A key component of the York project is the 3D scanning of the negative cavities in the gypsum casings.
Posted on 06/10/2023 3:33:53 AM PDT by SunkenCiv
Archaeologists in York have used 3D scans to study the Roman burial practice of pouring liquid gypsum over the bodies of adults and children laid to rest in coffins - the first time this cutting-edge technology has been applied to Roman burials of this type anywhere in the world.
...the Romans sometimes poured liquid gypsum - a mineral used in making various types of cement and plaster - over the clothed bodies of adults and children in lead or stone coffins before burying them.
As the gypsum hardened around the bodies and they then broke down, a negative cavity formed that preserved the original position and contours of the dead. The imprint of shrouds, clothing, and footwear also survives in the gypsum, providing precious evidence for perishable materials that rarely survive in Roman graves...
it appears to have been a custom associated with people of high status. Traces of aromatic resins from the Mediterranean and Arabia found earlier in three of the gypsum burials in York indicate the use of costly and exotic substances in the clothing and wrappings, substances available only to the elite.
Roman gypsum burials of varying types have been noted elsewhere in Europe and North Africa, but they are particularly notable in Britain, with a concentration of at least 45 such burials of this type recorded since the late 19th century in and around York.
(Excerpt) Read more at york.ac.uk ...
The article is pretty stingy with photographs.
The plaster casters were around for longer than we thought.
Keith Richards went to school with some of these Romans.
“. . . stingy with photographs.”
Exactly what I was going to say, Art Dodger. It would be like the Nazca Lines article not showing any examples. Still, this is an interesting article about something of which I was completely unaware. That the Romans were masters of the various uses and kinds of cement, is well known. This use is new to me.
“. . . stingy with photographs.”
Exactly what I was going to say, Art Dodger. It would be like the Nazca Lines article not showing any examples. Still, this is an interesting article about something of which I was completely unaware. That the Romans were masters of the various uses and kinds of cement, is well known. This use is new to me.
Sorry, guys. My comment was not important enough to be posted twice!
I was able to find a little more info and a photo or two. YOu are right, interesting story.
https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/liquid-gypsum-burial-roman-britain-090000579.html
Thanks, Art!
the substance is plaster of paris and is used today to mke molds for lost wax casting
So, that’s where the Mafia got the idea...................
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