Integrated approaches to ceramic analysis and methodology from a trans-regional perspective, NPAP Closing Conference, Amsterdam 11-13 December 2014 (original) (raw)

Reconstructing Pottery Production in Archaic Rome and Latium: Integrating Traditional Approach and Archaeometry

Technology, Crafting and Artisanal Networks in the Greek and Roman World, 2024

This chapter presents preliminary results from an interdisciplinary study investigating the intricate relationship between pottery production and social complexity in Archaic Rome and Latium. Employing traditional typological study and Neutron Activation Analysis (NAA) on excavated ceramics from sites like Sant’Omobono, Regia, Forum of Caesar, Gabii, and San Giovenale, the research explores technological choices and standardization within and across different wares. NAA, a nuclear technique providing comprehensive multielement analyses, reveals distinct chemical compositions, challenging established classifications. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) identifies significant elemental drivers, unveiling unexpected patterns and outliers. Groups with shared chemical imprints and manufacturing processes emerge, shedding light on local production and trade networks. The study’s innovative approach, combining archaeological and chemical analyses, promises a deeper understanding of pottery production in Archaic Rome and Latium, challenging existing paradigms and opening avenues for future research. The chapter is part of "Technology, Crafting and Artisanal Networks in the Greek and Roman World. Interdisciplinary Approaches to the Study of Ceramics", edited by: Diego Elia , Eleni Hasaki and Marco Serino

J. Hilditch. 2016. Ceramic analysis in Greece

Scientific, analytical or ‘archaeometric’ techniques for investigating ceramic material have been used within archaeology for over 50 years and now constitute an indispensable tool for archaeologists in the Aegean world (see Jones 1986 for a detailed summary of early work in Greece and Italy) and beyond (Santacreu 2014). This paper provides a brief historical overview of research themes investigated by ceramic analysis in Greek archaeology along with reports on a small number of recent studies, in order to demonstrate current methodologies and results. The narrative is not chronological, either by the date of analysis or the material analysed, but instead focuses on the types of archaeological questions that ancient ceramic analysis can address in order to shed light upon who produced, distributed and consumed the ceramics under consideration. Ceramic analysis investigates both the composition and technology of fired clay vessels, evidenced most frequently in the ubiquitous broken pot sherd, which can then be used to identify provenance, production sequence and cultural tradition, as well as to provide a relative date for production, in combination with typological and seriation techniques.

Evaluation of the Pottery by Archaeometrical Methods

2013

Abstract Ceramic artefacts, generally accepted as archaeological keys, bear the remarks of spectacular cultural, economic and political shifts in the short-term histories of the ancient settlements. Exposed to continuous diversifications due to the social and economic structure of the era and to the utilisation needs, ceramics is one of the rare finding groups that can last until today with well-preserved structural features. The variations observed on forms and decorations make the ceramics most important findings to exhibit the technological standards of raw material processing in the ancient cultures. However, today’s science requires a determinative understanding of the material not only by the artistic features, but also by the structural means. Studies on ceramics focus on the analyses of co-operational archaeometrical methods of pedology, geology, geomorphology, petrography and metallurgy, besides ceramic classifications, detection of the raw materials and inter-regional comparisons.

Black-and red-slipped pottery from ancient Cassope (NW Greece): inference of provenance and production technology based on a multi-analytical approach

The present work reports the results of a multi-analytical study of 90 pottery sherds recovered from the archaeological site of Cassope (mid-4 th to 1 st century BC), in Epirus (NW Greece). The elemental composition of the ceramic bodies was assessed using radioisotope-induced energy-dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy. The compositional data were statistically treated by principal component analysis and chemical groups were established, representing locally produced and imported items. Mineralogical analysis of the ceramic bodies by X-ray diffraction indicated firing temperatures in the range from 800 to 1000°C for most of the sherds, while one group consisted of over-fired items, possibly in excess of 1050°C. The morphology of the slip layers and the microstructure of the ceramic bodies were examined using scanning electron microscopy, which showed that different pottery groups exhibit surface slips of a different nature, in terms of thickness and degree of vitrification.

THE PALATINE EAST POTTERY PROJECT: A HOLISTIC APPROACH TO THE STUDY AND PUBLICATION OF AN EXCAVATED POTTERY ASSEMBLAGE …

ace.hu

This paper presents an overview of the methodological procedures being employed by the Palatine East Pottery Project to study and publish the 12 tons of Roman pottery recovered in the Palatine East Excavations in Rome. By combining traditional and innovative procedures used for the classification, characterization, quantification, and presentation of the materials dated to ca. AD 50-450/500, the final result of the project will represent a methodologically ambitious exposition of a large pottery assemblage spanning nearly the entire period of the Roman Empire.