Archaeometric characterization of ancient glazed pottery sherds from Khirbet Faris, Jordan by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (ICP-MS)

Abstract Multielement analysis of sixteen Ayyubid–Mamluk glazed pottery sherds was done for determination of chemical composition in order to study their provenance. The sherds tested in the present research come from the historical site of Khirbet Faris on the Karak Plateau in Jordan. The chemical analysis was carried out by inductively coupled plasma mass spectroscopy (ICP-MS). Mg, Al, Ti, V, Cr, Mn, Ni, Cu, Mo, Bi and U have been determined in the studied samples. The data were analyzed by using principal component analysis PCA and hierarchical cluster analysis with Bray-Curtis in order to define grouping of different glazed potteries by obtaining information about their similarity and clustering. The results of chemical analysis provided persuasive evidence that the Khirbet Faris pottery sherds have at least three different sources of provenance.