The major- and trace-element whole-rock fingerprints of Egyptian basalts and the provenance of Egyptian artefacts

Discrimination diagrams have been developed that source Egyptian basaltic a rtefacts using whole-rock major element geochemistry. These include K2O ver sus SiO2, TiO2 and P2O5 against MgO/Fe2O3t (total Fe as Fe2O3), and a discr iminant analysis diagram using SiO2, Fe2O3t, CaO, and MnO. A complementary set of diagrams uses easily obtained trace element data (Nb/Y versus Zr/Nb; Zr [ppm] versus Rb/Sr; TiO2 [wt % volatile free] versus V; and Cr [ppm] ve rsus Zr/Y) to determine the bedrock sources. These diagrams have been appli ed to seven First Dynasty basalt vessels (Abydos), two Fourth Dynasty basal t paving stones (Khufu's funerary temple, Giza), and two Fifth Dynasty pavi ng stones (Sahure's complex, Abu Sir). They show that the bedrock source fo r all the artefacts was the Haddadin flow in northern Egypt. Multidimension al scaling and cluster analysis applied to the whole-rock data (major eleme nts and trace elements together) and previously published mineral fingerpri nting studies confirm these results. Comparing mineral versus whole-rock fi ngerprinting techniques, a major advantage of the former is the small sampl e size required (0.001 g compared to greater than or equal to 0.1 g). Analy tical costs are similar for both methods assuming that a comparison (bedroc k) database can be assembled from the literature. For most archaeological p roblems, a whole-rock bedrock database is more likely to exist than a miner al database, and whole-rock analyses on artefacts will generally be easier to obtain than mineral analyses. Whole-rock fingerprinting may be more sens itive than mineral-based fingerprinting. Thus, if sample quantity is not an issue, whole-rock analysis may have a slight cost, convenience, and techni cal advantage over mineral-based methods. Our results also emphasize that t he Egyptians cherished their Haddadin basalt flow and used it extensively a nd exclusively for manufacturing basalt vessels and paving stones for at le ast 600 years (similar to 3150 B.C. to 2500 B.C., approximate ages of the v essels and Abu Sir paving stones, respectively). (C) 2001 John Wiley & Sons , Inc.