What Happens To Bones In Well-oxidized Soil?
Basically, if you were to archaeologically excavate a 300-year-old skeleton from well-oxidized and freely-draining sediment, what condition would you expect the bones to be in? And what are some examples of oxidized, free-draining sediments? Would sand qualify?
Tags: Bones, Happens, Soil, Welloxidized, What
February 23rd, 2010 at 11:31 am
I assume that well-oxidized soil would oxidize the bones. This generally means bleaching – they will become white and brittle.
You are correct that sand is well-oxidized sediment, and it may oxidize bones if you give it a long time like 300 years. I think silicon dioxide is pretty stable though. Air itself is more reactive, with oxygen and water.