Abstract
This paper considers the structure of production, distribution and consumption of ceramics within Chalcolithic communities of SE Iberia, an important region for modelling social and technological change in the recent prehistory of Eurasia. Our research provides new data through the comparative analysis of domestic and metallurgical ceramics, as well as building and other clay-rich materials from the archaeological site of Las Pilas (2875–2620 cal. BC 2σ to 2460–2205 cal. BC 2σ) (Mojácar, Almería). In total, 56 samples are characterised by optical petrography, with SEM analysis of 22 of those individuals, in order to assess firing conditions. Results point to the existence of a local tradition in which domestic and metallurgical wares exhibit important similarities in their production processes. In terms of technology, the assemblage shows a relative homogeneity, although firing conditions, surface treatment and decoration seem to have played an important role in the differentiation of highly symbolic wares from other ceramics. We conclude that raw material procurement and processing at Las Pilas differ from those at other Copper Age sites already studied in SE and SW Iberia. This is in agreement with earlier archaeometallurgical studies on Las Pilas, suggesting the development of local and community-based technological traditions. As such, the paper attempts to bridge the recent divide between re-emergent top-down models and our detailed understandings of technological practice.
Highlights
The Chalcolithic in south-eastern Iberia (3200–2200 BC) has been characterised as a period of change during which local populations took their first steps towards social complexity
The composition and texture of the inclusions are typical of secondary deposits resulting from the decomposition of metamorphic materials due to depositional processes, with quartz (≤ 0.3 mm), white mica (≤ 0.3 mm), metamorphic rock fragments, opaques (≤ 0.2 mm), brown mica (≤ 0.4 mm), tourmaline (≤ 0.1 mm), zircon (≤ 0.1 mm) and epidote group minerals (≤ 0.1 mm). The matrix of those samples is formed by a non-calcareous, silty, micaceous groundmass, red-brown to pale brown in planepolarised light (PPL), with firing horizons (MPL-007 and MPL-017), and inclusions strongly oriented subparallel to the surface of the vessels
Opaque-rich phyllite outcrops matching the fragments identified in the pottery and metallurgical ceramics are present within the Alpujárride complex of the Cabrera mountain range
Summary
The Chalcolithic in south-eastern Iberia (3200–2200 BC) has been characterised as a period of change during which local populations took their first steps towards social complexity. The area has been crucial in the construction of models of social change (Ramos Millán 1981; Lull 1983; Mathers 1984; Chapman 1990; Díaz-Andreu 1995) and especially of the spread of metalworking in the Old World (Renfrew 1967; Montero Ruiz and Murillo-Barroso 2014; Roberts 2008, 2014). Despite intensive research undertaken in the area, key questions remain open, concerning the structure of production, distribution and consumption of goods, as well as the actual role played by craft in social change. Metals and social change in SE Iberia In attempting to bridge the recent divide between reemergent top-down models and our detailed understandings of practice, this paper presents new data precedent from the Archaeol Anthropol Sci (2019) 11:1553–1570 analysis of a variety of clay-based remains (domestic pottery, metallurgical ceramics and building materials) from the archaeological site of Las Pilas (Mojácar, Almería).
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