Uniform in diversity: Typological and technological analysis of Bronze Age fine ware from Kakucs-Turján

Abstract

The ceramic variability of fine ware pottery in Early and Middle Bronze Age Carpathian Basin (2600/2500–1500/1450 BCE) has been used as an argument for the existence of distinct, large-scale communities. The recent technological studies of coarse ware ceramics have shown that different stylistic groups are characterized by uniform technological traits, suggesting that current narratives result from an a priori classification of material culture. To verify whether fine ware ceramics were characterized by similar traits, a sample of 33 vessels from a multi-layered, fortified settlement of Kakucs-Turján (Hungary) was analyzed in terms of vessel forms and underlying production processes. The analyses compared the classical local and non-local provenance objects to determine whether the impressionistic categorization of vessels is supported by discrete parameters. The results indicate that similarly to coarse ware, Early and Middle Bronze Age ceramics in the Carpathian Basin was characterized by uniform production processes suggesting the impact of multi-directional and persisting interaction across the Carpathian Basin.