Symposium on Archaeological Chemistry*
INTRODUCTORY REMARKS EARLE R. CALEY The Ohio State University, Columbus, Ohio
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symposium may he termed unique, as apparently it is the first on the subject of the application of chemistry to archaeology to he held any where a t any t i e . In a sense it is an experiment to determine the degree and extent of the interest in this field among American chemists. If this experiment succeeds, this symposium may well he only the first of a series. Instead of being confined to a single aspect of the general subject, the papers on the program today deal with a diversity of topics and thus indicate the variety and range of chemical studies that may be included under the term archaeological chernistry. In a narrow sense this term may he interpreted as denoting only those chemical studies that have a direct bearing on archaeology, but for want of a more suitable broader term it probably should include also other similar studies that may have only an indirect relationship to this science. Thus, under the term archaeological chemistry may he included studies on the composition of ancient materials without regard to their immediate archaeological significance, investigations on the decay or corrosion of ancient materials or objects, and experiments on methods for the restoration and preservation of ancient objects of art for the purpose of study or exhibition. By reason of the intimate connection that exists between archaeology and the fine arts it seems reasonable to include also chemical studies of the materials and techniques of the fine arts of all ages except the most recent. Even the problem of the detection of forgeries or alterations of objects of art may also be included. To all this should be added, too, the development of special methods of chemical analysis, microscopy, and the like, suitable for the scientific investigation of ancient materials and objects. Thus it is evident that we have here a broad field for investigation in the middle ground between chemistry, on the one hand, and archaeology and related subjects on the other, a field that has been but little cultivated by chemists generally. Though it is true that a few investigators have conducted a considerable number of significant investigations in this field, these investigations, more often than not have been highly specialized and sporadic, so that many gaps exist about which nothing is known. One of the most fascinating aspects of this field, it seems to me, are the many opportunities that exist for further investigation, and especially the opportunity that exists for its organization into a unified body of new knowledge. Let us hope that this present symposium will he regarded in later years as a significant forward step in the development of the field of study that we call archaeological chemistry.
'Presented at the 117th Meeting of the American Chemical Society, Philadelphia, April, 1950.
