The Analysis of the Archaeological Soils excavated at Wanggung-ri

토양분석을 통한 고고학적 해석-익산 왕궁리 수혈유구 토양을 대상으로

Coprostanol is a metabolic product of cholesterol, formed by microbial action in the mammalian gut. This chemical compound is the major sterol in human and has been routinely studied as a biomarker of sewage pollution in marine and lacustrinesediments. This has led to the search for coprostanol as a biomarker in archaeologicalsoils, in order to detect the presence of fecal material. In this study, five samples of archaeological soils excavated at Wanggung ri, Iksancity, were used to assess the possibility of using coprostanol as indicators of ancient human activity in archaeological areas. The sampled soils were analyzed MXRD,EDXRF for their physical and chemical properties. And coprostanol was analysed byGC/MSD, using SIM method to detect and quantify specific compound. The results showed the soils were composed of quartz and feldspars, inorganicelement such as $SiO_2$, $Al_2O_3$, $Fe_2O_3$ etc. Moreover, the result from the analysis wasindicated that the specific compound is coprostanol. The coprostanol was determined at $0.16~1.01\mug$/g in the range of concentrations. This finding indicate that clear promise exists for the exploitation of coprostanol as biomarker of ancient human activity inarchaeological survey. Therefore such studies can serve to increase the confidence we place on biomarker-based methodologies for assessing fecal pollution. The application of this methodology has proved a simple and effective way of searching for that pattern in successively more aged deposits either known or suspected to contain fecal material. And the more scientific analysis of the soils will be showed to utility of the area ancient dietary life style, ancient environment.