The Field Recording of Ceramic Data

Abstract

AbstractThis article is a description of the criteria, methods, and techniques used by the Joint Expedition to Tell el-Hesi in the excavation, recording, and publication of ceramic materials. It is offered in the hope of stimulating conversation toward standardized criteria and processes for gathering ceramic data.The Joint Expedition to Tell el-Hesi was begun in 1970 as a ten-year project seeking to integrate new methods of analysis and scientific specialization with advanced stratigraphic techniques to reconstruct in as much detail as possible a description of the successive population groups which occupied this 37 acre mound. To this end the Joint Expedition was the first American expedition in Israel to integrate a full staff of specialists in botany, ceramic manufacture, geology and lithology into a large scale excavation.Three seasons of field excavation have been completed thus far (1970, 1971, and 1973) with two sessions of excavation planned for the summer of 1975. During these three seasons more...