X-Radiography of Knossian Bronze Age Vessels: Assessing our Knowledge of Primary Forming Techniques

WHEN Wilhelm Rontgen discovered X-rays in 1895, this opened up a new way for people to ʹlook through thingsʹ (Rontgen 1896). While the first published images demonstrated the techniqueʹs potential for medical uses, X-rays of Peruvian and Egyptian mummies soon established its potential also for archaeological applications (Culin 1896; Petrie i8g8). However, it was only in the 1930s that archaeologists began to employ X-rays for artefacts. Since then, X-radiography has become a tried and tested tool for the investigation of paintings, metals, ceramics, textiles, stone, and paper objects as well as geoarchaeological applications to soils and sediments (for a useful summary, see Lang and Middleton 2005). Among the most common uses of X-radiography of cultural materials are: (1) identification of the object and its condition; (2) identification of manufacturing method(s); (3) identification of material (s); (4) identification of joins, faults, breaks, repairs and reuse; (5) identification of finishing methods and decoration; (6) identification of forgeries. Given its range of applications, X-radiography has become a particularly valued tool among museum and gallery conservators (Gilardoni 1994; Graham and Eddie 1985; Lang and Middleton 2005). More recently, scholars and practitioners have been exploring the potential of other radiological techniques, such as stereoradiography, computer-assisted tomography (CAT) and microfocus radiography; their application to cultural material, especially regarding the study of mummies, is expanding rapidly (Halmshaw 1995; Vandiver et al. 1991; Lang et al. 2005).