Lime mortar and plaster from the house XVII-XVIII, UMM El-Jimal, Jordan: Archaeometric analysis

Abstract

This research studies cement materials of mortar and plaster mostly of Byzantine age from the House XVII-XVIII located in the southeast of Umm el-Jimal archaeological site (east Jordan). A set of physical, chemical, mineralogical and petrographic analyses were performed to characterize the materials aiming at defining their production technology adopted by the Umm el-Jimal's ancient craftsmen. The results show that Umm el-Jimal building technique relied on the manufacture of lime-based cement materials of hydraulic properties acquired by the addition of natural scoria and recycled pottery fragments. The high amount of charcoal added to a group of three samples colored them grey; while the use of straws, bones and considerable amount of scoria and ceramic in the rest of samples did not affect their lime white-beige color. The grain size distribution of the two groups does not show substantial difference compared to the binder: aggregate ratios. The addition of fibers, scoria and ceramics most likely produced porous lightweight white cement material.