Ceramic Analysis Archaeology

This paper outlines a model developed as part of an Honours dissertation to characterise the typical "Pakeha" period (1792-1860) ceramic assemblage. The model also identifies which attributes of the ceramics are useful for dating and which are not. The results highlight the usefulness of ceramic artefacts as chronological markers, although caution must be taken with interpretation as the dates given are for date of manufacture rather than use and discard.

This paper examines the interplay between manufacturing parameters and material properties in archaeological ceramic cooking ware. While previous studies on material properties have focused on the response of ceramic vessels to mechanical and thermal loads, emphasis is placed here on thermal properties and their influence on the suitability of a vessel to be used for different cooking methods. We illustrate how the material properties of a ceramic cooking vessel are influenced by its manufacture and how these material properties in turn may influence the performance and ultimately selection of certain vessels to be used for specific cooking practices for the example of late Bronze Age (LCIA) cooking vessels from Akrotiri, Greece.

A recent archival research project in the National Museums of Kenya (NMK) identified artifacts and human remains associated with the 1980 excavation of stone cairns and habitation areas on the west side of Lake Turkana. The presence of stone grave cairns across eastern Africa is common, but their cultural origins and construction times are enigmatic. This article presents the results of the archival project and contextualizes both the artifacts found and the unpublished research notes within the framework of evolving settlement patterns in eastern Africa during the middle to late Holocene. Despite the presence of numerous decorative features on ceramics and the recovery of many complete lithic tools, the material culture is generally non-diagnostic within existing typo-technological categories. The research indicates that there was tremendous diversity in the material culture of the Turkana Basin during the late Holocene.

Esta obra aborda el estudio del arte visual de la cultura Diaguita Chilena (900-1536 d.C.), expresado en los diseños de su cerámica. La muestra alcanza a 401 diseños de diferentes períodos e influencias culturales. Esta aventura estética de cinco siglos ha dejado como legado numerosas imágenes imperecederas de enorme belleza, obras maestras gestadas por manos anónimas que enriquecen nuestra percepción de mundo. Los diseños cerámicos de la cultura diaguita chilena, por su variedad, extraordinaria composición y complejidad, configuran uno de los más hermosos universos visuales que heredamos de la América precolombina. El acercamiento a este arte visual consideró distintos caminos complementarios, por una parte, se explica el contexto cultural que lo rodea, distinguiendo entre el período pre Incaico (900-1470 d.C.) y el período de contacto entre Incas y Diaguitas (1470-1536 d.C.), y también se caracterizan los diseños atendiendo a su origen cultural y simetría, facilitando su comprensión. Paola González Carvajal, arqueóloga chilena, ha estudiado y dibujado diseños de la cultura Diaguita por más de 20 años, presentes en colecciones y fragmentos cerámicos de sitios habitacionales, llegando a estar profundamente interiorizada con este arte. Sus trabajos han permitido acercarse a la comprensión de este arte visual, altamente complejo, y al contexto cultural que le rodea. Los resultados de sus investigaciones se contienen en numerosas publicaciones científicas en Chile y el extranjero.

This volume has been prepared quickly, smoothly and cheerfully. This is, perhaps, because it is dedicated to the 70th birthday anniversary of a person who is always cheerful himself, an archaeologist, zealous and lucky researcher, a radiant personality and a very kind man, as well as a wonderful colleague and true friend of all good people – Nicolai Telnov.
His journey in science has been long and fruitful: from Belgorod to Bucovina, from the Crimea to the Carpathians; expeditions and field surveys, libraries and museums; with shovel and satchel; with fantastic patience and sensational results, with vast experience and rich knowledge ready to share with his colleagues and disciples. Telnov’s realm is Tripolye and Scythians, Dacians and Slavs, medieval nomads and the old letters of the sad Lay of Igor’s Warfare. His inquisitive mind knows no limits, and we will be more than glad if this volume can serve him and other readers as a trigger to follow the thorny path of science in search of new insights.

Этот сборник статей собирался быстро, легко и радостно. Наверное, потому, что он посвящен 70-летнему юбилею веселого и никогда не унывающего археолога, настырного и везучего ученого, очень светлого и доброго человека, а еще прекрасного товарища и верного друга всех хороших людей – Николая Петровича Тельнова.
Юбиляр много и плодотворно прошел на своем научном пути: от Белгородчины до Буковины, от Крыма до Карпат; экспедициями и разведками, библиотеками и музейными хранилищами; с лопатой и полевой сумкой; с фантастическим терпением и сенсационными результатами, с приобретенным огромным опытом и полученными обширными знаниями, которыми всегда щедро делился с коллегами и учениками. Вотчина Тельнова – это Триполье и скифы, даки и славяне, средневековые кочевники и старые словесы печальной повести о полку Игоревом. Его научное любопытство не знает предела, и мы будем рады, если этот труд послужит и ему, и читателям катализатором поиска новых истин на тернистом пути исследователя.

... Tecnologia della produzione ceramica pre-e protostorica lungo l'arco alpino e territori limitrofi. Autores: Massimo Saracino; Localización: Preistoria alpina, ISSN 0393-0157, Nº. 45, 2011 , págs. 309-319. Fundación Dialnet. Acceso de usuarios registrados. ...

By recovering and interpreting the hidden technological variability in the first pottery at Ilindentsi-Massovets, this paper reveals the innovative adaptations to local conditions that the adoption of pottery production, as a new technology, must have involved. Seventy-one samples were analysed using low-resolution binocular microscopy and high-resolution petrographic and scanning electron microscopy. The variety established within each of the major components in pottery production at the site is interpreted in the context of the local raw materials (availability) and technological approaches (decision making), thus reaching beyond the traditional interpretative models that suggest large-scale uniformity in Early Neolithic pottery production across extensive European regions.

The notion of standardization in pottery production has been used as an indicator of ceramic specialization. Yet, this notion and the assumptions behind it are still largely untested ethnographically. This paper attempts to identify some factors that affect the standardization of ceramic vessel shapes in Ticul, Yucatan, Mexico. A sample of 448 ethnographic vessels of three shapes were measured and analyzed statistically. Interpretation of these analyses within the ethnographic context of the workshop industry in Ticul provides insight into the factors associated with variability in dimensional uniformity as a function of market, technique, and the potter's own views of variability. In caution, we suggest that the coefficient of variation should not supplant the use of the standard deviation as an expression of standardization.

ABSTRACT
This book is about the Maya who inhabited northern Yucatán, México, during the centuries around the European arrival, the Late Postclassic (AD c. 1100-1500). The Europeans arrived only decades after the abandonment of Mayapán, the last Maya capital in this region. The nature of Late Postclassic (LP) society is not well understood, primarily because its socioeconomic nature eludes researchers. To gain a better understanding of the Late Postclassic social and economic environment in northern Yucatán, this study focuses on ceramic production, a crucial socio-economic aspect of the ancient Maya society.
Through a combination of analytical methods that include petrographic, chemical, and surface features analyses, this research reconstructs ceramic production technology and examines regional patterns in this technology for vessels from Mayapán, minor north-central sites, and eastern sites. The research questions can be summarised as follows. Were there patterns in raw material selection and ceramic technology reflecting zones of production, groups of potters, technological traditions, or other social divisions? What might such patterns tell us about the organisation of production and the nature of interactions, including networks of ceramic exchange and technological traditions that may reflect social divisions or integration?
The results of this study have provided new insights into the technology involved in the manufacture of Late Postclassic ceramics. The potters who produced these ceramics had a deep working knowledge of the very challenging raw materials available for pottery making in northern Yucatán.
This study shows that raw material selection is not random and follows patterns determined by overarching technological traditions dictating the appropriate materials for different types of vessels at different geographical locations. These traditions can be traced back to, at least, the northern Terminal Classic, and continue up to the present. Furthermore, cultural divisions between Mayapán and minor north-central sites may be reflected in the data. Divisions are also observed
between eastern fabrics in utilitarian vessels and fabrics in north-central vessels. At least two orientations to production are emerging because the association between raw materials and types of vessels at Mayapán differs from minor northcentral sites. This study found that many potters’ groups may have supplied the minor north-central centres, while the compositionally and technologically homogeneity of Mayapán pottery points to few raw materials sources.
New perspectives have been gained on long-standing questions about the location of zones of productions, the extent of the export and import of Mayapán vessels, and the mechanisms of exchange that may have been involved in this movement of vessels. Mayapán imported few vessels and exported many. However, vessels with Mayapán fabric style
are found only at sites less than two days’ march from this major site. A ritual context or a limited sub-regional market context may explain this movement. These findings have informed current views about Late Postclassic ceramic production, exchange, and advanced our understanding of the socio-economic nature of this period.

La linea de investigacion principal de este trabajo se desarrolla en el marco del proyecto “Los Caminos del Neolitico” (HAR2009-09027), bajo la direccion del Dr. Manuel Rojo Guerra, concedido por la Subdireccion General de Proyectos de Investigacion/Direccion General de investigacion y gestion del Plan Nacional de I+D+I/Secretaria de Estado de Investigacion, del Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovacion, y co-financiado por el Gobierno de Aragon. Del mismo modo, la parte analitica se enmarca dentro del proyecto “Origins and spread of agriculture in the western Mediterranean region” (ERC-2008-AdG 230561), coordinado por la Dra. Leonor Pena Chocarro y financiado por el European Research Council. Tambien, buena parte de la investigacion relativa al estudio antropologico y su datacion, ha sido sufragada por la German Research Foundation (Al 287/14-1).

The influence of tempering on the mechanical performance of pottery is assessed. Emphasis is placed on the examination of the impact of temper shape (low vs. high sphericity) and extent of vitrification on the strength and toughness of the ceramic material. Measurements on experimental briquettes show that the replacement of platy phyllitic temper with bulky granitic temper results in a reduction in strength but, at least at very high firing temperatures, in an increase in toughness. The observed differences in strength reduction with different temper shapes is semi-quantitatively assessed by adapting the damaged zone model, developed previously to disk-shaped particles. The effect of temper shape on toughness is particularly pronounced at high firing temperatures, where platy temper results in significantly lower fracture toughness of the corresponding material.

This paper is concerned with the manufacture and trade of post-medieval crucibles (14th–19th centuries). The analytical study of crucibles from different contexts in Europe and America employed optical microscopy and SEM–EDS, coupled with archaeological and historical data. We identified two major producers of crucibles, both of them in Central Europe, whose products appear widely distributed internationally. The analytical data allow an explanation of the technical reasons behind their superior reputation, as both crucible types shared comparable material properties, such as thermal, chemical and mechanical stability. Conversely, the two crucible types were radically different in their manufacture and appearance. We argue that, besides technical considerations, sensorial aspects such as texture and colour may have played an important role in the perception and choice of materials.

The present study reports the results obtained through an archaeometric investigation on representative Early Bronze Age tripod vessels belonging to plain simple wares of Tilbeshar which is located almost 32 km southeast of Gaziantep (Turkey). The samples were characterized by XRD (X-ray diffraction), thin section (optical microscopy), FTIR (Fourier Transformed Infrared Spectroscopy), TG-DTA (Thermogravimetric Differential Thermal Analysis) and SEM/EDX (scanning electron microcopy/energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy). The chemical composition of the samples showed that the potsherds possessed high amount of CaO indicating use of calcareous clays. Proving this data XRD, TG-DTA and FTIR analyses revealed the presence of calcite, as well. Considering the mineral/phase contents of the samples, the firing temperature of the potsherds was found to change in the range of 700-900C. The appearance of neo-formations for most of the samples suggested a firing temperature range of 800-900C for...

In 2010, the Rijksmuseum began research on a group of tomb figures presumably made in central China between A.D. 7th and 9th century. During a previous treatment, an iron armature had been discovered inside one of the horses. The other figures were examined to find out if they also have a metal armature and to confirm the date of production. The main goal of this study was to investigate how the figures were produced. Based on research and observations on the objects, a hypothesis for the production process was formulated, and replica figures were modeled with an iron armature and fired. The combination of technical research with practical experimentation has resulted in a better understanding of how and when the figures were produced. page 149-158

The archaeometric study of pottery from the settlement of Oppeano (Verona, NE Italy) indicates important changes in production technology taking place between the 10th and 5th centuries BC. Ceramic production in the Final Bronze Age was characterised by the use of grog, as in other coeval sites of the southern Adige and eastern Po plains. From the beginning of the Iron Age, the number of recipes increased considerably, the use of grog gradually decreased, and cases of importation are also attested. These changes were probably due to increasing socio-economic complexity and the introduction of new production techniques.

Diversos contextos cerámicos recuperados en las excavaciones de L’Horta Vella (Bétera, Valencia) han proporcionado evidencias sobre la ocupación de este asentamiento rural en la Antigüedad Tardía. En este artículo, se presenta un estudio arqueométrico realizado sobre parte de este conjunto cerámico, en particular sobre una serie de cerámicas de cocina y comunes que fueron relacionadas, en un estudio arqueológico inicial, tanto con posibles producciones locales/regionales como con importaciones. Las cerámicas fueron analizadas mediante diversas técnicas arqueométricas para su caracterización petrográfica, mineralógica y química. Los resultados ofrecen información importante sobre su proveniencia y tecnología de producción. Resulta particularmente significativa la atribución de gran parte del conjunto analizado a una probable proveniencia local/regional, incluso de algunos materiales que fueron interpretados, en un principio, como importaciones africanas y ebusitanas.

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. La céramique façonnée au tour, témoin privilégié de la diffusion des techniques au Hallstatt D et à La Tène A/B1 Laurence Augier, Ines Balzer, David Bardel, Sylvie Defressigne, Eric Bertrand, Félix Fleischer, Sabine Hagmann, Michaël Landolt, Christine Mennessier-Jouannet, Clémence Mège, et al.

The book explores settlement and burial patterns across the southeastern corner of the Balkan Peninsula during the second millennium BC and offers a new, detailed cross-border examination of the local pottery data. The volume offers a comprehensive analysis based on the existing cultural-historical framework and calls into question established constructs such as the ‘Plovdiv-Zimnicea’ culture. The work offers a chronologically structured analysis of pottery sequences and is methodologically innovative in the way it applies a rare combination of settlement-scale analysis using advanced spatial-statistical methods alongside artefact-scale typological and stylistic study on local ceramics also subjected to spatial-statistical mapping. As a result, the research highlights clusters of attributes and cycles of micro-regional interaction. On that basis it also addresses the formation, development and decline of the Late Bronze Age tradition(s) in Thrace and examines the degree to which this trajectory was influenced by wider patterns of regional development.

este trabajo presenta los resultados preliminares de la excavación de la Cova de Els Trocs, desarrollada dentrop del proyecto de investigación "Los Caminos del Neolítico". La minuciosa labor de excavación y de registro, han permitido establecer una compleja secuencia estratigráfica con una veintena de dataciones radiocarbónicas sobre eventos de vida corta que permiten seguir la evolución de la ocupación del lugar desde Finalñes del sexto milenio, hasta finales del cuatro a. C. También permite seguir el proceso de colonización neolítica de las tierras más altas del Pirineo, para su aprovechamiento como pastos de altura por grupos familiares de pastores trashumantes, posiblemente originarios de las tierras situadas al sur, en el prepirineo o sierras exteriores.

HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access archive for the deposit and dissemination of scientific research documents, whether they are published or not. The documents may come from teaching and research institutions in France or abroad, or from public or private research centers. L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires publics ou privés. La céramique façonnée au tour, témoin privilégié de la diffusion des techniques au Hallstatt D et à La Tène A/B1 Laurence Augier, Ines Balzer, David Bardel, Sylvie Defressigne, Eric Bertrand, Félix Fleischer, Sabine Hagmann, Michaël Landolt, Christine Mennessier-Jouannet, Clémence Mège, et al.

Ciudad Vieja es el sitio de la segunda villa de San Salvador y el primer asentamiento permanente colonial en El Salvador. La villa de San Salvador fue abandonada en 1545, sus habitantes se trasladaron a su sitio actual, la ciudad de San Salvador. Ciudad Vieja esta ubicada 32 km al noreste de San Salvador actual y 10 km al sur de Suchitoto, en el departamento Cuscatlan. Esta localizada encima de una meseta pequena, en un area conocida como La Bermuda . La meseta no era un sitio idoneo para el asentamiento. Los pipiles de varios pueblos se vieron obligados a cortar bosques densos, sacar piedras grandes y nivelar la meseta antes de la construccion . El siguiente articulo desarrolla un analisis de la ceramica de Ciudad Vieja, por el autor, y las con-secuencias para nuestro entendimiento de las transformaciones en Mesoamerica durante la epoca de la conquista y la colonizacion espanola .

Fineware polychrome ceramics of the Nasca culture (A.C. 1-750), renowned for their elaborate iconography and artistic and technical quality, have only recently been examined for the social and economic contexts of their production. We present the results from a pilot study of instrumental neutron activation of a sample of excavated ceramics from the Early Nasca domestic site Marcaya, Peru. The study indicates variability in the chemical composition of plainware ceramics, while painted vessels and panpipes from the site form a single compositional group. These results are evaluated in light of existing models of Nasca pottery production and exchange. Excavations did not reveal evidence for pottery production at Marcaya. Thus, we suggest that the results of the compositional analysis indicate that the fineware ceramics at Marcaya were produced elsewhere under the contexts of specialization. This pilot study demonstrates that compositional analyses of Nasca ceramics can make a signific...

Here we report the discovery of ceramic fragments that form part of a Gorgoneion, a ceramic image representation of the Gorgon Medusa. The fragments were found in a deep part of Gorham’s Cave, well known to ancient mariners as a natural shrine, between the 8th and 2nd century BCE. We discuss the context of this discovery, both within the inner topography of the cave itself, and also the broader geographical context. The discovery is situated at the extreme western end of the Mediterranean Sea, where it meets the Atlantic Ocean. The location was known to ancient mariners as the northern Pillar of Herakles, which marked the end of the known world. We relate the discovery, and its geographical and chronological context, to Greek legends that situated the lair of the Gorgon sisters at a location which coincides with the physical attributes and geographical position of Gorham’s Cave. We thus provide, uniquely, a geographical and archaeological context to the myth of Perseus and the slayi...