Pottery function and culinary practices of Yarmukian societies in the late 7th millennium cal. BC: First results

Abstract

While the studies of Neolithic ceramic assemblages in the Near East have largely focused on the pottery styles and techniques, they have seldom taken the function of ceramic vessels into consideration. Yet, the use of pottery, found in large amounts in the Early Pottery Neolithic settlements, allows us to access to many aspects of daily life of prehistoric societies— in particular food practices. In order to characterise the culinary practices of Levantine societies at the end of the 7th millennium cal. BC, an exploratory study was undertaken on the use of Yarmukian pottery. The multidisciplinary approach combines typometry (shape, size, volume, wall thickness) with use-wear (residues and abrasions) of Neolithic vessels. The first results show that the Yarmukian populations of the late 7th millennium used their pottery for storing, transporting, cooking and consuming various substances. For cooking porridges, communities chose specific vessels within the available range of pottery types, put them in the middle of a fireplace and heated foodstuffs for a large group of people. The food habits of Yarmukian communities in the Southern Levant seem different from those of the contemporary Pre/ Proto-Halafian populations in Mesopotamia who apparently used their vessels much less for long-term storage but more frequently for transporting and cooking staple foods.