Natural Science in Archaeology

10.7 Other Geologic Raw Materials 239
about 440°C, but above this temperature it begins to break down. The name mica is
derived from the Latin word “micare”. The earliest use of mica was as a component
of cave paintings dating back 40,000 years. Mica was known to the ancient Egyptians,
the Greeks, Romans, Chinese, and the Aztecs. The great pyramid at Teotihuacán
in Mexico contained locally mined mica in thick layers.
In the United States, the use of mica extends back at least 6000 years. Mica,
galena, Lake Superior area copper, and sea shells were exchanged throughout the
eastern United States in a complex network (Seeman 1979). The use of large sheets
of mica for ceremonial purposes by indigenous peoples of the southeastern United
States is well known. Ferguson (1974) describes the mica outcrops and ancient
mining areas in western North Carolina and other areas in the southern Appalachian
Mountains. Numerous prehistoric mines have been recorded.
10.7.2 Petroleum Products – Asphalt, Bitumen, and Pitch
Oil has been seeping out of the earth for hundreds of millions of years. Perhaps the
first human record of this is found in Babylonian cuneiform tablets dating to about
2000 BCE. In the fifth century BCE, Herodotus reported that oil and asphalt oozed
from the ground in Asia. At some point it was learned that absorbent materials
soaked in pitch, resin, and especially naphtha, could be attached to spears or arrows
to produce fire missiles. Later it was realized that better results could be achieved by
combining naphtha with sulfur or quicklime. By adding saltpeter, the mixture was
capable of spontaneous combustion. This became known as “Greek Fire”.
According to Pliny, Alexander the Great observed natural oil seeps burning in
Bactria. Although there must have been some ancient trade in oil, no records confirm
this until 632 CE. The geographer al-Maqdisi indicated that Georgia was an
important exporter of naphtha and bitumen to Baghdad (Bilkadi 1995).
Useful, acid-resistant, organic materials are found in the form of mineral pitch.
It is black to black/brown and can be found in various consistencies from a viscous
liquid to a solid. Its principal uses are as an adhesive, mortar, or caulking agent. In
some biblical writings it is referred to as “pitch” or “slime”. However, this may be
a distinction for the type that was found floating on the surface of the Dead Sea or
marshes (slime) – some ancient sources name the Dead Sea as Lake Asphaltes – or
mineral pitch found in dry wadis (pitch).
Pitch and bitumen were highly prized in antiquity. Pitch was produced partly
in the form of rock asphalt from the mountains and was known from the Sumerian
Period through the Assyrian Period. Bitumen was widely available in the Near
East in Iran, Iraq, and the Dead Sea region. It was exploited beginning as early as
40,000 years BP in the Mousterian at El Kown, Syria. The range of uses was very
wide, from the early use as a hafting material to affix handles to flint tools, through
its later use as a mortar and waterproofer, to medical uses as a disinfectant, insecticide,
and a component in embalming mixtures (Connan 1999). The amount of
bitumen in balms varied up to 30 weight percent. The largest quantity of bitumen in