Production and function of Neolithic black-painted pottery from Schela Cladovei (Iron Gates, Romania)

Abstract

This paper presents for the first time the results of a combination of petrographic, geochemical and organic residue analyses of early Neolithic ceramics from the Iron Gates region of the Danube basin. Eleven early Neolithic potsherds from Schela Cladovei (Romania) were analysed in detail. The results of the petrographic analysis show that the ceramics were made with the same recipe that was used by Starčevo-Körös-Criș potters elsewhere in southeastern Europe. The SEM-EDX analysis shows one of the earliest uses of Mn-rich black pigments to decorate Neolithic European ceramics. Organic residue analyses detected dairy, non-ruminant and ruminant adipose fats. No evidence of aquatic resources was detected. In summary, the early Neolithic potters at the Iron Gates, although able to make coarse and more sophisticated painted ceramics, did not make specific vessels for a specific use.

Early Balkan Metallurgy: Origins, Evolution and Society, 6200–3700 BC

“…It is therefore not uncommon to see debates on the connections between the emergence of metallurgy and the Gradac phase of Vinča culture ceramic sequence, or the relationship between the development of metallurgy and the widespread graphite painted decoration on the ceramics of the Kodžadermen-Gumelniţa-Karanovo (KGK) IV cultural complex (e.g. Amicone et al 2019Amicone et al , 2020bGarašanin, 1995;Jovanović, 1971Jovanović, , 1994Jovanović, , 2006Radivojević & Kuzmanović-Cvetković, 2014;Radivojević et al 2010b;Renfrew, 1969;Spataro & Furholt, 2020;Spataro et al 2019;Todorova, 1995;Todorova & Vajsov, 1993). As is now widely acknowledged in Balkan and world prehistory, the creation of spatial and temporal frameworks through the identification of similarities and differences in materials and practices continues to evade researchers; straightforward explanations are unlikely (cf.…”

X-ray Diffraction Analysis of Clay Particles in Ancient Baekje Black Pottery: Indicator of the Firing Parameters

“…In the case of PN1, a fading trend in the direction of the core of a black or grayish black color was observed, and, in the case of PN2, a fading trend in the direction of the brown core was observed. These blackening trends clearly distinguish these two fragments from the BP type, in which a clear boundary is observed between the blackened part and the body part, owing to the direct painting of black raw material on the surface [5][6][7][8][9][10][11]. Furthermore, although a certain amount of carbon was detected in their surface parts, it was not found in the inner parts, regardless of the color; this finding implies that, in these types, carbon accumulated on the surface and it did not penetrate the inner body [41,44].…”

“…In addition to its artistic and archeological value, this type of pottery is important evidence that ancient people used scientific techniques to materialize the black color. Black pottery is classified into the following three types based on the production techniques and materials used for color development: the black smoked (BS) type, which is produced by a firing technique that allows carbon-based black material, such as soot, to deposit on the surface and penetrate the interiors [1][2][3][4]; the black painted (BP) type, in which a carbon, Mn oxide, or reduced iron-based black material is directly painted, with an adhesive, onto the surface of the pottery [5][6][7][8][9][10][11]; the reduced black (RB) type, in which the color development takes place due to an increase in the percentage of Fe 2+ and magnetite converted from iron oxides in the raw material soil, through reduction firing [12][13][14][15][16][17][18][19][20][21]. The specific classification of pottery into the above three types requires precise identification of the minerals used for color development and their chemical compositions.…”

Pyrotechnological connections? Re-investigating the link between pottery firing technology and the origins of metallurgy in the Vinča Culture, Serbia

“…In this situation, the iron in the clay is reduced to 'ferrous' minerals such as magnetite (Fe3O4), and carbonised amorphous organic matter in the clay is not burnt off, giving the pottery a grey or black colour. Manganese black decoration is formed by the presence of manganese-rich mineral phases such as pyrolusite which are applied to pottery as a pigment or within a clay-rich slip, then fired in oxidising conditions (Jones, 1986, p. 762;Noll, 1991, p. 140;Spataro, 2019).…”