Physical study of the Cucuteni pottery technology

Mățău, Florica; Nica, Valentin; Postolache, Petronel; Ursachi, Irina; Cotiugă, Vasile; Stancu, Alexandru

doi:10.1016/j.jas.2012.08.021

Cited by 17 publications

(11 citation statements)

References 64 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…To identify the relationship between settlements placement and morphological features, a geo-referenced database was created using Esri ArcGIS 10.3, based on field surveys ( Figure 2), along with relevant archaeological documentation and registries. It should be noted that the analysis was based only on certain settlements, where archaeological documentation was well-grounded in reports, radiocarbon-based chronology, scientific articles, and geo-archaeological maps [34][35][36][37][38][39][40][41] (…”

Section: Inventory Of Archaeological Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…4100-3850 BCE) and Cucuteni B (ca. 3850-3500 BCE) [35,[39][40][41]. Besides the literature on the morphological features in the study area [42][43][44][45][46], only a few works deal with the local or the relative topographic position of archaeological settlements in the landscape [47,48]; most of them refer to the evaluation of cultural heritage sites to natural hazards (landslides, gully erosion) and anthropogenic impact [49][50][51][52][53][54].Understanding the connections between the small-scale features, large-scale landforms, flood hazard perception, and the types of archaeological settlement is an important method applied in the study of the prehistoric peoples because the landscape can reveal insights into settlement distribution and dynamics over time [4,27].…”

mentioning

confidence: 99%

See 1 more Smart Citation

GIS-based Landform Classification of Eneolithic Archaeological Sites in the Plateau-plain Transition Zone (NE Romania): Habitation Practices vs. Flood Hazard Perception

Mihu-Pintilie

Nicu

2019

Remote Sensing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

The landforms of the Earth’s surface ranging from large-scale features to local topography are factors that influence human behavior in terms of habitation practices. The ability to extract geomorphological settings using geoinformatic techniques is an important aspect of any environmental analysis and archaeological landscape approach. Morphological data derived from DEMs with high accuracies (e.g., LiDAR data), can provide valuable information related to landscape modelling and landform classification processes. This study applies the first landform classification and flood hazard vulnerability of 730 Eneolithic (ca. 5000–3500 BCE) settlement locations within the plateau-plain transition zone of NE Romania. The classification was done using the SD (standard deviation) of TPI (Topographic Position Index) for the mean elevation (DEV) around each archaeological site, and HEC-RAS flood hazard pattern generated for 0.1% (1000 year) discharge insurance. The results indicate that prehistoric communities preferred to place their settlements for defensive purposes on hilltops, or in the close proximity of a steep slope. Based on flood hazard pattern, 8.2% out of the total sites had been placed in highly vulnerable areas. The results indicate an eco-cultural niche connected with habitation practices and flood hazard perception during the Eneolithic period in the plateau-plain transition zone of NE Romania and contribute to archaeological predictive modelling.

show abstract

Section: Inventory Of Archaeological Sitesmentioning

confidence: 99%

mentioning

confidence: 99%

GIS-based Landform Classification of Eneolithic Archaeological Sites in the Plateau-plain Transition Zone (NE Romania): Habitation Practices vs. Flood Hazard Perception

Mihu-Pintilie

Nicu

2019

Remote Sensing

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

“…The high‐coercivity phase separated could be linked to the presence of hematite, considering the coercivity parameter B 1/2 (Table ) (Dunlop & Özdemir, ; Özdemir & Dunlop, ). Furthermore, high‐coercivity hematite formed as a result of firing Ca‐enriched clay is frequently identified in pottery materials (Matau et al, ; Nodari, Marcuz, Maritan, Mazzoli, & Russo, ). Samples from the two heated clays (JGL and SGL) also show the presence of a low‐coercivity and a high‐coercivity component, but the share of the high‐coercivity component was higher in comparison with the pottery sherds and accounts for 32%–37% of the total IRM (Table ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Clay source and firing temperatures of Roman ceramics: A case study from Plovdiv, Bulgaria

et al. 2019

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

During urgent archaeological excavations in the city of Plovdiv (South Bulgaria), a Roman pottery workshop was found, including several dome kilns, ceramic sherds, and a large clay deposit incorporating yellow and gray clay layers. A set of the ceramic specimens (kitchenwares and tablewares) and raw clay samples were investigated using a portable device for X‐ray fluorescence and laboratory equipment for magnetic measurements, aiming to provide specific information about the origin and firing technology of the pottery. Despite significant difference in calcium content between local raw clay and pottery samples, we conclude that local natural clay sources were used and the initial stages of production involved clay purification, although we cannot rule out the procurement of more distant clay sources. Magnetic susceptibility testing allowed for determination of the maximum firing temperatures, showing that the pottery were fired predominantly at 780°C, with some samples being fired at temperatures up to 860°C. Magnetic analyses show that kitchenwares were fired under more uniform conditions than the tablewares, which undoubtedly reflected in the quality of the vessels produced.

show abstract

“…The presence or the absence of specific mineral assemblages can be used to determine the degree of thermal transformation undergone by the clay paste at the temperature and atmosphere applied during the firing procedure. Consequently, this information can be used to establish the firing conditions (temperature, atmosphere, time) achieved by potters during the operation of the kilns (Rathossi et al 2010;Issi et al 2011;Kramar et al 2012;Matau et al 2013;Ballirano et al 2014;Compana et al 2014;De Bonis et al 2014;Holakooei et al 2014). The results can reveal either the presence of primary minerals representative of their raw materials or the crystallization of new high-temperature minerals which are the product of reactions between the decomposed primary minerals as the temperature increases.…”

Section: X-ray Powder Diffraction Analysismentioning

confidence: 99%

Investigating the archaeointensity determination success of prehistoric ceramics through a multidisciplinary approach: new and re-evaluated data from Greek collections

Kondopoulou¹,

Gómez‐Paccard

Aidona³

et al. 2017

Geophysical Journal International

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

S U M M A R YThe Balkan area provides an almost continuous record of the geomagnetic field variations during the last eight millennia but important data dispersion and chronological gaps are still observed. In order to improve this pattern, we oriented our research towards the study of Greek prehistoric ceramics and pottery collections. We present here new archaeointensity and mineralogical results from pottery and ceramics collected in two Bronze Age sites in Northern Greece, corresponding to the middle third and middle second millennium BC. Thermal demagnetization experiments, thermomagnetic curves, thermal demagnetization measurements of three axes composite isothermal magnetization and first-order reversal curves (FORC) diagrams were performed in order to define the main magnetic carriers and select the most promising samples for archaeointensity determination. The results suggest that the majority of the studied materials are dominated by a mixture of superparamagnetic and stable single domain grains, with very little magnetic interactions. In almost all samples the main magnetic carrier observed is a low coercivity mineral, most probably magnetite and/or Ti-magnetite. Classical Thellier experiments, including both the thermoremanent magnetization anisotropy and cooling rate corrections were performed on the selected samples. Two new archaeointensities were obtained and compared with previous data available for Greece and neighbouring countries and with global geomagnetic field models results. In order to investigate the causes of the high rate of failure observed in our archaeointensity experiments, we re-examined the results obtained from the study of four collections already published by better characterizing the magnetic and mineralogical properties of the studied fragments. Specific hysteresis curves performed at different layers of ceramic fragments reveal an important degree of inhomogeneity. Mineralogical analysis of selected samples from the totality of six Greek prehistoric sites studied, including new X-ray powder diffraction analysis and a detailed description of the different geological contexts, is provided. The results suggest that the sherds were all fired in medium-high temperatures (mostly between 500• and 800• C). The nature of the baked clay paste in response to the local geology appears to account for a part of the variability in magnetic properties. We suggest that X-ray powder diffraction analyses and thorough examination of the geological environment in combination with a satisfactory knowledge of the corresponding excavations history might provide an additional tool to appropriately select pottery fragments before performing future archaeointensity experiments.

show abstract

Physical study of the Cucuteni pottery technology

Cited by 17 publications

References 64 publications

GIS-based Landform Classification of Eneolithic Archaeological Sites in the Plateau-plain Transition Zone (NE Romania): Habitation Practices vs. Flood Hazard Perception

GIS-based Landform Classification of Eneolithic Archaeological Sites in the Plateau-plain Transition Zone (NE Romania): Habitation Practices vs. Flood Hazard Perception

Clay source and firing temperatures of Roman ceramics: A case study from Plovdiv, Bulgaria

Investigating the archaeointensity determination success of prehistoric ceramics through a multidisciplinary approach: new and re-evaluated data from Greek collections

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About