scholarly journals On the Methodology of Studying Palimpsests in Rock Art: The Case of the Shalabolino Rock Art Site, Krasnoyarsk Territory

2019 ◽  
Vol 47 (2) ◽  
pp. 93-102
Author(s):  
L. V. Zotkina

This paper addresses the main problems in assessing the stratigraphy of superimpositions in rock art. When a petroglyph is overlain by one or several others, this may provide important information not only about single images but also about entire stylistic traditions. Existing methods used for evaluating the relative chronology of the parts of petroglyphic palimpsests are discussed, and a new approach is proposed, combining high-resolution three-dimensional visualization at the macro-level with traceological analysis. We focus on the characteristics of the pecked surface in the area outside the palimpsest and that in the overlap zone. The comparison of these parts makes it possible to reveal the traceologically informative features in the palimpsest areas, indicating the sequence of superimposed petroglyphs. This approach is instantiated by the analysis of one of the palimpsests in the Shalabolino rock gallery, the Krasnoyarsk Territory. Images representing various stylistic traditions are found in complicated stratigraphic relations. The sequence of three main fi gures (bear, bull, and elk) in this multilayered composition has been reconstructed. The results of the analysis cannot be used as an argument for attributing these petroglyphs to vastly different chronological periods. Rather, they provide new information relevant to the debate around the age of the Angara and Minusinsk petroglyphic styles in the Minusinsk Basin.

The technique of freeze-etching is illustrated with reference to striated muscle. Besides features of immediate biological interest, the material demonstrates various ways in which the process may be used in general to yield new information. These fall broadly into two classes: ( a ) qualitative: visualizing structures not readily seen by other methods, for example, general three-dimensional structure (low resolution) and membrane particles (high resolution); ( b ) quantitative, for example, the distribution of membrane features over extensive uneven surfaces (low and high resolution).


Author(s):  
Hans Ris

Cellular architecture is a dynamic web of complex macromolecular assemblies accomplishing the diverse functions of a cell. Conventional electron microscopy on ultrathin sections or negatively stained preparations can provide little information on more extended three dimensional assemblies. High voltage and intermediate voltage TEM provide high resolution in much thicker specimens but are limited by problems of contrast and overlap of structures. In recent years new SEMs have become available that provide the high topographic contrast and three dimensionality of SEM at a resolution comparable to conventional TEM. I have used the low voltage high resolution SEM Hitachi S-900 at the Madison IMR and shall show some examples that illustrate the usefulness of LVSEM in structural cell biology. Most striking is the new information obtained about the nuclear pore complex (NPC). This structure is extremely important in controlling the selective and unidirectional transport of large molecules into and out of the nucleus.


Author(s):  
H.A. Cohen ◽  
T.W. Jeng ◽  
W. Chiu

This tutorial will discuss the methodology of low dose electron diffraction and imaging of crystalline biological objects, the problems of data interpretation for two-dimensional projected density maps of glucose embedded protein crystals, the factors to be considered in combining tilt data from three-dimensional crystals, and finally, the prospects of achieving a high resolution three-dimensional density map of a biological crystal. This methodology will be illustrated using two proteins under investigation in our laboratory, the T4 DNA helix destabilizing protein gp32*I and the crotoxin complex crystal.


Author(s):  
L. Andrew Staehelin

Freeze-etched membranes usually appear as relatively smooth surfaces covered with numerous small particles and a few small holes (Fig. 1). In 1966 Branton (1“) suggested that these surfaces represent split inner mem¬brane faces and not true external membrane surfaces. His theory has now gained wide acceptance partly due to new information obtained from double replicas of freeze-cleaved specimens (2,3) and from freeze-etch experi¬ments with surface labeled membranes (4). While theses studies have fur¬ther substantiated the basic idea of membrane splitting and have shown clearly which membrane faces are complementary to each other, they have left the question open, why the replicated membrane faces usually exhibit con¬siderably fewer holes than particles. According to Branton's theory the number of holes should on the average equal the number of particles. The absence of these holes can be explained in either of two ways: a) it is possible that no holes are formed during the cleaving process e.g. due to plastic deformation (5); b) holes may arise during the cleaving process but remain undetected because of inadequate replication and microscope techniques.


Author(s):  
Kenneth H. Downing ◽  
Hu Meisheng ◽  
Hans-Rudolf Went ◽  
Michael A. O'Keefe

With current advances in electron microscope design, high resolution electron microscopy has become routine, and point resolutions of better than 2Å have been obtained in images of many inorganic crystals. Although this resolution is sufficient to resolve interatomic spacings, interpretation generally requires comparison of experimental images with calculations. Since the images are two-dimensional representations of projections of the full three-dimensional structure, information is invariably lost in the overlapping images of atoms at various heights. The technique of electron crystallography, in which information from several views of a crystal is combined, has been developed to obtain three-dimensional information on proteins. The resolution in images of proteins is severely limited by effects of radiation damage. In principle, atomic-resolution, 3D reconstructions should be obtainable from specimens that are resistant to damage. The most serious problem would appear to be in obtaining high-resolution images from areas that are thin enough that dynamical scattering effects can be ignored.


Author(s):  
Hirano T. ◽  
M. Yamaguchi ◽  
M. Hayashi ◽  
Y. Sekiguchi ◽  
A. Tanaka

A plasma polymerization film replica method is a new high resolution replica technique devised by Tanaka et al. in 1978. It has been developed for investigation of the three dimensional ultrastructure in biological or nonbiological specimens with the transmission electron microscope. This method is based on direct observation of the single-stage replica film, which was obtained by directly coating on the specimen surface. A plasma polymerization film was deposited by gaseous hydrocarbon monomer in a glow discharge.The present study further developed the freeze fracture method by means of a plasma polymerization film produces a three dimensional replica of chemically untreated cells and provides a clear evidence of fine structure of the yeast plasma membrane, especially the dynamic aspect of the structure of invagination (Figure 1).


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