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Applying lead (Pb) isotopes to explore mobility in humans and animals

Evans, JA; Pashley, V; Mee, K; Wagner, D; Pearson, MP; Fremondeau, D; Albarella, U; (2022) Applying lead (Pb) isotopes to explore mobility in humans and animals. PLOS One , 17 (10) , Article e0274831. 10.1371/journal.pone.0274831. Green open access

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Abstract

Lead (Pb) isotopes provide a complementary method to other provenance tools for tracking the origin and movement of humans and animals. The method is founded in the geographic distribution of Pb isotope ratios. However, unlike the Sr isotope method that is closely linked to the lithology of underlying rocks, Pb more closely reflects the tectonic regimes. This makes it particularly pertinent to use in Britain as there is major tectonic boundary (the Iapetus Suture) that runs between Berwick-upon-Tweed and the Solway Firth providing a compositional boundary in Pb isotope domains that approximates to the geographic areas of Scotland versus England and Wales. Modern pollution makes it difficult to use modern floral or faunal samples to characterize biosphere variation, and so we use geological datasets to define isoscape variation and present the first Pb isotope map of Britain. We have validated the use of these data form biosphere studies using well provenanced samples. Reference fields of diagnostic compositions, are created in μ-T space and these have been used in a test case to assess the geographic origins of Neolithic animals in Great Britain.

Type: Article
Title: Applying lead (Pb) isotopes to explore mobility in humans and animals
Location: United States
Open access status: An open access version is available from UCL Discovery
DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0274831
Publisher version: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal. pone.0274831
Language: English
Additional information: This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License. The images or other third-party material in this article are included in the Creative Commons license, unless indicated otherwise in the credit line; if the material is not included under the Creative Commons license, users will need to obtain permission from the license holder to reproduce the material. To view a copy of this license, visit http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/
Keywords: Humans, Animals, Environmental Monitoring, Lead, Isotopes, Geology, United Kingdom, Strontium Isotopes
UCL classification: UCL
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology
UCL > Provost and Vice Provost Offices > UCL SLASH > Faculty of S&HS > Institute of Archaeology > Institute of Archaeology Gordon Square
URI: https://discovery.ucl.ac.uk/id/eprint/10158882
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