The availability of a SXCT (Synchrotron X-ray Computed Tomography) facility at the heart of Southwest Asia facilitates and enhances the non-destructive examination and conservation of ancient vitreous materials of the region, proving the relevance of the technique for archaeologists, museums, and cultural heritage specialists.
In recent measurements at SESAME’s ID10-BEATS beamline, users from Italy, Jordan, Palestine, Switzerland and Türkiye joined SESAME’s beamline scientists, Gianluca Iori, Latif Ullah Khan and Philipp Hans, in the application of Synchrotron X-ray Computed Tomography (SXCT) for the non-destructive analysis of ancient glass, faience, and several other vitreous materials. The results of their work have been published in the Journal of Cultural Heritage
The international and multidisciplinary composition of this team demonstrates not only the wide-ranging applications of synchrotron techniques, but also the collaborative spirit fostered by the Facility. This highlights how SXCT serves as a versatile tool for cultural heritage research across different geographical and academic contexts, and shows its potential to address varied scientific and conservation challenges.
The analysis of archaeological objects poses a set of challenges arising from the fragility and uniqueness of the materials, and requires special non-invasive techniques.
SXCT brings the solution to this as it provides high-resolution 3D X-ray images which, with no invasive techniques likely to damage the objects, permits the understanding of the structure and chemical composition of ancient artifacts. It also reveals details not detectable by conventional techniques.
Thanks to SXCT, researchers are able to examine fragile artifacts, and so understand how they were produced. It also provides information on their aging process, and how they are to be conserved for future generations, and this irrespective of the size of the objects.
Read more on SESAME website
Image: Detector Hasselblad lenses (1x magnification) with ORYS FLIR camera; 4.5 micron voxel size
Credit: SESAME