Pottery Samples Research Articles

SEM Analysis o Archaeological Pottery Samples from Karur, Tamilnadu, India

The aim of the present study is to find out the presence of minerals, raw materials used and the ceramic technology of the past in the selected pottery samples from the important archeological site Karur of Karur district, Tamil Nadu, India. Two Pottery samples of the period 250BC are collected from different depths of the excavated site are used for the present analysis. Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) has been used for the analysis. Examination of pottery samples under SEM is an excellent micro analytical technique used for the study of clay mineral configuration, fabric, texture and growth mechanisms. The presence of quartz, feldspar, montmorillonite, kaolinite, mullite in the selected pottery samples has been identified. Firing the pottery samples in the reducing atmosphere technique is also brought out.

Applying luminescence dating of ceramics to the problem of dating Arctic archaeological sites

Dating Arctic archaeological sites is challenging because of limited terrestrial bone and the high probability of old wood in northern regions. Luminescence dating of ceramic materials, abundant in western Arctic late Holocene archaeological sites, offers another potential source of chronological information. We set out to evaluate whether luminescence can provide chronological information in one particular region. We obtained luminescence ages on 14 pottery samples from seven study sites located on the coast and interior regions of northwest Alaska. Twelve of the luminescence dates are in accord with radiocarbon, tree ring, and artifact data from the study sites. Results indicate that all of the study sites may be older than previously established, suggesting previously unknown early Thule or Birnirk occupation of the coast and interior of northwest Alaska. We conclude that luminescence dating of ceramic materials from this region is possible and can complement other dating methods that are more widely accepted in the western Arctic. There is considerable potential through future applications of luminescence dating for improving northeast Asian and Arctic chronologies and expanding our understanding of circumpolar Holocene migration, cultural interaction, and change.

Discrimination and Provenances of Phoenician Red Slip Ware Using both the Solid State Electrochemistry and Petrographic Analyses

AbstractSolid state electrochemistry based on the voltammetry of immobilized microparticles (VIMP) methodology is applied to a series of 80 Phoenician Red Slip samples from the archaeological sites of Motya (Sicily, Italy), Mogador (Morocco), Ramat‐Rahel (Israel), Sulky (Sardinia, Italy), Tas Silg (Malta), Pantelleria (Italy), and Cádiz (Spain), dated from the 8th to the 6th century BC. Upon attachment of sub‐microsamples to graphite electrodes in contact with aqueous H2SO4 electrolyte, voltammetric features due to the reduction of Fe(III) minerals and the oxidation of Fe(II) ones, complemented with electrocatalytic effects on oxygen reduction and oxygen evolution reactions, provide characteristic electrochemical fingerprints for pottery samples. A consistent sample grouping discriminating between different potteries from different archaelogical sites, is obtained, all results being consistent with morphological, compositional and mineralogical data. Petrographic analysis supports the grouping, defining the manufacture and firing procedure for the different archaeological context.

Pots and potters of the Bronze Age of north-west Xinjiang

Abstract

Automated SEM‐EDS pottery classification based on minero‐chemical quantitative parameters: An application on ancient Greek pottery from Adrano (NE Sicily, Italy)

A new SEM‐EDS procedure for ancient ceramic classification, based on the automated acquisition and the semiautomated processing of multi‐elemental X‐ray maps, is described. Based on the detection of each aplastic inclusion, the procedure allows to simultaneously obtain a quantitative evaluation of both the inclusion mineral–chemical composition and the ceramic matrix chemical composition. The two data sets can individually or jointly be subjected to statistical methods. The proposed protocol was applied on a set of 22 samples of black glaze pottery from Adrano (north‐eastern Sicily), Hellenistic age (4th to 2nd centuries B.C.). Two main groups emerged from the application of the procedure, mainly distinguished for their quartz–feldspars versus calcium–aluminosilicate relative abundance as the inclusion mineral–chemical composition is concerned and for their matrix SiO2 versus CaO. The classification based on the inclusion mineral–chemical data obtained with the proposed method mirrors the results from the traditional OM observation, but when the two data sets are simultaneously considered, a subtler differentiation is observed with the separation of one of the groups in two subgroups, allowing to refine the partition.

ARTIFACTS OF THE LATE BROZE AGE FROM MOKHNACH П SETTLEMENT

The article aims to introduce new finds of the Late Bronze Age from Mokhnach П settlement site at the Sіverskyi Donets river.
 Two archaeological object (pits 27 and 40) can be dated back to the Late Bronze Age. Finds are presented mostly by pottery sherds (31 units) discovered mostly in the excavation pit 1.
 The research program of the pottery assemblage includes account of its planographic distribution, distribution due to the type of sherds, analysis of shape, ornamentation, size, surface finishing, plastic raw material and paste recipes of vessels. Morphological and ornamentation classifications were built on the basis of the scheme developed on materials of Mosolovka site and the settlements of middle flew of Sіverskyi Donets river. Research of the plastic raw material and paste recipes was conducted using visual microscopic analysis, abridged MGR-analysis and thin-section analysis.
 Pottery assemblage includes 4 % of the total number of fragments discovered during excavations. Five pottery forms were identified: restricted and unrestricted jars, pot-like vessels, pots and ribbed vessels. Orifice diameters of jars, pot-like vessels and pots vary from 38.0 to 21.5 cm. Ribbed vessels on average are smaller than mentioned types and form to groups by size (with orifice diameters of 25 and 15—16 cm).
 Three techniques and nine elements of ornamentation were identified. Make-up of both surfaces prevails, fine-toothed comb treatment and coarse-toothed comb treatment of Pokrovka type are also presented.
 Two pottery fabrics can be distinguished in the assemblage with the naked eye. Five pottery samples were selected for purposes of technological analysis. Observations were conducted using the microscope on cross-cuts and fresh breaks of sherds before and after re-firing. Consequently two groups by features of plastic raw material and two paste recipes were identified. Both paste recipes include grog as an intentional addition.
 Due to method of the abridged Matrix Group by Refiring (MGR) analysis the samples were re-fired in controlled conditions up to from 1100 to 1200 °C. The results showed the identity of the matrix of all samples — non-calcareous, slightly over-melted (sovM). Their local production is suggested. The thin-section analysis allowed to clarify technological features of the samples with raw material type 1, paste type 1.
 Analyzed ceramic materials present traditions of the Wood-framed Graves entity. They mark new settlement site of the developed stage of the Wood-framed Graves entity and can be dated back to XVII—XVІ BC.
 Small size of the ceramic assemblage restricts its informative capacity. The importance of the research lies in testing the program of complex analysis of ceramic assemblages.

Investigations of potsherds of miniature cups and household pots from the first millennium AD (the case study on the Western Lithuanian ceramics)

This article presents data on the structure and elemental composition of hand-built miniature cups with a smooth surface, that were enclosed into burials as funeral pottery, and household pots dated to the first millennium AD found in four different archaeological sites of Western Lithuania. Investigated funeral and household pottery samples reflect the chemical composition of the local raw materials used for their production, while the variations in composition point to different clay locations, as well as use of distinct tempers and peculiarities of ceramics firing technology.

First archaeomagnetic results from Colombia (the Bogotá Savanna Pre-Hispanic sites): Implications for the Caribbean absolute geomagnetic intensity variation curve

Colombia is located along so-called intermediate area between two major American civilizations: Mesoamerica and Central Andes. Despite impressive archaeological sites throughout whole Colombian territory and great cultural heritage, still no regional geomagnetic secular variation curve is available. Here, we report first, systematic archaeointensity measurements on the Bogotá Savanna Pre-Hispanic pottery samples corresponding to a radiometrically well dated archaeological context. Seventy-two samples belonging to six potsherds were subjected to the full battery of rock-magnetic experiments in order to select the most suitable samples for double heating palaeointensity experiments. The selected samples exhibited magnetically and thermally stable behavior pointing to titanium-poor titanomagnetite as responsible for magnetization. Under our imposed selection and acceptance criteria, only 37 specimens coming from two pottery fragments provided high-quality technical determinations. These new data together with all up to now available similar-quality determinations from the Caribbean region were used to build a first regional reference curve using a bootstrap method. The main variation tendency observed in the Caribbean curve is rather similar to the North American (central Mexico and southern United States) patterns but show substantial difference with the South American regional variation curve, most probably influenced by non-dipole contribution due to the South Atlantic Magnetic Anomaly. This first Caribbean curve extends the knowledge of the absolute intensity variation over the three millennia and should be considered as most reliable dating tool in Colombia and surrounding regions.

Investigation of Ring Burnished Pottery Samples from Tilbaşar Mound (Gaziantep, Turkey) Using Multiple Analysis Techniques

In the present study, representative samples of ring burnished ceramic findings belonging to the Early Bronze Age (from Tilbaşar Mound, Gaziantep, Turkey) were archaeometrically investigated by means of multiple analysis methods covering X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy together with energy dispersive X-ray spectrometry, optical microscopy and thermogravimetric-differential thermal analysis. Additionally, the colors of the potsherds were determined by chromametric analysis. The main aim of the research was to elucidate the raw material content (minerals, additional materials, if exist, etc.) and production features of the findings by means of chemical, mineralogical and microscopic techniques, as mentioned. The results indicated that the samples comprise carbonates suggesting use of calcareous clay batches which likely refer to a regional production (when the geological features of the area covering the mound are considered). Taking into account the mineral/phase content and the micro structural features (poor vitrification behavior) of the samples, it was deduced that the firing temperatures of the potsherds change in the range of 700-900oC which could be attributed to a relatively simple firing technique (e.g. pit firing). The whole data obtained in the study brought the thought that the ring burnished potteries have presumably been produced using simple techniques in terms of raw material preparation and firing technology.

The Oldest Ceramics Kiln in the Russian Far East

This article analyzes the remains of a pottery kiln excavated at the Chernyatino 2 site in the Primor’e District on the southern mainland of the Russian Far East adjacent to the Korean Peninsula and northeastern China. The kiln’s remains have been assigned to the Krounovskaia culture of the Paleometal period and preliminarily dated to the early 1st millennium CE. The kiln is characterized by: 1) a subrectangular floor plan excavated into the soil and slightly sloped; 2) fuel and firing sections located at different levels and separated by a low step; 3) small size; 4) a tunnel-like clay dome on a stick frame. Many damaged dome fragments were found near the subrectangular kiln excavation. Based on the results of pottery sample examination, in particular scanning electron microscope [SEM] analysis, the firing temperatures in the kiln were 750–900° С. The kiln is the earliest structure for firing pottery so far recorded in the southern Russian Far East. Such kilns were invented on the Korean Peninsula in the 3rd–4th centuries CE.

Use of the Optically Stimulated Luminescence Dating and X-Ray Fluorescence Spectrometry Methods as Tools in Paleoseismology

We have investigated the application of luminescence dating to sediment and pottery samples from a paleoseismological trench excavated in the Gyrtoni Fault, Tyrnavos Basin, Central Greece. The samples were dated following the optically stimulated luminescence (OSL) dating method, using the Riso TL/OSL DA-20 reader. The OSL ages were obtained from chemically purified quartz and a single-aliquot regenerative-dose (SAR) protocol was followed for the equivalent dose (De) determination. Additionally, samples were collected and analyzed with the method of X-ray Fluorescence (XRF) spectrometry, in order to assess their elemental composition. Radioisotope sources (109Cd and 241Am) were used for sample excitation, while X-ray spectra were acquired using a Si(Li) detector coupled with standard electronics. The XRF data were submitted to principal component analysis (PCA). This statistical handling aimed to distinguish from which part of the upthrown fault block scarp-derived colluvium and alluvial deposits, parts of the downthrown block were derived and thus estimate the displacement. The results indicated that both the OSL dating method and the XRF analysis combined with PCA can serve as useful tools for paleoseismological investigations.

Ceramic Production in the Kur River Basin (Fars, Iran) During the Middle to Late Second Millennium bce: A Geochemical and Technological Characterization

A total of 119 middle to late second millennium bce pottery samples from six sites in the Kur River Basin (Fars, Iran) were examined to characterize these ceramics and reconstruct their manufacturing technology and the origin of the primary materials. For this, a combined study of handheld XRF and thin‐section petrography was performed. The geochemical signatures of these ceramics were defined and interpreted in their archaeological and geological framework, resulting in the determination of different production processes and clay types used for four ceramic wares (Middle Elamite, Qaleh, Shogha and Taimuran) and the identification of possible outcrops used for Shogha–Taimuran production.

Rock-magnetic and color characteristics of archaeological samples from burnt clay from destructions and ceramics in relation to their firing temperature

Determination of ancient firing temperatures of archaeological pottery is a widely discussed topic in archaeometry. Here, a set of magnetic characteristics (magnetic susceptibility, isothermal and anhysteretic remanences, hysteresis parameters) and color parameters were studied for a collection of pottery fragments and burnt clay from house destructions. The results show that magnetite and hematite of superparamagnetic to single domain grain size are the main iron oxides produced during heating. Hematite fraction is more important and frequently detected in pottery sherds than in burnt clay from destructions. An inverse linear regression was obtained between the estimated firing temperature and the ratio value/chroma, which is shown to be site specific for pottery samples. For burnt house destructions, the regression is less well constrained and most probably reflects differences in the raw material. Consideration of rock-magnetic parameters against firing temperature estimates reveals a direct link between saturation magnetization and ancient firing temperature for burnt clay from house destructions. In contrast, this link is inverse and worse defined for pottery materials. This different behavior is attributed to different prevailing processes of iron oxide transformations in burnt clay and pottery, related to the specific firing conditions.

Early pottery use across the Baltic – A comparative lipid residue study on Ertebølle and Narva ceramics from coastal hunter-gatherer sites in southern Scandinavia, northern Germany and Estonia

The Late Mesolithic Ertebølle and Narva cultures (6th – 5th/4th millennium BC) in the southwest and eastern Baltic, respectively, shared similar vessel types, namely pointed-based pots and oval bowls. As a consequence, this phenomenon raised questions about inter-cultural connections across the Baltic and possible influence for the production of pottery from the Narva to the Ertebølle hunter-gatherers. Whereas the two pottery traditions were shown to be different with regards to raw materials and manufacture, in this study we further attempt a comparison on the basis of function using a lipid residue analysis approach. The aim is to examine whether typological analogies were based on common functional requirements. This paper presents new evidence for the use of Ertebølle ceramics in the southwest Baltic from the analysis of pottery samples from a number of coastal sites in southern Sweden (Scania) and eastern Denmark (Lolland). Gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and gas chromatography-combustion-isotope ratio mass spectrometry (GC-c-IRMS) analysis were performed on the absorbed lipid residues to determine their structural characteristics and the stable carbon isotopic composition of selected fatty acids. Results are discussed and compared with analogous published data of Narva ceramics from Estonia. Data from other coastal sites in Denmark and northern Germany are also included for wider comparison. Based on our findings, we conclude that despite little variability in the isotope values of residues, Ertebølle and Narva pots did not serve the same functional demands, and different motives led to their production. Whilst the Narva ceramics appear to have had a specialized role in processing aquatic products, the Ertebølle were more multi-purpose vessels, used also for terrestrial animal and plant resources.

Proton Induced X-ray Emission Studies Using Folded tandem Ion Accelerator (FOTIA) at Bhabha Atomic Research Centre (BARC), Trombay, Mumbai, India

The Folded Tandem Ion Accelerator (FOTIA) at Van De Graaff was used to study PIXE (Particle-induced X-ray Emission) using protons of energy 3-5 MeV. It has been used for a variety of applications from studying intensity ratios, biological samples (blood), rare earth, materials (gold standards), geological samples (gemstones) pottery samples and forensic samples (ink). This article attempts to elucidate the preparation methods of the samples, the detectors used, the analysis and the findings therein for different applications.

Ceramic production and consumption in an in-between place: Instrumental neutron activation analysis of ceramics from the Manialtepec Basin of Oaxaca, Mexico

This paper reports the results of instrumental neutron activation analysis of 66 pottery samples from seven archaeological sites in the Manialtepec Basin of Oaxaca, Mexico. Located on the central Pacific coast, the Manialtepec Basin is a 60 km2 pocket surrounded by mountains and dominated by a 1200-ha lagoon. Settlement survey of the basin has identified 21 archaeological sites spanning the Late Formative (400–150 BCE) to the Late Postclassic (1100-1522CE) periods. Although the basin's small size and circumscribed agricultural terrain likely limited precolumbian populations, its geographic position would have placed it interstitially between several significant regional political centers, notably the lower Río Verde valley (57 km to the west), the Valley of Oaxaca (130 km to the north), and the Isthmus of Tehuantepec (300 km to the east). Recent research has focused on understanding how inhabitants of the Manialtepec Basin engaged with other regions of Oaxaca and Mesoamerica. INAA results confirm the existence of a local ceramic industry, with pottery production and intra-basin exchange continuing for nearly 2000 years. The evidence also indicates that the basin's inhabitants were aware of, and actively involved in, broader regional trends in ceramic manufacture. They nonetheless maintained an independent and distinct local ceramic industry despite major geopolitical shifts like the collapse of Oaxacan metropoles and the conquest of the basin by the Mixtec Tututepec Empire in the Late Postclassic period. Our results highlight the agency and dynamism of potters in an in-between place.

TL and OSL cross-dating for Valcorrente site in Belpasso (Catania, Italy)

The prehistoric village of Valcorrente (Catania) has been inhabited for a long period, from Late-Final Neolithic to Early Bronze Age. For archaeologists, the site represents an important source of information about this Sicilian prehistoric period, not deeply studied. In order to reconstruct the chronology of the site, pottery samples are collected in different stratigraphic units during archaeological excavations. Most of collected potteries belonged to domestic or coarse types and they cannot be dated on typological and stylistic basis. Thus, cross-dating by ThermoLuminescence (TL) and Optically Stimulated Luminescence (OSL) is employed. The results obtained by OSL and TL have been crossed and statistical analysis in the data elaboration allows us to date the different stratigraphic units involved in the sampling collection and to obtain an accurate chronology reconstruction of the site that is representative of the most important Sicilian prehistoric period.

TECHNOLOGICAL DEVELOPMENT OF THE NEOLITHIC POTTERY AT GÖYTEPE (WEST AZERBAIJAN)

The Neolithic settlement of Göytepe (6th millennium cal BC) is of great importance for studying all stages of the Neolithic pottery not only of Azerbaijan, but also that of the Southern Caucasus. Here, we analyze pottery assemblage from the 4th building level at this site as an example of Neolithic ceramics of the Kura River valley, Southern Caucasus. We focused on the technological and morphological development of pottery from 14 building levels at Göytepe. This paper presents the results of the extensive study of pottery samples found in the 4th building level during archaeological excavations in 2017. Each pottery group was described and compared according to its technical features. The obtained results were compared with previous studies of other contemporaneous sites, to discuss the origin and technological development of Neolithic pottery in the Southern Caucasus. The conclusion was made about the independent development of the Shulaveri-Shomu culture at its early stage, and about the infl uence of the intercultural contacts at later stages.

Archaeomagnetic evidence of pre-Hispanic origin of Mezcal

For centuries, and until a few years ago, it was considered that the distillation process had been brought to the new world by the Spaniards, who in turn learned it from the Arabs. For this reason, it was believed that the only alcoholic beverage of the Mesoamerican societies was pulque - a ferment of maguey. However, recent archaeological investigations revealed that the alcohol distillation was known in Mesoamerica long before the arrival of Europeans, for at least 25 centuries. The direct evidence comes from the ceremonial and administrative center of Xochitécatl-Cacaxtla (state of Tlaxcala) with several ovens where cooked maguey remains were discowered. The corresponding archaeological context was radiometrically dated from 600 to 400 BCE. Here, we report a detailed archaeomagnetic study on burned archaeological artifacts found in these cooking ovens. 35 specimens belonging to two pottery fragments, one burned rock and two burned soil samples were pre-selected for archaeointensity experiments. Pottery samples exhibited essentially reversible behavior during thermomagnetic experiments pointing to Ti-poor titanomagnetite (almost magnetite phase) as main magnetic carrier while two ferromagnetic phase seems to co-exist in burned soils. In contrast, burned rock samples exhibited some instabilities during the heating at high temperatures and indirect evidence of the presence of antiferromagnetic hematite grains. In total, 29 specimens allowed the estimation of absolute geomagnetic intensity recorded during the last use of the furnace. Archaeomagnetic dating yielded two possible time intervals between 878 to 693 BCE and 557 to 487 BCE. These new data reinforce the initial hypothesis and corroborate the temporality of these pre-Hispanic kilns.

Luminescence dating of stone wall, tomb and ceramics of Kastrouli (Phokis, Greece) Late Helladic settlement: Case study

Abstract The Kastrouli Late Helladic (LH) III fortified inland site is located in central Greece between the gulfs of Kirrha and Antikyra, not far from Delphi, controlling the communication between these sites. Characteristic ceramic typology from a tomb and the fortified wall indicate a Late Helladic period (∼ 1300–1100 BC) with apparent elements of reuse of the site in the Geometric, Archaic, Classical and Hellenistic times. The present research refers to the dating by luminescence of the stone wall that circumvents the site, a tomb construction and two ceramics. This approach to applying luminescence dating provides an excellent opportunity to search for the Late Bronze Age (LBA) collapse consequences at the site. The thermoluminescence (TL) measurements of two ceramics were carried out following multiple aliquots made of the polymineral material. For the equivalent dose (ED) estimation of pottery samples, the multiple aliquot, additive dose procedure (MAAD) in TL was applied. Prior to age assessment, the firing temperature was estimated also using TL and it is safe to conclude that the firing temperature of the original ceramic was ca. 400 ± 50 °C. For the case of the rock samples collected from the wall and the tomb, the ED was estimated by applying the Single Aliquot Regenerative OSL (SAR OSL) protocol, after later modifications for polymineralic/mixed quartz-feldspathic samples (‘double SAR’ protocol). The ‘double SAR’ protocol procedure includes an infrared stimulated luminescence (IRSL) measurement at 50 °C before the main OSL. Individual ED values ranged between 3.2 to 16 Grays and were accepted based on the following acceptance criteria: recycling ratio between 0.90 and 1.05, recuperation