Characterisation of inorganic pigments in ancient glass beads by means of Raman microspectroscopy,microprobe analysis and X‐ray diffractometry

Ancient coloured glass beads from Sri Lanka and Oman were analysed by Raman microspectroscopy for non‐destructive identification of inorganic pigments in the glass. Calcium phosphate (Ca₃(PO₄)₂), cassiterite (SnO₂), cuprite (Cu₂O) and a Pb(Sn,Si)O₃‐type lead tin oxide were found to be used as colouring agents. Moreover, a distinction between lead‐based and alkali‐based glass matrices could be made. Electron microprobe analysis and X‐ray diffractometry were performed to show the capability of Raman microspectroscopy in comparison to these methods for answering archaeometric questions. Copyright © 2006 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.