Simply put, our method, known as the Analysis of Post-Depositional Surface Modification, is basically understanding and identifying through optical means all of the geological processes, (physical, geo-chemical, biological) that occur to an artifact once it is deposited on or in the ground. Specific environmental variables affect a given material in very specific and measurable ways no matter where on earth those environmental variables occur. Under the microscope, we can see these affectations as they present as weathering patterns on the flint itself, or as mineral growths on the surface which are consistent with the environment in which the piece was found. Every material we examine has a specific well-documented model of what happens to it in the natural environment, and when something is out of the ordinary, more often than not there is evidence of modern manufacture which can be determined to be the root cause. Similarly, modern manufacturing techniques leave their own specific marks upon the item no matter how hard fakers try to mask them.

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Click here for a list of reference material corroborating the PDSM Method.