Welcome to the Northwest Research Obsidian Studies Laboratory website. We offer a variety of different analytical services related to obsidian artifact trace element provenance ("sourcing") studies, obsidian hydration analysis, and obsidian source studies, primarily in the context of archaeological research. We also provide nondestructive artifact characterization studies for fine-grained volcanic (FGV) materials in the Lake Tahoe region of California and a few other selected geographic areas. This website describes our services and provides methodological and source information that supplements and supports our contract investigations and research interests.

			2012 LAB SCHEDULE: Now that 2012 is underway, we're back on our normal lab schedule until summer (June 1st). For more details about our annual summer schedule, click HERE.
			UPDATED DOWNLOADS: We've reorganized the lab downloads and have moved most of the obsidian-related articles, reports, theses, and dissertations to the new IAOS PDF Library. Our standard lab forms and other docs can still be found HERE.
			NEW EXPANDED ONLINE OBSIDIAN SOURCE RESOURCES: We're gradually expanding the source descriptive and literature reference information at the U.S. Obsidian Source Catalog. This project is still rough around the edges but you can see where we're going with it by looking at the SOURCE REFERENCES menu located to the left. Click HERE for more information.
			ADDITIONAL OBSIDIAN AND FGV SOURCE MAPS ARE NOW AVAILABLE: We're just finished (again) producing and updating several obsidian and FGV source maps for the western United States and are continuing to add to our map library collection on a regular basis. To see our latest additions, click HERE.
			PRICE CHANGES: After over six years at our current price level, we reluctantly raised our analytical rates at the beginning of the summer. We offer the usual excuses and the new prices became effective on June 1st of 2011. Please click HERE to download the new price sheet.
			FEATURED RESEARCH: ODELL LAKE SITE: In 1937, Luther Cressman and his associates from the University of Oregon excavated a pre-Mazama site at Odell Lake in the Oregon High Cascades. In this report, we focus the X-rays on the artifacts that were recovered at that time.
			PANORAMAS: From time to time, we add a new 360 degree interactive panorama to our collection. To see our latest 2011 additions, click HERE.
			YOUTUBE AND THE LAB: Meet FLO and ED, our two EDXRF spectrometers or follow along on some fieldwork that may or may not have anything to do with obsidian,
			NEW SOURCES AND TOP OBSIDIAN SOURCES FOR THE WESTERN UNITED STATES: We've compiled state-by-state lists of the top obsidian sources that are represented in characterized artifact collections from each state. For this and more, click HERE.