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The team realised that relying on this type of equipment could reduce the effectiveness of sample analysis and the quality of data.Īnother key reason the team preferred the KEYENCE microscope was that the wood charcoal specimens would be better protected, and the non-wood charred macrofossils could be retained as completely as possible for future analysis.
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What makes the EFEC project stand out from any similar projects is that the team at the university understood early on that the traditional method of using a scanning electron microscope had significant limitations, as Elizabeth had found out in her work. This research was carried out by the Eastern Fertile Crescent (EFEC) project, a collaboration between the University of Liverpool and the Sulaymaniyah Directorate of Antiquities and Heritage. This culture dates from the late Palaeolithic and Mesolithic eras and it has been possible to discover a great deal of new information about it by studying well-preserved botanical and faunal remains. Some 966 non-wood items and 440 wood charcoals were retrieved from excavations at the Palegawra cave, a Zarzian occupation site in north-eastern Iraq. In a second project involving the University of Liverpool’s Archaeology Department, the VHX-7000 was used to carry out laboratory-based archaeobotanical analysis of delicate and highly valuable charred plant macrofossils. It means that just by tilting the head, it’s possible to create multiple views of the same sample.” For example, the flexibility of being able to move the unit’s fully-integrated head around a sample is invaluable.
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“There are many advantages to using the VHX-7000,” says Elizabeth, “and it represents a massive jump in functionality from any previous digital microscopes I’ve used. The VHX-7000 also eliminated the need for preparing samples – an SEM requiring them to be secured on to a stand – while the measurement capabilities of the KEYENCE system saved Elizabeth a considerable amount of time. In addition, the digital microscope made stitching images a straightforward process, whereas an SEM would require image stitching to be carried out manually using separate software. The VHX-7000 was able to capture images of these textiles for subsequent examination by an expert. Having access to full-colour high magnification images was vital to ascertain how an artifact might have looked in its original state.Įlizabeth found that another benefit of using the KEYENCE digital microscope was that it could display textiles that had been preserved in corrosion. Elizabeth felt it was important to see the different layers in the mirrors and how they were made, which was not possible using a scanning electron microscope (SEM) where image delivery was in grayscale.Įssential for Elizabeth’s work was the ability to create colour images and show extremely high levels of detail at high magnification settings. The VHX-7000 was used to gather information on the different kinds of corrosion found on the mirrors. This work involved analysing Egyptian mirrors, many of them dating back to the Middle Kingdom era of the 12th Dynasty.
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Electrostatic Meter / Static FieldmeterĮlizabeth Thomas, an Archaeology PhD student at the university, had the opportunity to use the KEYENCE digital microscope when conducting research for her Masters and PhD.Inductive Displacement/ Gauging Sensors.Optical Micrometer / Digital Micrometer.Its a last resort as you should be making backups of the locations before changing values.
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It only is used in the event you make a mistake and need to restore the values back to original. you cant read it if that was what you were trying to do. If memory serves me right (Been a couple of years since I did it), you would load the file through Forscan.
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