The Firing Temperature of Pottery from Ancient Mesopotamia, Turkey, Using Luminescence Methods: A Case Study for Different Grain‐Size Fractions

Abstract

The assessment of the firing temperature of a prehistoric pottery sample collected from ancient Mesopotamia, Turkey was studied using luminescence techniques. The methods for this estimation involved the observation of the thermal and pre‐dose sensitization with various re‐firing temperatures for both TL and the OSL signals. In the former case, the 110°C TL peak and the rest of the glow curve were used as proxies in this study. In the framework of a first attempt to investigate the impact of grain‐size dependence on the sensitization of the luminescence signals, the aforementioned study was performed with four different pottery grain‐size fractions: (i) less than 60 μm, (ii) 60–90 μm, (iii) 90–180 μm and (iv) 180–250 μm. The results clearly demonstrated the firing temperature mark of ∼500°C in for the grain size of 90–180 μm, while—as in the case of the lower grain‐size fraction—a third proxy, the ratio of the pre‐dosed to the thermal sensitization, was seen to indicate the firing temperature. The remaining two grain‐size fractions failed to provide any meaningful results with regard to the firing temperature estimation. The dependence of the TL characteristics on the grain size was explained in the framework of the mixed mineralogy.

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

“…Each annealing was followed by fast cooling to room temperature. After the annealing, each segment was crushed and grains of dimensions 90-180 m were selected and deposited on aluminium cups of 1 cm 2 area; the specific grain size fraction was selected based on the suggestion of Polymeris et al [21]. Mass reproducibility throughout the entire annealing temperature region was kept within 3-5%.…”

“…Subsequently, the initial sensitivity, as well as the pre-dose sensitization was recorded for both the 110 • C TL peak as well as the rest of the TL glow curve as a function of the annealing temperature. This is the protocol suggested by Polymeris et al [21,22] and further applied to a number of case studies [21,23,24]. The test dose applied was 10 Gy Table 2.…”

Investigations of the ancient ceramic sherds excavated from Börükçü site in Muğla, south‐western Turkey, by ATR‐FTIR spectroscopy and statistical multivariate analysis

“…One of the most important artefacts used in these studies is ancient ceramics, which are precious for the researchers in order to interpret the technology, trade, aesthetics and history of different cultures (Polymeris et al . 2014; Papakosta et al . 2020).…”

“…This discipline is called archaeothermometry or palaeothermometry (Gartia 2009; Polymeris et al . 2014; Rice 2015; Sanjurjo‐Sánchez et al . 2018a, 2018b; Dey et al .…”

“…For bulk characterization of the ceramic sherds, FTIR spectroscopy is a useful and well‐established technique for identifying the mineralogical compositions of ancient ceramics, as well as to determine the firing temperature and atmosphere, along with the type of clay (Polymeris et al . 2014; Papakosta et al . 2020).…”