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Beyond Death: Forensic Investigations of pre-Columbian Mummies from the Tarapacá Valley, Chile, Using Variable Pressure SEM and Raman Spectroscopy

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  14 March 2018

S.V. Prikhodko ,
C. Fischer ,
R. Boytner ,
M. C. Lozada ,
M. Uribe  and
I. Kakoulli
S.V. Prikhodko*
Affiliation:
Dept. of Mat. Science and Engineering, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
C. Fischer
Affiliation:
Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
R. Boytner
Affiliation:
Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
M. C. Lozada
Affiliation:
Department of Anthropology, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL
M. Uribe
Affiliation:
Dept. de Antropología, Universidad de Chile, Santiago, Chile
I. Kakoulli
Affiliation:
Dept. of Mat. Science and Engineering, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA Cotsen Institute of Archaeology, UCLA, Los Angeles, CA
*
[email protected]

Extract

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Variable pressure scanning electron microscopy (VPSEM) coupled with other non-destructive analytical methods, such as energy dispersive (EDS) and Raman spectroscopy (RS) offers new capabilities for non-invasive imaging and chemical characterization of archaeological materials. This article underlines the application of VPSEM-EDS-RS on bioarchaeological specimens of pre-Columbian mummies from the Tarapacá Valley in northern Chile. The aim of the scientific investigations is to identify nonanatomical features and to provide qualitative and quantitative information at molecular levels, complementing the morphological record from studies in physical anthropology, in an effort to understand mortuary practices in the Tarapacá Valley and the effects of the burial environment in the preservation of mummified human remains.

Type
Research Article
Information
Microscopy Today , Volume 15 , Issue 6 , November 2007 , pp. 6 - 11
Copyright
Copyright © Microscopy Society of America 2007

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