From Model to Practice: Testing Near‐Infrared Spectroscopy as a Bone Collagen Prescreening Tool

ABSTRACT Collagen is a vital archaeological material, preserving biochemical signatures that provide insights into past environments, diets, and human–animal interactions. However, diagenetic processes can lead to rapid and often inconspicuous degradation of collagen. Given the variability in collagen preservation and its significance for analyses such as radiocarbon dating, stable isotope analysis, and ZooMS, researchers have developed various prescreening techniques to assess collagen preservation before destructive sampling. In this study, we applied near‐infrared (NIR) spectroscopy to rapidly and nondestructively prescreen collagen preservation using a previously validated partial least squares regression model. To assess its effectiveness, we analyzed 830 bones from the Cooper's Ferry/Nipéhe site, a dodo and Rodrigues solitaire collection, and a collection of ancient to modern bison. NIR spectroscopy demonstrated high effectiveness in identifying samples suitable for radiocarbon dating, with success rates of 80% (4/5) for Cooper's Ferry/Nipéhe and 91% (10/11) for the dodo and Rodrigues solitaire specimens. Additionally, NIR spectroscopy effectively selected bison samples for ZooMS at a lower collagen yield threshold, with a success rate of 92% (34/37). The results demonstrate that NIR spectroscopy is a viable, nondestructive alternative for collagen prescreening in archaeological bone before destructive analyses, minimizing unnecessary destructive sampling of irreplaceable archaeological materials.