary science that studies ancient artifacts using analytical methods of various sciences and provides a deep insight into biological, social, cultural, and economic processes, and technologies used by humans throughout history. From the 20th century, cultural heritage researchers used the experts of all sciences and their new methods for the comprehensive reconstruction, biological and cultural transformation of humans, and knowledge of ancient artifacts and previous civilizations. As a result of this synergy, the recognition of cultural findings from archaeological excavations went beyond their mere description and classification, and more detailed analyzes of them were presented. Today’s archeology can be seen as the result of chemical studies in archeology since 1795 in Europe (Pollard, 2007: 5). These studies included preliminary investigations regarding metals, minerals, glass, and some organic remains. In 1853 A.D, in the archaeological reports, the first appendices related to chemical analysis were presented by the archaeologist Austen Henry Layard, which was the beginning of the scientific and systematic cooperation in the two fields of chemistry and archaeology (Layard, 2018: 9).

Materials and Methods
Neutron and X-ray radiography: A jar sample from the Qajar period has been used for radiographic images. Figure .1 shows the results of the experiment. 
PIXE analysis of the miniature: The PIXE analysis of the miniatures from the 15th century is measured in this work. Figure 2. Shows the setup of the experiment. 
Micro-PIXE and RBS of the gold fibers in the Safavid carpet: Figure 3 shows an exquisite carpet from the Safavid period from the Iran carpet museum. The elemental analysis of the fibers used in this carpet is performed by micro-PIXE and RBS. The detail of this experiment is presented in (Torkiha, 2010: 17).
PIXE-PIGE analysis of the Zarrinfam tiles: Figure 4 shows the ancient Zarrinfam tile related to the Tapehsilk shrine in Kashan. To check the presence of the Azure pigments in the blue color, the PIXE-PIGE analysis of the carpet is performed. The detail of this experiment is presented in (Ghadiri, 2015: 9).

Data
The elemental map of the fiber of the carpet obtained by micro-RBS and PIXE is shown in Figure 5. The PIXE and PIGE of the Zarrinfam tiles are presented in Figures 5 and 6, respectively. 

Discussion
The structural investigation of a jar from the Qajar period by the X-ray and neutron radiography showed that neutron radiography can show the detail of the sample. The PIXE analysis of the blue pigment in the miniature shows that the origin of this pigment is Lazorite stone (Kakuee, 2014: 124). The presence of the characteristic element of the mercury in the pink pigment shows that the origin of this color is the mineral Shangerf, which was also used to make red color in the Iranian ancient times. The bright pink color is also due to the green malachite pigment added to the main pigment of Shangerf (Kakuee, 2012: 178). The composition of the elements in the yellow pigment also indicates the use of gold in this pigment in order to increase its brightness. The use of gold to decorate the paintings in this form is still used. Regarding the black color, due to the presence of the characteristic element Mn in this pigment, its origin can be attributed to the mineral Pyrolusite (Clark, 2002: 7).
The micro-PIXE and RBS of the gold fibers in the Safavid carpet shows that there are large amounts of the sulfur element in the composition of all 3 fibers which is related to the silk thread used in making the fibers. The elemental distribution map of all 3 samples shows that gold, silver, and copper were used to make and decorate these fibers. In other parts of the fibers, no other characteristic element indicating the presence of pigment in the fibers was observed. Therefore, the silk used in making these fibers is raw and without dyeing. Micro-PIXE elemental analysis also shows that in the old samples of Golabatoon fibers, a thin layer of gold is covered on silver wires.
The PIXE analysis of the ancient Zarrinfam tile related to the Tapehsilk is performed by WinQxas (WinQxas, 2009) and the PIGE analysis is done by Fitzpeak software (FitzPeaks, 2011). Elements with an atomic number greater than aluminum have been detected using the PIXE analysis and elements F, Na, and Mg have been detected by PIGE analysis. The characteristic element for identifying lapis lazuli is Na, which is detected in large quantities in the samples 2 and 3. The amount of Na element in the sample 1 is very small and sample 4 also lacks this element. To confirm the results, all the 4 samples were exposed to the proton beam. In this case, induced light emission was detected only from the samples 1 to 3. Therefore, we can safely say that sample 4 is not lapis lazuli. Moreover, as shown in Table 2, the high amount of Co element in Zarrinfam tile distinguishes it from lapis lazuli stone. In fact, the combination of Co element with a glaze of Na alkaline elements in the sample is the origin of the azure color in Zarrinfam tile. The results of this research provide a suitable solution for determining the origin of lapis lazuli in the ancient samples and can be a suitable solution for monitoring of the economic and cultural relations of the past.

Conclusion
In this article, the scientific and technical capacities of the country and the active centers in the field of archeology, the state of analysis and software related to the data analysis are presented. To identify the active laboratories in the field of analysis of ancient artifacts, several active laboratories in the field of the analysis of archaeological samples and cultural heritage were introduced in this paper. Moreover, the results of the analytical archeology using several techniques were presented and discussed.