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Quantifying histological changes in archaeological bones using BSE–SEM image analysis
Author(s) -
Turner–Walker G.,
Syversen U.
Publication year - 2002
Publication title -
archaeometry
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.716
H-Index - 67
eISSN - 1475-4754
pISSN - 0003-813X
DOI - 10.1111/1475-4754.t01-1-00078
Subject(s) - diagenesis , bioerosion , geology , consistency (knowledge bases) , mineralogy , materials science , computer science , artificial intelligence , oceanography , coral
Recent years have seen rapid developments in the understanding of diagenetic changes to archaeological bones. In particular, the degradation or preservation of proteins and other biomolecules has been explored using an increasingly sophisticated battery of analytical techniques. Problems remain, however, in correlating these parameters with physical changes to bone that may be observed microscopically. This is due, in part, to the problems in reproducibly quantifying histological changes to archaeological bone. This paper introduces a novel method for the accurate quantification of these changes employing image analysis of SEM images. Self–consistency of results was tested using measurements of total calcium content at different magnifications. The term ‘bioerosion index’ is suggested for the measured parameter.