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Volume 15
Issue 2
10.3390/min15020168
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Article

Multianalytical Study of Archaeological Iron Nails of the Roman Period (First to Third Century) in Northern Spain

by
Céline Rémazeilles
1,
Maria Cruz Zuluaga
2,*,
Egle Conforto
1,
Abdelali Oudriss
1,
Luis Ángel Ortega
2,
Ana Martínez-Salcedo
3 and
Juan José Cepeda-Ocampo
4
1
LaSIE, Laboratory of Engineering Sciences for the Environment, UMR 7356 CNRS, La Rochelle University, Avenue Michel Crépeau, G-17042 La Rochelle Cedex 01, France
2
Department of Geology, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Sarriena s/n, 48940 Leioa, Spain
3
ARKEON, 6, Plaza Julio Lazurtegui, 4, 48014 Bilbao, Spain
4
Department of Historical Sciences, Faculty of Philosophy and Letters, University of Cantabria, 39005 Santander, Spain
*
Author to whom correspondence should be addressed.
Minerals 2025, 15(2), 168; https://doi.org/10.3390/min15020168
Submission received: 10 December 2024 / Revised: 5 February 2025 / Accepted: 9 February 2025 / Published: 11 February 2025
(This article belongs to the Special Issue The Significance of Applied Mineralogy in Archaeometry)
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Abstract

In the archaeometallurgical study of iron nails to investigate Roman manufacturing processes, multi-analyte characterization provides information on alloy composition and microstructure. Nails from the Roman sites of Forua, Aloria, and Iuliobriga (northern Spain) were studied. To characterize the iron phases and microstructures of the nails, optical microscopy (OM), scanning electron microscopy coupled with electron-dispersive spectroscopy (SEM-EDX), micro-Raman spectroscopy, electron backscatter diffraction (EBSD) realized in environmental mode, and microhardness measurements were carried out. The chemical composition of the metal was determined by X-ray fluorescence (XRF). The corrosion mineralogical composition was determined by powder X-ray diffraction (XRD). Aggressive burial conditions had a significant effect on the forms of corrosion of the Forua nails to the point of complete iron loss. Examination of the metal of the nails from the Aloria site revealed that most of the ironwork was made in the villa’s own forge. In the case of the Iuliobriga nails, different degrees of forging were identified associated with different workshops.
Keywords: iron nails; archeometallurgical study; manufacturing features; Roman age iron nails; archeometallurgical study; manufacturing features; Roman age

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MDPI and ACS Style

Rémazeilles, C.; Zuluaga, M.C.; Conforto, E.; Oudriss, A.; Ortega, L.Á.; Martínez-Salcedo, A.; Cepeda-Ocampo, J.J. Multianalytical Study of Archaeological Iron Nails of the Roman Period (First to Third Century) in Northern Spain. Minerals 2025, 15, 168. https://doi.org/10.3390/min15020168

AMA Style

Rémazeilles C, Zuluaga MC, Conforto E, Oudriss A, Ortega LÁ, Martínez-Salcedo A, Cepeda-Ocampo JJ. Multianalytical Study of Archaeological Iron Nails of the Roman Period (First to Third Century) in Northern Spain. Minerals. 2025; 15(2):168. https://doi.org/10.3390/min15020168

Chicago/Turabian Style

Rémazeilles, Céline, Maria Cruz Zuluaga, Egle Conforto, Abdelali Oudriss, Luis Ángel Ortega, Ana Martínez-Salcedo, and Juan José Cepeda-Ocampo. 2025. "Multianalytical Study of Archaeological Iron Nails of the Roman Period (First to Third Century) in Northern Spain" Minerals 15, no. 2: 168. https://doi.org/10.3390/min15020168

APA Style

Rémazeilles, C., Zuluaga, M. C., Conforto, E., Oudriss, A., Ortega, L. Á., Martínez-Salcedo, A., & Cepeda-Ocampo, J. J. (2025). Multianalytical Study of Archaeological Iron Nails of the Roman Period (First to Third Century) in Northern Spain. Minerals, 15(2), 168. https://doi.org/10.3390/min15020168

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