Stone axes, petrographic analysis and prehistoric exchange
This project has developed in collaboration with Dr. John E. Dixon (School of Geosciences, University of Edinburgh). It is shedding new light on the raw materials and exchange of ground stone tools (mainly axes/adzes) in southern Italy, Sicily, the Aeolian and Maltese islands. We are particularly interested in the sources of basaltic rocks and greenstones, including serpentine, nephrites and sodic pyroxenes (jades). So far we have examined implements in several museums in Italy and elsewhere, for which we intend to produce a series of published reports:
a) Aeolian Museum, Lipari
b) National Archaeology Museum of Palermo, Sicily
c) Regional "Paolo Orsi" Museum of Archaeology, Syracuse, Sicily
d) Archaeological Museum of Adrano, Sicily
e) Museum of Morgantina, Aidone (EN) Sicily
f) National Archaeology Museum, Valletta, Malta (Brochtorff Circle excavations)
g) Peabody Museum of Archaeology and Ethnology, Harvard University, Cambridge (USA)
h) British Museum, Dept. of Prehistoric and Romano-British Antiquities
i) Cambridge University Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, Cambridge
The majority of green serpentine and nephritic axes most likely come from South Italian sources (Calabria-Basilicata) or possibly from northeastern Sicily (Peloritani mountains). An alpine origin is still proposed for those relatively few sodic pyroxene (jadeite) implements from central-southern Italy and Sicily. Most utilitarian ground stone tools or 'work axes' in eastern Sicily are made of basaltic rocks from the Etna and/or Hyblaean region, whereas Calabrian equivalents are more often made of diorite and granulites. Recently we identified a series of implements in the Aeolian islands and Sicily made of sillimanite/fibrolite (figs.1-2), for which the geological source is, as yet, unknown.
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Fig 1 Sillimanite/fibrolite adze from Sicily |
Fig.2 Sillimanite/fibrolite axe thin section |
Most of our analyses to date have been by means of petrographic thin sections.
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Fig.3 Nephrite adze, Sicily |
Fig.4 Morgantina, basaltic axe, thin section |
Publications
Dixon, J.E., Leighton, R., Malone, C., and Trump, D. in preparation. Ground and Polished Stone. Final report on the Brochtorff Circle excavations, Malta.
Brown, C., Dixon, J.E. & Leighton, R. 1995. Stone axes and stone axe pendants. In Malone, C., Stoddart, S., Bonanno, A., Gouder, T. and Trump, D. Mortuary Ritual of 4th Millennium BC Malta: the Zebbug Period Chambered Tomb from the Brochtorff Circle at Xaghra (Gozo). Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 61, 303-45
Leighton, R. and Dixon, J.E. 1992. Alcune considerazioni sulle asce levigate in Italia meridionale ed in Sicilia. In E. Herring, R. Whitehouse & J. Wilkins (eds) Papers of the fourth conference of Italian archaeology, 3. New developments in Italian archaeology: 19-28. Accordia Research Centre, London
Leighton, R. 1992. Stone axes and exchange in South Italian prehistory: new evidence from old collections. Accordia Research Papers 3, 1-28
Leighton, R. and Dixon, J.E. 1992. Jade and greenstone in the prehistory of Sicily and Southern Italy (J.E. Dixon joint author). Oxford Journal of Archaeology 11.2, 179-200
Leighton, R. 1989. Ground stone tools from Serra Orlando (Morgantina) and stone axe studies in Sicily and Southern Italy. (With contributions by J.E. Dixon and A.M. Duncan). Proceedings of the Prehistoric Society 55, 135-59
Grants/funding awarded:
University of Edinburgh, Kerr-Fry award
University of Edinburgh, Munro Committee grant
Dr M. Aylwin Cotton Foundation