Mapping of bioavailable strontium isotope ratios in France for archaeological provenance studies

Abstract

Strontium isotope ratios (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr) of archaeological samples (teeth and bones) can be used to track mobility and migration across geologically distinct landscapes. However, traditional interpolation algorithms and classification approaches used to generate Sr isoscapes are often limited in predicting multiscale ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr patterning. Here we investigate the suitability of plant samples and soil leachates from the IRHUM database (www.irhumdatabase.com) to create a bioavailable ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr map using a novel geostatistical framework. First, we generated an ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr map by classifying ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr values into five geologically-representative isotope groups using cluster analysis. The isotope groups were then used as a covariate in kriging to integrate prior geological knowledge of Sr cycling with the information contained in the bioavailable dataset and enhance ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr predictions. Our approach couples the strengths of classification and geostatistical methods to generate more accurate ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr predictions (Root Mean Squared Error = 0.0029) with an estimate of spatial uncertainty based on lithology and sample density. This bioavailable Sr isoscape is applicable for provenance studies in France, and the method is transferable to other areas with high sampling density. While our method is a step forward in generating accurate ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isoscapes, the remaining uncertainty also demonstrates that fine-modelling of ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr variability is challenging and requires more than geological maps for accurately predicting ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr variations across the landscape. Future efforts should focus on increasing sampling density and developing predictive models to further quantify and predict the processes that lead to ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr variability.