Tracing the background of basalt blocks?

LITHIC MATERIAL CULTURE: Israeli Archaeologists Create Method to Analyze Basalt – to Their Own Surprise. Primordial Israel was volcanic and the ancient northern cities were built with basalt. But did they all use the same source to sate their marble envy? (Ruth Schuster, Haaretz).

Now a team has shown that basalt from different sources can be reliably distinguished and grouped even if the sources remain unknown. Dr. Mechael Osband of Kinneret Academic College and the University of Haifa, with Dr. Michael Eisenberg of the Zinman Institute of Archaeology at the University of Haifa, and Prof. Jeffrey Ferguson of the University of Missouri describe the methodology they developed to group the basalts at two sites in Israel based on composition. Their groundbreaking paper has been published this year in the journal Archaeometry.

The underlying article is open access:

XRF Analysis of Village and Urban Basalt Architecture in the Hippos Territorium during the Roman Period

Mechael Osband, Michael Eisenberg, Jeffery R. Ferguson

First published: 29 April 2024 https://doi.org/10.1111/arcm.12975

Funding information: ...

Abstract

This case study examines the use of X-ray fluorescence (XRF) as an effective method for defining distinct chemical compositions of local basalt stone from different sources in the Roman period, even when their quarries have not been identified. It also deals with the archaeological question if public and monumental structures from a village and urban site shared the same stone sources and stonemason's workshops. Ninety-six samples from the Hippos Territorium, mainly from the polis of Hippos and the village of Majduliyya, were analyzed. XRF was found to be an effective method for defining distinct chemical compositions of local basalt materials from different sources. The distinct composition of the basalt stones between the two sites provided valuable insights into socio-economic relationships, shedding light on the nature of city–village dynamics in the region. Additionally, it aids in discerning whether diverse basalt sources were utilized in both private and public constructions, as well as installations within a single site. Methodological questions and the application of this method in the archaeological research of basalt-based architecture are also addressed.

For many PaleoJudaica posts on the archaeological discoveries at and around Hippos-Sussita, see here and links. For stonemasons' marks on the basalt flooring blocks there, see here.

The site of Majduliyya is new to me.

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