Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge.
Little is known of the properties of the sarsen stones (or silcretes) that comprise the main architecture of Stonehenge. The only studies of rock struck from the monument date from the 19th century, while 20th century investigations have focussed on excavated debris without demonstrating a link to s...
Guardado en:
| Autores principales: | , , , , , , , , , , , , , , |
|---|---|
| Formato: | article |
| Lenguaje: | EN |
| Publicado: |
Public Library of Science (PLoS)
2021
|
| Materias: | |
| Acceso en línea: | https://doaj.org/article/7506a53a2f954addbf42b26ff4bb5459 |
| Etiquetas: |
Agregar Etiqueta
Sin Etiquetas, Sea el primero en etiquetar este registro!
|
| id |
oai:doaj.org-article:7506a53a2f954addbf42b26ff4bb5459 |
|---|---|
| record_format |
dspace |
| spelling |
oai:doaj.org-article:7506a53a2f954addbf42b26ff4bb54592021-12-02T20:18:47ZPetrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge.1932-620310.1371/journal.pone.0254760https://doaj.org/article/7506a53a2f954addbf42b26ff4bb54592021-01-01T00:00:00Zhttps://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0254760https://doaj.org/toc/1932-6203Little is known of the properties of the sarsen stones (or silcretes) that comprise the main architecture of Stonehenge. The only studies of rock struck from the monument date from the 19th century, while 20th century investigations have focussed on excavated debris without demonstrating a link to specific megaliths. Here, we present the first comprehensive analysis of sarsen samples taken directly from a Stonehenge megalith (Stone 58, in the centrally placed trilithon horseshoe). We apply state-of-the-art petrographic, mineralogical and geochemical techniques to two cores drilled from the stone during conservation work in 1958. Petrographic analyses demonstrate that Stone 58 is a highly indurated, grain-supported, structureless and texturally mature groundwater silcrete, comprising fine-to-medium grained quartz sand cemented by optically-continuous syntaxial quartz overgrowths. In addition to detrital quartz, trace quantities of silica-rich rock fragments, Fe-oxides/hydroxides and other minerals are present. Cathodoluminescence analyses show that the quartz cement developed as an initial <10 μm thick zone of non-luminescing quartz followed by ~16 separate quartz cement growth zones. Late-stage Fe-oxides/hydroxides and Ti-oxides line and/or infill some pores. Automated mineralogical analyses indicate that the sarsen preserves 7.2 to 9.2 area % porosity as a moderately-connected intergranular network. Geochemical data show that the sarsen is chemically pure, comprising 99.7 wt. % SiO2. The major and trace element chemistry is highly consistent within the stone, with the only magnitude variations being observed in Fe content. Non-quartz accessory minerals within the silcrete host sediments impart a trace element signature distinct from standard sedimentary and other crustal materials. 143Nd/144Nd isotope analyses suggest that these host sediments were likely derived from eroded Mesozoic rocks, and that these Mesozoic rocks incorporated much older Mesoproterozoic material. The chemistry of Stone 58 has been identified recently as representative of 50 of the 52 remaining sarsens at Stonehenge. These results are therefore representative of the main stone type used to build what is arguably the most important Late Neolithic monument in Europe.David J NashT Jake R CiborowskiTimothy DarvillMike Parker PearsonJ Stewart UllyottMagret DamaschkeJane A EvansSteven GoderisSusan GreaneyJennifer M HuggettRobert A IxerDuncan PirrieMatthew R PowerTobias SalgeNeil WilkinsonPublic Library of Science (PLoS)articleMedicineRScienceQENPLoS ONE, Vol 16, Iss 8, p e0254760 (2021) |
| institution |
DOAJ |
| collection |
DOAJ |
| language |
EN |
| topic |
Medicine R Science Q |
| spellingShingle |
Medicine R Science Q David J Nash T Jake R Ciborowski Timothy Darvill Mike Parker Pearson J Stewart Ullyott Magret Damaschke Jane A Evans Steven Goderis Susan Greaney Jennifer M Huggett Robert A Ixer Duncan Pirrie Matthew R Power Tobias Salge Neil Wilkinson Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge. |
| description |
Little is known of the properties of the sarsen stones (or silcretes) that comprise the main architecture of Stonehenge. The only studies of rock struck from the monument date from the 19th century, while 20th century investigations have focussed on excavated debris without demonstrating a link to specific megaliths. Here, we present the first comprehensive analysis of sarsen samples taken directly from a Stonehenge megalith (Stone 58, in the centrally placed trilithon horseshoe). We apply state-of-the-art petrographic, mineralogical and geochemical techniques to two cores drilled from the stone during conservation work in 1958. Petrographic analyses demonstrate that Stone 58 is a highly indurated, grain-supported, structureless and texturally mature groundwater silcrete, comprising fine-to-medium grained quartz sand cemented by optically-continuous syntaxial quartz overgrowths. In addition to detrital quartz, trace quantities of silica-rich rock fragments, Fe-oxides/hydroxides and other minerals are present. Cathodoluminescence analyses show that the quartz cement developed as an initial <10 μm thick zone of non-luminescing quartz followed by ~16 separate quartz cement growth zones. Late-stage Fe-oxides/hydroxides and Ti-oxides line and/or infill some pores. Automated mineralogical analyses indicate that the sarsen preserves 7.2 to 9.2 area % porosity as a moderately-connected intergranular network. Geochemical data show that the sarsen is chemically pure, comprising 99.7 wt. % SiO2. The major and trace element chemistry is highly consistent within the stone, with the only magnitude variations being observed in Fe content. Non-quartz accessory minerals within the silcrete host sediments impart a trace element signature distinct from standard sedimentary and other crustal materials. 143Nd/144Nd isotope analyses suggest that these host sediments were likely derived from eroded Mesozoic rocks, and that these Mesozoic rocks incorporated much older Mesoproterozoic material. The chemistry of Stone 58 has been identified recently as representative of 50 of the 52 remaining sarsens at Stonehenge. These results are therefore representative of the main stone type used to build what is arguably the most important Late Neolithic monument in Europe. |
| format |
article |
| author |
David J Nash T Jake R Ciborowski Timothy Darvill Mike Parker Pearson J Stewart Ullyott Magret Damaschke Jane A Evans Steven Goderis Susan Greaney Jennifer M Huggett Robert A Ixer Duncan Pirrie Matthew R Power Tobias Salge Neil Wilkinson |
| author_facet |
David J Nash T Jake R Ciborowski Timothy Darvill Mike Parker Pearson J Stewart Ullyott Magret Damaschke Jane A Evans Steven Goderis Susan Greaney Jennifer M Huggett Robert A Ixer Duncan Pirrie Matthew R Power Tobias Salge Neil Wilkinson |
| author_sort |
David J Nash |
| title |
Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge. |
| title_short |
Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge. |
| title_full |
Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge. |
| title_fullStr |
Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge. |
| title_full_unstemmed |
Petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at Stonehenge. |
| title_sort |
petrological and geochemical characterisation of the sarsen stones at stonehenge. |
| publisher |
Public Library of Science (PLoS) |
| publishDate |
2021 |
| url |
https://doaj.org/article/7506a53a2f954addbf42b26ff4bb5459 |
| work_keys_str_mv |
AT davidjnash petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT tjakerciborowski petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT timothydarvill petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT mikeparkerpearson petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT jstewartullyott petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT magretdamaschke petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT janeaevans petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT stevengoderis petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT susangreaney petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT jennifermhuggett petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT robertaixer petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT duncanpirrie petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT matthewrpower petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT tobiassalge petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge AT neilwilkinson petrologicalandgeochemicalcharacterisationofthesarsenstonesatstonehenge |
| _version_ |
1718374233006931968 |