Bronze Age Pottery Research Articles

Technological choices and practices of Early Bronze Age pottery production in the Central Plains: Focusing on the sites of Xinzhai and Huadizui

Aspects of the Early Bronze Age (ca. 2050–1640 BCE) pottery production technology and knowledge transfer in the Central Plains of China (i.e., the Zhengzhou-Luoyang area) were studied. To this aim, 120 domestic pottery samples and ten geological samples from two central sites at Xinzhai and Huadizui were studied macroscopically and analysed with X-ray fluorescence spectrometry. Based on a discussion of macroscopical evidence and chemical composition, the results tentatively indicate the technological knowledge transfer between the potters in Xinzhai and Huadizui sites despite being located about 80 km apart. Pottery of the same category was manufactured with similar selection and preparation strategies of ceramic raw materials, decorated with similar patterns, and adopted similar forming techniques. More specifically, the cookware from the Xinzhai and Huadizui sites was hand-made and Ca-poor, while the storage- and drinking wares were wheel-made and Ca-rich. These results likely indicate the existence of one overarching community of practice, potters located at Xinzhai and Huadizui, who shared strategies for raw materials selection, paste preparation, and finishing.

Continuity and Innovation in Pottery Technology: The Karst Region (North-East Italy) from Neolithic to Early Bronze Age

This paper explores the development of pottery technology in the Trieste Karst region (North-East Italy) from the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age (EBA). It also seeks to identify cultural links with other areas by examining potentially imported vessels. Archaeometric analyses (X-ray diffraction and optical microscopy) reveal significant differences between Neolithic ceramics (Danilo–Vlaška Group) and the majority of Late Copper Age (LCA)/Early Bronze Age (EBA) pottery (primarily associated with the Ljubljana Culture and a few with the Cetina Culture). Neolithic pottery displays consistent characteristics across all vessel types, including coarse grain, prevalent sparry calcite temper, and the absence of grog. In contrast, most LCA and EBA vessels exhibit distinct features such as very fine-grained paste, no sparry calcite, notable use of grog temper, higher quartz, muscovite, and flint content. Notably, from a technological perspective, the analyzed Cetina vessels bear a strong resemblance to the majority of LCA ceramics. The differences between Neolithic and LCA/EBA vessels clearly suggest the use of new raw materials, recipes, and techniques, likely reflecting changes in cultural and social contexts and potential connections with the core area of the Ljubljana Culture.

What Rivers Did: a Study of if and how Rivers Shaped Later Prehistoric Lives in Britain and Beyond

Countering the passive representation of rivers in many previous accounts of later prehistory – as static vessels for spectacular deposits, highways for transport and communication, and backdrops for settlement and farming – this paper asks if and how rivers actively shaped prehistoric lives. Rivers have long been hailed as conduits for prehistoric materials and ideas. However, positive archaeological correlates of the processes involved are notoriously difficult to identify and have rarely been scrutinised in detail. Using the example of Late Bronze and Early Iron Age pottery in the east of England (1150–350 bc), we examine in detail how prehistoric pottery-making traditions cohered around river valleys over an extended time period and were thus, to a certain extent, generated by rivers. Drawing on wider evidence for the flow of people and things in this region we build a broader multi-dimensional account of how people, objects, and practices moved in a period of diverse lifeways in which the makeup of human mobility is not well understood. In doing so, we hope to tether abstract arguments about the active role of rivers and other non-human elements in shaping past lives and to approach the often missing ‘middle ground’ – small-scale movements at local and regional scales – in existing archaeological discussions about mobility.

The Evil Twin: Older Bronze Age Ceramic Typology of the Nordic Circle

Abstract This paper focuses on the Older Bronze Age pottery of the Nordic Circle, which has so far been given a wide berth in research. Due to the insufficient amount of published material, the study applied the classical and yet often frowned upon type classification and brought it into dialogue with multivariate statistical analyses. This represents then the first overview study of the Older Bronze Age ceramic material of Schleswig-Holstein and it is even more relevant, because it can can be helpful for later refinements and the classification of further material. In addition to the elaboration of ten vessel categories, which in turn could be subdivided into different numbers of types and type variants, the study makes clear how pottery production gains during the course of the Older Bronze Age in variety of form, size and expression. Links between this increasing complexity and the change in burial customs around 1300 BCE are also highlighted in relation to other changes in this period that have already been identified in the context of intensive transformation research in this region, so that the relevance of an examination of Older Bronze Age pottery becomes even clearer.

The Use of 3D Scanning and 3D Color Printing Technologies for the Study and Documentation of Late Bronze Age Pottery from East-Central Greece

The Use of 3D Scanning and 3D Color Printing Technologies for the Study and Documentation of Late Bronze Age Pottery from East-Central Greece

Some Remarks on a Group of Early Bronze Age Pottery Kept in the Istanbul Archaeological Museums

Some Remarks on a Group of Early Bronze Age Pottery Kept in the Istanbul Archaeological Museums

Petrographic and geochemical analyses of Late Bronze and Iron Age pottery from Arslantepe (Malatya, Turkey): insights into the local organization of the production and extra-regional networks of exchange

In this paper, we analyzed Late Bronze and Iron Age pottery assemblages from the site of Arslantepe (Malatya, eastern Turkey) by utilizing a combination of thin-section petrography and X-ray wavelength dispersive fluorescence techniques. Following an introduction to the site and an overview of the archeological and historical evidence, the analysis is presented, and the outcomes discussed in the wider framework of the Syro-Anatolian and eastern Mediterranean regions. The results show elements of both continuity and change over the second millennium and until the beginning of the first millennium BC. On a local level, the use of volcanic-based recipes for the production of painted vessels represents the most striking element of continuity. In contrast, noteworthy elements of changes relate to an increased exploitation of geological deposits south of Arslantepe and the standardization of paste recipes for cooking pots. Remarkable results also pertain to extra-regional exchanges: The Late Bronze Age Red Lustrous Wheel-made Ware found at the site is imported from Cilicia, while the wares of foreign tradition from the Middle Iron Age levels are mostly locally produced.

Artefacts from Ban Chiang, Thailand: Pre-metal Age cord-marked pottery

Abstract Pottery excavated from the archeological UNESCO world heritage site Ban Chiang in Thailand stem from distinct periods. Black vessels with cord-mark design from Pre-metal Age (ca. 3000–1000 BC), Bronze Age pottery (ca 1000–300 BC) with yellow-brown surface and Iron Age samples (ca. 300 BC–200 AD) with red pictorial surface patterns. In a previous work [Bismayer U., Srilomsak S., Treekamol Y., Tanthanuch W., Suriyatham K. Artefacts from Ban Chiang, Thailand: pottery with hematite-red geometric patterns. Z. Kristallogr. 2020, 235, 559–568] we studied the mineralogical composition and their surface colour materials of shards from Bronze and Iron Age. In this work we focus on bulk features of the dark Pre-metal Age cord-marked ceramic shard PSN2-S10E13 and compare its elemental and mineralogical composition with bulk composition of sample 5412-S6E15 from Bronze Age. Experimental techniques are electron microprobe, X-ray powder diffraction, FTIR spectroscopy, optical microscopy and X-ray tomographic microscopy (XTM). Sample PSN2-S10E13 contains more quartz than 5412-S6E15. In the bulk of the Pre-metal Age shard, diffraction signals of mullite occur, indicating higher firing temperatures compared to the younger sample. Phyllosilicate signals are seen in FTIR spectra of both shards. E-modes of quartz dominate FTIR spectra of both samples. Optical thin sections show voids around micro-particles in PSN2-S10E13 and XTM indicates that the pore volume percentage of sample PSN2-S10E13 is higher than in 5412-S6E15. Because of the large age gap to younger samples from Ban Chiang, the proper age of our oldest sample PSN2-S10E13 was determined using an accelerator mass spectrometer (AMS) by simultaneous 14C/12C and 13C/12C isotope ratio measurements which yielded a radiocarbon age of 3609 ± 29 BP (resp. 1659 ± 29 BC).

Petrographic studies of Late Bronze Age pottery from Hala Sultan Tekke, Cyprus

Petrographic analysis of ceramics allows for the high-resolution distinction between locally-produced ceramics and imports and provides a more comprehensive understanding of ancient production and exchange patterns. This paper analyses Cypriot-produced tablewares of the Late Bronze Age at Hala Sultan Tekke, a major trading hub in the eastern Mediterranean, focusing on the transition from Late Cypriot (LC) IIC to LC IIIA (c. 13th to mid-12th century BCE). In this study, a wide range of tablewares were analysed, with a particular focus on Cypriot-produced plain ware (Plain White Hand- and Wheel-Made; PWHM/PWWM) and painted wheel-made fineware (White Painted Wheel-Made Ware; WPWM), using petrography to determine their mineralogical composition, production technique, and provenance. In addition, reference samples were collected and experimentally fired to identify potential raw materials in the Circum-Troodos Sedimentary Succession region, with additional basaltic soil samples collected from the slopes of the Troodos.The results show that there was a local production at Hala Sultan Tekke of Aegean-type painted and unpainted finewares in LC IIC. The adaptation of Aegean technologies, shapes and decoration patterns, sometimes in combination with traditional Cypriot characteristics, became prevalent in the local production of tableware in LC IIIA until the city was abandoned around the mid-12th century BCE. Evidence for coastal imports, e.g. from the wider Larnaca Bay region, the Famagusta Bay and western Cyprus, particularly painted wheel-made fineware bowls from LC IIIA, reveal new economic patterns and supply chains that emerged after the decline of interregional trade in the eastern Mediterranean around 1200 BCE.

Excavation of a Pit Alignment at Land Adjacent to Orchardfield, East Linton, East Lothian

The remains of a pit alignment were excavated to the east of Orchardfield, East Linton, East Lothian by CFA Archaeology Ltd during archaeological mitigation works ahead of a residential development. The excavation revealed an L-shaped alignment which consisted of 49 pits (27 north-south and 22 east-west) with a possible entrance through the east-west alignment. All of the pits in the alignment were either fully or partially excavated. A fragment of a tall D-sectioned cannel coal bangle, dated to the Iron Age, was recovered from one of the pits. Mid-Late Bronze Age pottery was recovered from an isolated pit which did not form part of the pit alignment.

Vėlyvojo bronzos amžiaus ekonomika rytų Baltijos regione: naujo modelio link

In this paper, we present the main results of interdisciplinary project that allowed us to formulate a new perspective on the economy of the Late Bronze Age in the Eastern Baltic region. New excavations at the Late Bronze Age fortified settlements of Garniai 1 (Utena district municipality) and Mineikiškės (Zarasai district municipality) lead us to analyse the economy of the communities in much greater detail and to formulate a more reliable economical model than before. This paper reviews the new results of archaeobotanical investigations of these fortified settlements, as well as δ13C and δ15N data of food remains in Late Bronze Age pottery, grains and animal bone collagen samples. These analyses allowed us to refine and clarify the likely dietary practices of consumers of certain products in the Eastern Baltic region. The paper also publishes new data on the elemental composition and lead isotopes of metalware, thereby adding to our earlier findings These studies show that metallurgy as a specialized activity did not play a significant role in the Late Bronze Age economy, but its emergence was driven by the economic changes of the period. In contrast, the production of high-level bone-antler artifacts reflects the activity of specialized craftsmen in Late Bronze Age settlements. The collection of a new large and varied dataset allows us to determine the lifestyle and dietary habits of the people living in these settlements. By developing a new model of the Late Bronze Age, we present a picture of the interwoven economies of agriculture, animal husbandry, hunting, fishing, gathering, metallurgy and bone craftsmanship as a whole, asking what might have influenced the distinctive development of the economy of the eastern Baltic Sea region during the Late Bronze Age.

Late Bronze Age Pot Marks From Thyateira – Hastane Höyüğü

Various hypotheses have been formulated to explain the function and meaning of pre-post firing marks in the Late Bronze Age Anatolia. Known as "pot marks," these signs have been prominently associated with the administrative systems–central authorities or viewed as an indicator of asymmetric interregional economic relations. However, these interpretations are not suitable for Western Anatolia due to the limited number of pot marks found in a few settlements, the distinctive qualities of pottery tradition in the region, and the lack of institutionalized interregional economic connections. This article presents the first examples of pot marks found in Akhisar-Hastane Höyük/Central West Anatolia with preliminary observations on the Late Bronze Age pottery groups. It emphasizes the ambiguous nature of pot marks, their typological similarities, and differences among non-regional parallels and suggests that their appearances in the Western Anatolian LBA settlements should be considered as singular cases for now.

Archaeometric investigations of the Molali pottery complex (Bronze Age, Uzbekistan): New data on technology and exchanges at the end of the Oxus Civilization

The recent excavations at the site of Molali, located in southern Uzbekistan and dated to the mid-second millennium BCE, offer new insights into the definition of the Final Bronze Age pottery complex in southern Uzbekistan and the technological and stylistic links between the potting traditions of the various cultural groups at this period. An archaeometric study has been conducted in order to characterize the various wares, investigate the compositional variability of the ceramic assemblage, and determine the provenance of the raw materials. The results from a combination of techniques (Wavelength Dispersive X-Ray Fluorescence, X-Ray Diffraction, and thin section Optical Microscopy) allowed us to identify a local pottery production of wheel-made fine ware and to determine the local/regional origin of the handmade, coarse, shell-tempered ware. Exchange relationships with ‘steppe’ populations have been confirmed; they involved not only vessels (coarse rock-tempered pots) but also pottery traditions (specific ‘steppe’-like decorations on pots of regional origin). Although not numerous, they are nonetheless evidence of large-scale connections between the settlements in the Surkhan Darya valley and other peripheral cultures and areas in the mid-second millennium BCE. The diversity of fabrics (use of various raw materials and different technological processes) is also discussed regarding the choices made for intrinsic material properties required for specific functions, highlighting the strong expertise and management acquired by the potters for the production of diverse ceramic functional categories.

MRS, µEDXRF and FTIR-ATR analysis of white paste inlays in Bronze Age pottery from the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula: The case of Peñalosa (Jaén, Spain)

The objective of this paper is to characterise the composition and manufacturing techniques of the white paste inlays in the Bronze Age pottery decorations on the eastern Iberian Peninsula, using as a case study the Argaric archaeological site of Peñalosa (Baños de la Encina, Jaén, Spain). The determination of the characteristics and manufacture of these pastes required the application of analytical techniques such as micro-Raman spectroscopy (MRS), micro X-ray fluorescence (µEDXRF) and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR-ATR), as well as reference materials. This methodology made it possible to distinguish two types of production in this enclave: one with bone and the other with kaolinite. The coexistence of different manufacturing techniques had already been corroborated in other Bronze Age contexts in Europe and the southwest of the Iberian Peninsula. We were also able to determine that, in the case of paste made with bone, the temperatures would have reached 800°C, making it possible to link the use of calcined deer antlers with the manufacture of these decorations.

The Mycenaean Settlement on Tsoungiza Hill. By James C. Wright and Mary K. Dabney (Nemea Valley Archaeological Project 3). Princeton: American School of Classical Studies at Athens 2020. Pp. 1240. $150. ISBN 978-0-87661-924-7 (cloth).

<i>The Mycenaean Settlement on Tsoungiza Hill</i>. By James C. Wright and Mary K. Dabney (Nemea Valley Archaeological Project 3). Princeton: American School of Classical Studies at Athens 2020. Pp. 1240. $150. ISBN 978-0-87661-924-7 (cloth).

Technological insights on the Early-Middle Bronze Age pottery of Monte Meana cave (Sardinia, Italy)

An important Bronze Age settlement was discovered during an archaeological excavation in the Monte Meana karst cave in south-western Sardinia (Italy) between 2007 and 2012. In this region, the caves were used since the Neolithic for different purposes, such as burials or other rituals. The dig highlighted a rare example of domestic use of a cave and showed a case study of household space of the Early -Middle Bronze Age, at the beginning of the Nuragic civilization. This provided the opportunity to investigate through a multidisciplinary approach, the empirical knowledge of ancient potters and technological characters of local pottery production especially in relation to domestic use, in a context at that time devoid of external cultural interferences. For this purpose, a selection of 24 pottery sherds related to vessel forms for cooking, storage, and eating were studied through macroscopic surveys and archaeometric analysis by petrography, scanning electron microscopy, X-ray powder diffraction, and Fourier transform infrared spectroscopy. The results revealed some discriminant variables (shape, wall thickness, features of the paste, surface smoothing, presence of diagnostic mineralogical phases, and tempers), within the ceramic products of this Sardinian Bronze Age site, showing skillful management of firing temperatures.

The study of Middle Bronze Age pottery from Yassıtepe Höyük site in İzmir, Turkey, by FTIR and XRD with chemometrics

In this study, a combination of ATR-FTIR and XRD spectroscopy was used to characterize the mineralogical compositions and firing conditions of 108 Middle Bronze Age sherds collected from the different excavation areas of the Yassıtepe Höyük site in İzmir, Turkey. The FTIR results were processed using PCA and HCA to determine the similarities and correlations between the samples based on their mineralogical composition. PCA analysis employing second-derivative FTIR spectra (1700–400 cm−1) with 9 smoothing points classified the sherd samples into four main groups. The results provided from the FTIR analysis showed that all sherd groups have been fired at about 800–950 °C due to the simultaneous presence of the minerals of muscovite and Ca-silicate. Representative samples from the four main groups were analyzed by XRD, confirming FTIR results. Moreover, the findings show that FTIR analysis provides a very good tool for detecting different ceramic sherds as well as analyzing a large number of samples with low cost and fast analysis time.

Re-identification of plant impressions on prehistoric pottery from Ukraine

In this paper, we report newly obtained data on cereals from the Neolithic to Bronze Age from the northern side of the Black Sea. One part of the North Pontic area, located within present-day Ukraine, is one of the focal points of discussions on the agricultural dispersal between West and East Eurasia; however, existing reliable cereal data are scarce. In this study, we employed an improved silicone casting method to obtain impressions from pottery artifacts and conducted a survey of more than 30,000 pottery samples from different times. Observations of seed surface texture using scanning electron microscopy further improved the identification accuracy. The results showed no reliable cereal impressions in Ukrainian sub-Neolithic pottery, despite the predicted exceptionally early start of arable agriculture prior to the 6th millennium BC. In contrast, in Linear Band and Eneolithic pottery, cereals originating from West Asia were identified, although Chinese millet was absent. Meanwhile, abundant Panicum miliaceum impressions appeared abruptly with incidental barley and wheat in Late Bronze Age pottery. The Chinese millet species Setaria italica, which is clearly distinguishable from P. miliaceum using our method, was not identified. The archaeobotanical dataset obtained in this survey is an important achievement in examining food globalization that crossed the east and west of Eurasia.

Mineralogical Characterization of Early Bronze Age Pottery from the Svilengrad-Brantiite Site, Southeastern Bulgaria

Several pottery sherds from the Svilengrad-Brantiite site, Bulgaria, were mineralogically and petrographically analyzed. The aim was to add information to the very scarce material data available for Early Bronze Age pottery in the southeastern Thrace plain, Bulgaria, in order to examine a possible raw-material source of the pottery. The characterization techniques applied were optical microscopy (OM), petrographic microscopy (PM), scanning electron microscopy coupled with energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy (SEM-EDS), X-ray fluorescence (XRF) spectroscopy, and X-ray diffraction (XRD). The pottery samples consisted of two typological groups: a local-made type and a cord-impressed decoration type influenced by foreign cultures. All of the samples were produced from fine clay pastes that had a quite similar composition, with abundant mineral grains of similar mineral composition and fragments of metamorphic and granitic rocks. The chemical compositions of each mineral in the grains and fragments were almost identical, and consistent with those from metamorphic and granitic rocks from the Sakar-Strandja Mountains near the study site. The clay paste compositions corresponded to those of illite/smectite mixed-layer clay minerals or mixtures of illite and smectite, and the clay-mineral species were consistent with those in Miocene–Pleistocene or Holocene sediments surrounding the site.

Technological Insights on the Early-Middle Bronze Age Pottery of Monte Meana Cave (Sardinia, Italy)

Technological Insights on the Early-Middle Bronze Age Pottery of Monte Meana Cave (Sardinia, Italy)