Microscopic fibres in soils – The accumulation of textile fibres and animal hairs at the 6th–11th-century CE Kvarnbo Hall settlement site on the Åland Islands, Finland
Loading...
Access rights
openAccess
publishedVersion
URL
Journal Title
Journal ISSN
Volume Title
A1 Alkuperäisartikkeli tieteellisessä aikakauslehdessä
This publication is imported from Aalto University research portal.
View publication in the Research portal (opens in new window)
View/Open full text file from the Research portal (opens in new window)
Other link related to publication (opens in new window)
View publication in the Research portal (opens in new window)
View/Open full text file from the Research portal (opens in new window)
Other link related to publication (opens in new window)
Date
2023-02
Department
Major/Subject
Mcode
Degree programme
Language
en
Pages
10
Series
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, Volume 47, pp. 1-10
Abstract
Microscopic animal and plant fibres detected in archaeological contexts are a valuable source of information regarding textile production, use-histories of artefacts and in studying mortuary practices. At the same time, recent research on microplastic pollution has revealed the ability of fibres to move even long distances and accumulate in various terrestrial and aquatic contexts. In this paper we discuss the accumulation of 100–1000-µm-long animal hairs, bird feather barbules and textile fibres at Kvarnbo Hall, a Nordic Late Iron Age high-status settlement site in the Åland Archipelago, Finland. The hairs and barbules detected in soil samples reveal important information on the use of furs and downy feathers at the site. However, our study reveals that the microparticles sampled in the 6th–11th-century contexts represent not only the prehistoric phase of the site but can also be ascribed to the later land-use history of the area. We also speculate that long-distance air-borne particles might be one possible contamination source of fibres.Description
Publisher Copyright: © 2022 The Authors
Keywords
Air-borne particles, Animal hairs, Contamination, Cotton, Fibres, Microscopy
Other note
Citation
Kirkinen, T, Wright, K, Suomela, J & Ilves, K 2023, ' Microscopic fibres in soils – The accumulation of textile fibres and animal hairs at the 6th–11th-century CE Kvarnbo Hall settlement site on the Åland Islands, Finland ', Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports, vol. 47, 103809, pp. 1-10 . https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2022.103809