Portable NIR Raman microspectroscopy investigation on Early Bronze IV pottery (2500–1950 BCE) from Khirbat Iskandar, Jordan

Portable Near Infrared Micro-Raman (NIR μ-Raman) spectroscopy was used, as a preliminary and non-destructive technique, in order to investigate the mineralogical composition of a group of pottery sherds from Khirbat Iskandar, Jordan. Preliminary results show that the ceramic body is composed mainly of quartz, calcite, and minor amounts of feldspars and hematite. In addition, the presence of Olivine and anatase, important markers to identify the provenance of raw materials, was detected. Furthermore, the occurrence of Portlandite was related to both rehydration of calcite and burial alteration processes. Finally, a study of Raman spectrum of Amorphous Carbon, identified as temper in the clay, was performed to estimate the manufacturing parameters (maximum temperature and permanence time).