Braden Cordivari

27 January 2026

This month's SAS Executive Board Reading Recommendation comes from Vana Orfanou, VP for Social Media. These reading recommendations are informal and unofficial, highlighting the personal selections of our board members. Papers may be chosen for their novel methodological or theoretical angles, clarity of argument, or engaging topic. (A reminder that SAS members can highlight their own research through our Spotlight program!)

Vana has selected "Tracking Bronze Age ‘itinerant smiths’ in western Poland: insights from Nd and Sr isotope data" by Mateusz Stróżyk et al., which was recently published in Archaeometry. Vana writes: "The paper presents combined insights into the provenance of metallurgical stone moulds via Nd isotopes alongside insights into human mobility via Sr isotopes on human remains from smiths’ graves identified as such from the burial offerings, including the stone moulds. I find this paper particularly exciting for its combination of methods and materials, bringing together material and bioarchaeological insights to address the long-standing question around itinerant smiths during the European Bronze Age. The results of the study, indeed, seem to prove that human mobility was an aspect of early metallurgy." 

Check out the paper (avaialable Open Access) here: 

Braden Cordivari

23 January 2026

The “Synchrotron Radiation for Cultural Heritage Materials – Part 2” webinar took place successfully on Wednesday, 21 January 2026, at 14:00 GMT.

Organized by the SAS Student Ambassadors, the event aimed to foster dialogue between cultural heritage researchers and synchrotron beamline scientists, addressing questions related to technology, provenance, and the preservation of cultural heritage materials.

The program featured two presentations:

• Synchrotron applications on pigments by Marine Cotte (Beamline Group Leader, European Synchrotron Radiation Facility - ESRF, France)
• Synchrotron applications on ancient metals by Emilie Bérard (Assistant Professor, Université Paris-Saclay, France)

There was strong interest in the event, reflected in the number of applications and the active participation during the webinar. It attracted participants from diverse disciplines, including archaeology, natural sciences, and conservation, and from different educational stages, ranging from undergraduate and master’s students to doctoral and postdoctoral researchers, and academic staff.

Stay tuned for more SAS events!

Braden Cordivari

19 January 2026

The SAS Student Ambassadors have organized the “Synchrotron Radiation for Cultural Heritage Materials – Part 2” webinar, which will take place on Wednesday, 21 January 2026 at 14:00 GMT.

Register to attend here: https://forms.gle/yCJTvTJb1d1c4QLy7

This webinar will explore how synchrotron radiation contributes to the study of pigments and metals through selected case studies including XRF, XAS, XRD, CT, which offer insights into composition, microstructure, and alteration processes that are otherwise inaccessible with conventional techniques. Building on examples from current ongoing research by experts in the field, the webinar will highlight how these analytical approaches help archaeologists, conservators, and heritage scientists answer key questions about 𝘁𝗲𝗰𝗵𝗻𝗼𝗹𝗼𝗴𝘆, 𝗽𝗿𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗲, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗽𝗿𝗲𝘀𝗲𝗿𝘃𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻. The webinar also aims to open a dialogue between cultural heritage researchers and synchrotron beamline scientists, laying the groundwork for 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗱𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗶𝗽𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗿𝘆 𝗰𝗼𝗹𝗹𝗮𝗯𝗼𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻𝘀.

Part 2 of the series will focus on Synchrotron applications for pigments and metals.

𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝟏 𝐏𝐢𝐠𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐭𝐬
Speaker: Marine Cotte (Beamline Group Leader, European Synchrotron Radiation Facility, ESRF, France)

𝐓𝐚𝐥𝐤 𝟐 𝐌𝐞𝐭𝐚𝐥𝐬
Speaker: Emilie Bérard (Assistant Professor, Université Paris-Saclay, France)

𝑊𝑒 ℎ𝑜𝑝𝑒 𝑡𝑜 𝑠𝑒𝑒 𝑦𝑜𝑢 𝑎𝑡 𝑡ℎ𝑒 𝑤𝑒𝑏𝑖𝑛𝑎𝑟!
The SAS Student Ambassadors team

Braden Cordivari

11 December 2025

In this new monthly News feature, SAS executive board members will choose a paper they have recently read which caught their interest. These reading recommendations are informal and unofficial, highlighting the personal selections of our board members. Papers may be chosen for their novel methodological or theoretical angles, clarity of argument, or engaging topic. SAS members are reminded that they can highlight their own research through our Spotlight program!

For the first installment, SAS VP for Member Communications Braden Cordivari has picked “Reappraising the Gandhāra still: implications for understanding early distillation technology through experimentation and experimental reconstruction” by Nicholas Groat, published in Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 17. Groat reproduces a set of ceramic vessels found across South-Central Asia between the 2^nd century BCE and the 4^th century CE which are commonly interpreted as a still—i.e., an apparatus for distilling water or oil. Distillation was an important technology for the purification of water and the production of liquids such as alcohol and perfume, for example. In a range of experimental trials, Groat varies parameters such as the duration of heating, the hearth material, and the cooling strategy but is unable to successfully achieve distillation with the vessels due to their morphology. The size and shape of the pots lead to problems of pressurization, sealing, and cooling, which means that liquid does not condense properly. In other words, Groat’s experiments show that the vessels cannot function as a still, and archaeologists must seek other explanations for their use. This study is an interesting example of problem-based experimentation which opens up further questions and avenues for research about the function of the vessels. In addition to archaeologists of South Asia, the paper will be of relevance to those designing experimental materials-based research for its rigorous approach to interrogating different variables of the technological process of distillation.

Groat, N., 2025. Reappraising the Gandhāra still: implications for understanding early distillation technology through experimentation and experimental reconstruction. Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences 17, 194. https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-025-02301-8

Braden Cordivari

04 December 2025

The “Synchrotron Radiation for Cultural Heritage Materials – Part 1” webinar took place on Wednesday, 3 December 2025, at 14:00 GMT with great success.

Organized by the SAS Student Ambassadors, the event aimed to foster dialogue between cultural heritage researchers and synchrotron beamline scientists, addressing questions related to technology, provenance, and the preservation of cultural heritage materials.

The program featured three presentations:

• Synchrotron applications on ancient ceramics by Carlo Marini (Beamline Group Leader, ALBA Synchrotron, Spain)
• Synchrotron-based studies on bones by Simone Lemmers (MSCA Research Fellow, Elettra Synchrotron, Italy) and Ilaria Carlomagno (Beamline Scientist, Elettra Synchrotron, Italy)
• Computed Tomography for cultural heritage materials by Vincent Fernandez (Beamline Scientist, European Synchrotron Radiation Facility – ESRF, France)

There was strong interest in the event, reflected in the number of applications and the active participation during the webinar. It attracted participants from diverse disciplines, including archaeology, natural sciences, and conservation, and from different educational stages, ranging from undergraduate and master’s students to doctoral and postdoctoral researchers, and academic staff.

“Synchrotron Radiation for Cultural Heritage Materials – Part 2” is scheduled for 21 January 2026 at 14:00 GMT and will focus on pigments and metal artifacts. Stay tuned for more information about the registrations.

-Gavriela Logotheou, Lead Ambassador

Braden Cordivari

25 November 2025

The SAS is now accepting nominations for the Charles C. Kolb Award for Archaeological Ceramics for 2025!

Each year the SAS offers an award for the best paper on the science-based study of ceramics in honor of Charles C. Kolb, a life member of SAS for over 30 years and dedicated editor of its Bulletin. Nominations for papers accepted for publication or published within 2025 should be submitted by 31 January 2026. Find out more about the nomination process and eligibility at the link above!