OVERVIEW

Petroarcheometry is the subject of study that allows to place stones and lithic materials (for example: ceramics, plasters, mortars) in space (provenance) and time (geological age / age of the artefact). The teaching course is declined towards the lifecycle of the raw materials of the archaeological past.

The theoretical and practical teaching includes basic notions of mineralogy, and of the genesis and petrographic classification of igneous, sedimentary and metamorphic rocks. Ornamental rocks and ceramic materials significant in the archaeological field are addressed in exercises under the optical microscope, in the classroom collections and in surveys at museums and sites, linking the methods of studying rocks with the communities that have used them.

AIMS AND CONTENT

LEARNING OUTCOMES

Educational objectives of the petroarchaeometry teaching are: i) to make the student able to identify and classify rocks, tracing them back to the area of geological origin. ii) to enable the student to observe, understand and describe composite materials of lithic origin (ceramics, mortars, plasters); iii) to illustrate, and apply in laboratory exercises, on collections and on the ground, bulk and in situ analytical methods for understanding the composition the textural and mechanical characteristics of geomaterials.

AIMS AND LEARNING OUTCOMES

The course provides:

the notions of basic mineralogy, igneous, sedimentary, metamorphic petrogenesis. Having acquired the tools to use the genetic criterion in distinguishing the 3 main groups of rocks, the program includes the classification diagrams to give the correct nomenclature to the stones. The geolithological cartography is the tool to connect geomaterials and support provenance studies.

Educational objectives of the petroarcheometry teaching are: i) to make the student able to identify and classify rocks, tracing them back to the area of ​​geological origin. ii) to enable the student to observe, understand and describe composite materials of lithic origin (ceramics, mortars, plasters); iii) illustrate, and apply in laboratory exercises, on collections and on the ground, bulk and in situ analytical methods for understanding the composition and the textural and mechanical characteristics of geomaterials.

The exercises on the collection of stone are aimed at demonstrating, making people understand and apply the procedure for analyzing a rock. The integration of the different passages leads to naming the stone with scientifically correct diagrams.

Another specific training objective for the archaeological field is the ability to identify and classify a stone and correlate the identification with the area of ​​origin. Suitable examples from different prehistoric and historical eras will be the subject of discussion. There will be exercises in the laboratory, on the departmental collections and on the ground.

PREREQUISITES

The essential basic notions of mineralogy will be provided at the beginning of the course.

TEACHING METHODS

The lessons will be held in the presence. Attendance, although not compulsory, is recommended. Students who attend classes in presence are considered to be attending. The teacher, upon specific request of each student, allows the remote use of the lessons (and / or related recordings) through the Teams platform; in this case, however, the students will be considered not attending. Due to the intersection of theoretical activities and practical exercises, attendance is highly recommended. In case of impossibility to attend a significant fraction of the lessons, the student is invited to contact the teacher to agree on a supplementary programme.

Teaching methods are: Frontal lessons in the classroom. The lectures are delivered through power point presentations, and consultation of websites. Practice. The practical exercises are based on demo analyzes and discussions on specimens from the DISTAV didactic collection of rocks. The rock samples are discussed b2b and if necessary with the help of a 3D projector. At the end of the course there will be an exercise at the Electron Microscopy Laboratory and / or an on-site inspection. Indoor exercises take place in classrooms equipped with microscopes and specific lighting. Students are required to equip themselves with a 10x lens and a steel tip to carry out the so-called scratch test (relative micro-hardness).

Students with certified DSA, disabilities or other learning disorders are invited to contact the teacher and the School/Department's relevant officer at the beginning of the course, to agree on possible teaching arrangements that, while respecting the teaching objectives, take into account individual learning methods

SYLLABUS/CONTENT

Origin of igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks.
Principles of classification of igneous, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks.
Macroscopic recognition methods, notes on other methods.
Physical and mechanical properties of rocks.

Presence of defects in ornamental stone; color; pigmentation and color stability. Alteration and durability.

The material lithic culture through the ages, from the Neolithic to the modern age.

RECOMMENDED READING/BIBLIOGRAPHY

L. MORBIDELLI, Le rocce e i loro costituenti. Bardi Ed.2014

E.M. WINKLER, Stone in architecture. Springler Verlag, Berlin, 1994

Siegesmund S, Snethlage R. (eds) 2011. Stone in Architecture, Properties, Durability Fourth edition, Springer, DOI 10.1007 / 978-3-642-14475-2

A copy of the Power Point used in class is available (downloadable from the WEB classroom).

TEACHERS AND EXAM BOARD

Exam Board

LAURA GAGGERO (President)

PIETRO MARESCOTTI

LESSONS

LESSONS START

September 25, 2024

Class schedule

The timetable for this course is available here: Portale EasyAcademy

EXAMS

EXAM DESCRIPTION

Please refer to the AulaWeb specific teaching  for any updates due to changes in the health and epidemiological situation.

The examination is an oral test. Questions on the contents of the course are the bulk of the examination. Secondly, the comprehension of a thematic book chapter or scientific article assigned by the teacher will be verified by the preparation of a power point presentation to be discussed.

ASSESSMENT METHODS

The exam is oral and consists of a question on the classification criteria of the rocks. If the need to verify the ability to identify the elements of a rock emerges from the question, the student may be submitted a sample of stone material for discussion.

This is associated with the critical reading and return in the form of a power point presentation of a scientific article, generally in English, on an agreed topic. The oral exam is conducted by two tenured professors (or in limited cases by a tenured professor and a subject expert designated by the CCS) and lasts for about 30 minutes.

The exam assesses logic, the appropriate use of technical-scientific language, the ability to apply what has been learned in the classroom. The exam tends to verify, through questions from simple to complex, the depth and correctness of knowledge (notions), the ability to organize them in a rational scheme, the ability to correlate related topics.

The sufficient mark corresponds to the ability to classify a rock (magmatic, sedimentary or metamorphic) with the nomenclatural criteria, motivating its application.

Exam schedule

FURTHER INFORMATION

The Regular frequency is strongly recommended. The course includes laboratory exercises and technical visits to selected destinations (monuments / laboratories / museums / quarries).

Students who have valid certification of physical or learning disabilities on file with the University and who wish to discuss possible accommodations or other circumstances regarding lectures, coursework and exams, should speak both with the instructor and with the Department’s disability liaison.