Degree Year
2011
Document Type
Thesis - Open Access
Degree Name
Bachelor of Arts
Department
Anthropology
Advisor(s)
Amy Margaris
Committee Member(s)
Jack Glazier
Sam Stout
Baron Pineda
Jason Haugen
Keywords
Burnt bones, Bone color, Cremation, Munsell, Spectrophotometer, Jordan, Bronze Age, Bab edh-Dhra
Abstract
This research examined a collection of burnt bones from Bab edh-Dhra, an Early Bronze Age site on the Dead Sea Plain of Jordan.The goal of the research was to determine if the bones were accidentally or intentional burnt, and intentionally burnt might indicate cremation as part of the mortuary practices at Bab edh-Dhra. The bones were examined using two systems of color measurement, Munsell Soil Color charts and CIE L*a*b* spectrophotometer. Whether CIE L*a*b* was an effective alternative to Munsell color charts was also evaluated during the research. It was concluded that the bones likely did not represent intentional cremation. It was also demonstrated that CIE L*a*b* spectrophotometer is an effective alternative to Munsell color charts in analyzing burnt bones.
Repository Citation
Wolf, Aaron B., "Determining Whether Spectrophotometer CIE L*a*b* Color Analysis is an Effective Alternative to Munsell Soil Color Charts for the Study of Burnt Bones: Insights From Analysis of Bab edh-Dhra EB II-III Burnt Bones" (2011). Honors Papers. 429.
https://digitalcommons.oberlin.edu/honors/429
