Center for Archaeometry

The 15-inch tall bronze sculpture was tested with thermoluminescence.

Archaeometry is the application of modern scientific techniques to archaeology. In the mid-1970s, Washington U established a research center, based in the Physics Department, but heavily reliant on the skills of Phoebe Dent Weil, who had an art history and conservation background. It's founding director was physicist David Zimmerman.

In the fall of 1976 Michael joined the (fairly new) Washington University Center for Archaeometry. Later (certainly by 1984, from department letters), he was Director of the Center.

This grew out of his own interest in archeoastronomy, the study of astronmical knowledge of ancient civilizations. (See this link of Michael's work and interest in this topic.)

The Center was primarily concerned with two research areas: thermoluminesence (TL) for determining forgeries or real artifacts for museum collections, and conservation of outdoor bronze sculptures.

The links below give a look into this fascinating area of study. Michael was not directly involved in any of this work, except that (a) the Center for Archaeometry was housed in the Laboratory for Space Physics (of which he was part) within the Physics Department and (b) as mentioned, later he became director of the Center (after the untimely death of founding director David Zimmerman).

• Vindication of the Bronze Horse
  Washington University Magazine, Winter 1973.
  How TL showed that a Metropolitan Museum of Art object was indeed ancient, after previously being labeled a forgery.
• Humanists, Social, and Physical Scientists United in New Center for Archaeometry
  Washington University Record (staff weekly publication), 13 Feb 1975.
  This formalized work that had already started a few years prior.
• Thermoluminescence: A Dating and Authenticating Method for Art Objects
  Technology and Conservation magazine, Spring 1978.
  (This is a scan of a mediocre contemporaneous photocopy. The article online is found here but I have not been able to get a copy yet.)
• Physicist Zimmerman Dies; Devised New Archaeological Dating Method
  Washington University Record, 30 Nov 1978.
• Overview of the Center for Archaeometry / Art Conservation Laboratory
  Description of the Center, a listing of recent projects, 1980(?). (typed document)
• The New Bronze Age
  Chicago Magazine, December 1983.
  Restoring outdoor sculptures in Chicago.
• Letter mentioning Michael as Director of the Center for Archaeometry
  June 1984.
• 40 Years of Ancient TL
  Ancient TL, 2017 (Vol 35, No 2).
  The journal for the thermoluminesence research community, Ancient TL, was started at Wash U. This article by at-the-time Wash U collaborator with David Zimmerman, Steve Sutton, gives an overview of the history of the journal.