A trace element study for the provenance attribution of ceramic artefacts: the case of Dressel 1 amphorae from a late-Republican ship

The present contribution is concerned with the archaeometric study of underwater Dressel 1 amphorae recovered from a late-Republican shipwreck, identified in 1986 near the island of Ponza (Italy). The study aims to identify the production area of investigated amphorae (now assumed to be localized in the Latial/Campanian area) and, therefore, verify the archaeological hypothesis on the trade route of the ship. For this purpose, an innovative analytical approach based on in situ geochemical investigations of clinopyroxene crystals occurring within the aplastic inclusions of examined amphorae, has been used. Such an approach, recently proposed and successfully tested by some authors only for major elements, has been implemented with extension of the investigation to trace elements through laser ablation-inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (LA-ICP-MS) analyses. Obtained data suggest the Latial area as the most reasonable for provenance of the studied amphorae, casting new lights on some initial assumptions formulated on the basis of archaeological considerations.