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Books by Nadja Melko
by Caroline Heitz, Regine Stapfer, Albert Hafner, Astrid Van Oyen, Loïc Jammet-Reynal, Ute Seidel, Isabel A . Hohle, Eda Gross, Nadja Melko, Daniel Albero Santacreu, Hans P Hahn, and Köhler Iris
Papers by Nadja Melko
EAS Anzeiger, Sonderausgabe 1, 2023
Mit einem transdisziplinär angelegten Kooperationsprojekt zwischen ArchaeoLytics (Nadja Melko und... more Mit einem transdisziplinär angelegten Kooperationsprojekt zwischen ArchaeoLytics (Nadja Melko und Frank Gfeller) und der Ruhr-Universität Bochum (Marie Usadel) untersuchen wir die keramischen Rohstoffe der Insel Sant’Antioco (Sardinien) vor dem Hintergrund der lokalen bronzezeitlichen Besiedlung. Im Rahmen eines Rohstoff-Surveys wurden bereits verschiedene Tonvorkommen im Süden der Insel beprobt und experimentell verarbeitet. Auf dieser Grundlage werden derzeit archäometrische Analysen durchgeführt, welche in Kombination mit Erkenntnissen der handwerklichen Experimente und dem archäologischen Material der Region diskutiert werden sollen. Unser Hauptanliegen ist es an dieser Stelle, eine holistische Herangehensweise vorzustellen, welche naturwissenschaftliche, geisteswissenschaftliche und handwerkliche Methoden und Fragestellungen im weiteren Projektverlauf vereinen soll.
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In the context of a transdisciplinary collaboration between ArchaeoLytics (Nadja Melko and Frank Gfeller) and the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (Marie Usadel), we are investigating the ceramic raw materials of the island of Sant’Antioco (Sardinia) within the framework of the local Bronze Age settlement. In the course of a raw material survey, various clay deposits in the south of the island were sampled and experimentally processed. Based on this groundwork, archaeometric analyses will be carried out, and then discussed in conjunction with the findings of the manual experiments and the archaeological material of the region. Our main aim here is to present a holistic approach that combines the techniques and research of the natural sciences, the humanities, and craftmanship.
Experimentelle Archäologie in Europa 21 – Jahrbuch , 2022
An experimental-archaeometric case study on raw materials and Nuragic pottery from the island of ... more An experimental-archaeometric case study on raw materials and Nuragic pottery from the island of Sant’Antioco.
In order to study the artisanal choices and factors associated with the selection of raw material for Nuragic ceramic production, a raw material survey was carried out on Sant'Antioco (Sardinia) followed by experimental processing of the collected sediment samples. The results of macroscopic examination and X-ray diffraction show a range of variation in both the quality and mineralogical composition of the sampled clays, related to the respective geological situation. In addition, the behavior of the raw material at different firing temperatures can be traced.
Jahrbuch Archäologie Schweiz / Annual Review of Swiss Archaeology 104, 2021
Aside from its material manifestation (fence, wall, rampart etc.), the concept of a boundary is a... more Aside from its material manifestation (fence, wall, rampart etc.),
the concept of a boundary is a complex social construct. Boundaries
can be used to create spaces, and to reinforce existing identities
or forge new ones. Reflecting on the images and emotions that
are conjured up today by the various terms relating to the topic of
boundaries can help us gain a clearer understanding of the past as
it has been handed down to us, for instance by way of written
sources. The paper also deals with the (pre-)history of cartography
and the different ways in which boundaries and spaces were perceived
in Antiquity and continued to be perceived today. To conceptualise
the subject matter, various models, some of which were
borrowed from sociology, have been applied to the Roman provincial
borders, with a particular focus on the zone of contact
between Germania Superior and Raetia. The theoretical nature of
the construct is a constant in all considerations, because space can
never be limited without the use of a manmade structure.
Different pots - different province? The difficulty of identifying frontiers through material cul... more Different pots - different province? The difficulty of identifying frontiers through material culture, in: P. Della Casa - E. Deschler-Erb (Hrsg.), Rome`s Internal Frontiers, Proceedings of the 2016 RAC session in Rome, Zurich Studies in Archaeology 11 (Zurich 2016), 79-90.
Abstract:
Based on the ceramic material of the Roman Vicus of Kempraten (Rapperswil/Jona, CH), which is located close to the provincial border to Raetia, this article asks about a theory of frontiers explaining the almost invisible differences between the material culture of Germania Superior and Raetia. The following mapping of two vessel types regarding technological characteristics points to hidden patterns in distribution.
C. HEITZ- R. STAPFER (eds.), Mobility and Pottery Production: Archaeological and Anthropological Perspectives (Leiden 2017), 2017
This article engages in the distribution of superordinate ideas of forms of common pottery ware. ... more This article engages in the distribution of superordinate ideas of forms of common pottery
ware. Therefore, pottery fragments from an archaeological context are judged as
a mirror for past people’s value systems in crafts, which influenced the body technique
of the producing potter via apprenticeship and acquisition. In return, the transformation
of body memory from apprentice to professional is reflected in the produced object.
When it is possible to identify value systems, superordinate shapes, individual hands of
a single potter, his / her skill-level or a workshop style, we will be able to generate distribution
patterns of culturally characterised ideas of forms on the basis of a more profound
data set. This would allow us to approach certain phenomena of mobility in a
second step: not the ´mobility of pots´, but the mobility of superordinate ideas of shapes.
For this, however, it is necessary to communicate intensely with representatives of
pottery craft in terms of ethnoarchaeology, with the aim of gaining a deepened understanding
of the acquisition processes of craftspeople in their environment. Roman
wheel-thrown pottery from the vicus Kempraten, Rapperswil / Iona (Canton of Saint-
Gall, CH) will be used as an archaeological example to elaborate.
Posters by Nadja Melko
This poster was presented at the EAA Conference 2015 in Glasgow. As part of my doctoral thesis it... more This poster was presented at the EAA Conference 2015 in Glasgow.
As part of my doctoral thesis it descibes the perspective of the producer and some of my experiments in a modern school for pottery apprentices. Fascinated of the theories about embodied knowledge or knowledge transfer, I try to recognise traces of this knowledge in an object and to differentiate intentional marks and processual marks in ancient sherds.
Thesis Chapters by Nadja Melko
Exhibitions by Nadja Melko
Conference Organizations by Nadja Melko
Content: The interplay between archaeology, (neuro-)anthropology, ethnology and sociology brought... more Content: The interplay between archaeology, (neuro-)anthropology, ethnology and sociology brought new approaches into focus as for instance what we call the field of implicit knowledge, embodiment of knowledge or what has been more recently discussed as extended mind. As a consequence archaeological objects were given two new levels of consideration: One the one hand things could show us an ongoing or completed process of appropriation of materials and tools by a craftsperson, who acts within a knowledge system. On the other hand things reflect the practices of the consumers and thus also the habitualized activities guided by their body knowledge. Therefore our sensual experience with things as a source for relevant information revealed itself. This session seeks not only to discuss the theoretical background but most of all tries to take the next necessary step-the application in the archaeological routine. Our interpretations of objects are usually (and understandably) generated from drawings, photographs and description but the information pool of the sensory dimension is still neglected. A focused discussion on the process of acquisition in crafts or on the daily usage of things could open another level of consideration, which will enrich our previous interpretations. An intensive exchange with craftspeople helps to understand how things are made within a system of values and well directed experiments may replace the selective use of existing ethnological studies. Will we recognise which marks of an object are culturally bound and which are an effect of a law of nature expressed during the process of making? Contributions presenting the cooperation with craftspeople/schools of craft are welcome. Process-based or experimentally/ethnoarchaeologically supported methods and their application to archaeological material will be discussed with their advantages or disadvantages. Also welcome are contributions regarding chances and challenges within the interdisciplinary exchange between the different mentioned sciences and crafts.
Ziel der Veranstaltung (9. - 23. August 2015) ist es, Bildhauerei und Archäologie in größerer Gru... more Ziel der Veranstaltung (9. - 23. August 2015) ist es, Bildhauerei und Archäologie in größerer Gruppe zusammentreffen zu lassen.
Zwei Blickwinkel sollen dabei voneinander profitieren: Während Archäologen mit zeitlicher Distanz das fertige Objekt im Fokus haben, nehmen Künstler direkte Einflussnahme auf den Entstehungsprozess. Als verbindendes Element steht die Erschaffung eines Zeitgeistes. Künstler verbildlichen ihn als ihre persönliche Gegenwart, Archäologen beschreiben ihn retrospektiv und interpretativ. Die Verantwortung gegenüber der Gültigkeit dieses starken Bildes teilen sich beide Gruppen.
Wir bieten 27 eingeladenen Personen ein Forum, sich bei der Arbeit am Material (Laaser Marmor, Basaltlava, Pappel, Esche, Ton, Raku und Bronze) auszutauschen und bestimmten Forschungsfragen zu Werkspuren, Wissensverkörperung im Handwerk, Enstehung von Werksplätzen, etc. nachzugehen.
by Caroline Heitz, Regine Stapfer, Albert Hafner, Astrid Van Oyen, Loïc Jammet-Reynal, Ute Seidel, Isabel A . Hohle, Eda Gross, Nadja Melko, Daniel Albero Santacreu, Hans P Hahn, and Köhler Iris
EAS Anzeiger, Sonderausgabe 1, 2023
Mit einem transdisziplinär angelegten Kooperationsprojekt zwischen ArchaeoLytics (Nadja Melko und... more Mit einem transdisziplinär angelegten Kooperationsprojekt zwischen ArchaeoLytics (Nadja Melko und Frank Gfeller) und der Ruhr-Universität Bochum (Marie Usadel) untersuchen wir die keramischen Rohstoffe der Insel Sant’Antioco (Sardinien) vor dem Hintergrund der lokalen bronzezeitlichen Besiedlung. Im Rahmen eines Rohstoff-Surveys wurden bereits verschiedene Tonvorkommen im Süden der Insel beprobt und experimentell verarbeitet. Auf dieser Grundlage werden derzeit archäometrische Analysen durchgeführt, welche in Kombination mit Erkenntnissen der handwerklichen Experimente und dem archäologischen Material der Region diskutiert werden sollen. Unser Hauptanliegen ist es an dieser Stelle, eine holistische Herangehensweise vorzustellen, welche naturwissenschaftliche, geisteswissenschaftliche und handwerkliche Methoden und Fragestellungen im weiteren Projektverlauf vereinen soll.
/
In the context of a transdisciplinary collaboration between ArchaeoLytics (Nadja Melko and Frank Gfeller) and the Ruhr-Universität Bochum (Marie Usadel), we are investigating the ceramic raw materials of the island of Sant’Antioco (Sardinia) within the framework of the local Bronze Age settlement. In the course of a raw material survey, various clay deposits in the south of the island were sampled and experimentally processed. Based on this groundwork, archaeometric analyses will be carried out, and then discussed in conjunction with the findings of the manual experiments and the archaeological material of the region. Our main aim here is to present a holistic approach that combines the techniques and research of the natural sciences, the humanities, and craftmanship.
Experimentelle Archäologie in Europa 21 – Jahrbuch , 2022
An experimental-archaeometric case study on raw materials and Nuragic pottery from the island of ... more An experimental-archaeometric case study on raw materials and Nuragic pottery from the island of Sant’Antioco.
In order to study the artisanal choices and factors associated with the selection of raw material for Nuragic ceramic production, a raw material survey was carried out on Sant'Antioco (Sardinia) followed by experimental processing of the collected sediment samples. The results of macroscopic examination and X-ray diffraction show a range of variation in both the quality and mineralogical composition of the sampled clays, related to the respective geological situation. In addition, the behavior of the raw material at different firing temperatures can be traced.
Jahrbuch Archäologie Schweiz / Annual Review of Swiss Archaeology 104, 2021
Aside from its material manifestation (fence, wall, rampart etc.), the concept of a boundary is a... more Aside from its material manifestation (fence, wall, rampart etc.),
the concept of a boundary is a complex social construct. Boundaries
can be used to create spaces, and to reinforce existing identities
or forge new ones. Reflecting on the images and emotions that
are conjured up today by the various terms relating to the topic of
boundaries can help us gain a clearer understanding of the past as
it has been handed down to us, for instance by way of written
sources. The paper also deals with the (pre-)history of cartography
and the different ways in which boundaries and spaces were perceived
in Antiquity and continued to be perceived today. To conceptualise
the subject matter, various models, some of which were
borrowed from sociology, have been applied to the Roman provincial
borders, with a particular focus on the zone of contact
between Germania Superior and Raetia. The theoretical nature of
the construct is a constant in all considerations, because space can
never be limited without the use of a manmade structure.
Different pots - different province? The difficulty of identifying frontiers through material cul... more Different pots - different province? The difficulty of identifying frontiers through material culture, in: P. Della Casa - E. Deschler-Erb (Hrsg.), Rome`s Internal Frontiers, Proceedings of the 2016 RAC session in Rome, Zurich Studies in Archaeology 11 (Zurich 2016), 79-90.
Abstract:
Based on the ceramic material of the Roman Vicus of Kempraten (Rapperswil/Jona, CH), which is located close to the provincial border to Raetia, this article asks about a theory of frontiers explaining the almost invisible differences between the material culture of Germania Superior and Raetia. The following mapping of two vessel types regarding technological characteristics points to hidden patterns in distribution.
C. HEITZ- R. STAPFER (eds.), Mobility and Pottery Production: Archaeological and Anthropological Perspectives (Leiden 2017), 2017
This article engages in the distribution of superordinate ideas of forms of common pottery ware. ... more This article engages in the distribution of superordinate ideas of forms of common pottery
ware. Therefore, pottery fragments from an archaeological context are judged as
a mirror for past people’s value systems in crafts, which influenced the body technique
of the producing potter via apprenticeship and acquisition. In return, the transformation
of body memory from apprentice to professional is reflected in the produced object.
When it is possible to identify value systems, superordinate shapes, individual hands of
a single potter, his / her skill-level or a workshop style, we will be able to generate distribution
patterns of culturally characterised ideas of forms on the basis of a more profound
data set. This would allow us to approach certain phenomena of mobility in a
second step: not the ´mobility of pots´, but the mobility of superordinate ideas of shapes.
For this, however, it is necessary to communicate intensely with representatives of
pottery craft in terms of ethnoarchaeology, with the aim of gaining a deepened understanding
of the acquisition processes of craftspeople in their environment. Roman
wheel-thrown pottery from the vicus Kempraten, Rapperswil / Iona (Canton of Saint-
Gall, CH) will be used as an archaeological example to elaborate.
This poster was presented at the EAA Conference 2015 in Glasgow. As part of my doctoral thesis it... more This poster was presented at the EAA Conference 2015 in Glasgow.
As part of my doctoral thesis it descibes the perspective of the producer and some of my experiments in a modern school for pottery apprentices. Fascinated of the theories about embodied knowledge or knowledge transfer, I try to recognise traces of this knowledge in an object and to differentiate intentional marks and processual marks in ancient sherds.
Content: The interplay between archaeology, (neuro-)anthropology, ethnology and sociology brought... more Content: The interplay between archaeology, (neuro-)anthropology, ethnology and sociology brought new approaches into focus as for instance what we call the field of implicit knowledge, embodiment of knowledge or what has been more recently discussed as extended mind. As a consequence archaeological objects were given two new levels of consideration: One the one hand things could show us an ongoing or completed process of appropriation of materials and tools by a craftsperson, who acts within a knowledge system. On the other hand things reflect the practices of the consumers and thus also the habitualized activities guided by their body knowledge. Therefore our sensual experience with things as a source for relevant information revealed itself. This session seeks not only to discuss the theoretical background but most of all tries to take the next necessary step-the application in the archaeological routine. Our interpretations of objects are usually (and understandably) generated from drawings, photographs and description but the information pool of the sensory dimension is still neglected. A focused discussion on the process of acquisition in crafts or on the daily usage of things could open another level of consideration, which will enrich our previous interpretations. An intensive exchange with craftspeople helps to understand how things are made within a system of values and well directed experiments may replace the selective use of existing ethnological studies. Will we recognise which marks of an object are culturally bound and which are an effect of a law of nature expressed during the process of making? Contributions presenting the cooperation with craftspeople/schools of craft are welcome. Process-based or experimentally/ethnoarchaeologically supported methods and their application to archaeological material will be discussed with their advantages or disadvantages. Also welcome are contributions regarding chances and challenges within the interdisciplinary exchange between the different mentioned sciences and crafts.
Ziel der Veranstaltung (9. - 23. August 2015) ist es, Bildhauerei und Archäologie in größerer Gru... more Ziel der Veranstaltung (9. - 23. August 2015) ist es, Bildhauerei und Archäologie in größerer Gruppe zusammentreffen zu lassen.
Zwei Blickwinkel sollen dabei voneinander profitieren: Während Archäologen mit zeitlicher Distanz das fertige Objekt im Fokus haben, nehmen Künstler direkte Einflussnahme auf den Entstehungsprozess. Als verbindendes Element steht die Erschaffung eines Zeitgeistes. Künstler verbildlichen ihn als ihre persönliche Gegenwart, Archäologen beschreiben ihn retrospektiv und interpretativ. Die Verantwortung gegenüber der Gültigkeit dieses starken Bildes teilen sich beide Gruppen.
Wir bieten 27 eingeladenen Personen ein Forum, sich bei der Arbeit am Material (Laaser Marmor, Basaltlava, Pappel, Esche, Ton, Raku und Bronze) auszutauschen und bestimmten Forschungsfragen zu Werkspuren, Wissensverkörperung im Handwerk, Enstehung von Werksplätzen, etc. nachzugehen.