The Origins of Southwestern Ceramic Containers: Women's Time Allocation and Economic Intensification

Crown, Patricia L.; Wills, W. H.

doi:10.1086/jar.51.2.3630253

Cited by 54 publications

(40 citation statements)

References 26 publications

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“…In the Owens Valley, small numbers of pots appear around 1200 BP, indicating some latent knowledge and experimentation with the technology (Eerkens et al, 1999). It is possible that technological information about pottery diffused from agricultural societies in the Southwest, where pottery production already had a long history (Crown and Wills, 1995;LeBlanc, 1982). However, if so, it is clear that the technology was organized in a manner that is completely different than in the Southwest, and resulting vessels have a markedly different form and aesthetic.…”

Section: Western Great Basin Potterymentioning

confidence: 99%

A tale of two technologies: Prehistoric diffusion of pottery innovations among hunter-gatherers

Eerkens

Lipo

2014

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

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a b s t r a c tWe examine the diffusion of a successful and an unsuccessful innovation among hunter-gatherers in the western Great Basin, using a diffusion of innovation model. Modern and historical studies on the diffusion of innovations suggest that diffusion processes follow S-shaped curves, with small numbers of early adopters, followed by more rapid uptick in the rate of diffusion as the majority adopt a technology, concluding again with small numbers of late-adopting laggards. Distributions of luminescence dates on surface-collected pottery sherds show that the technology had a long period of experimentation. Beginning about AD 1000, direct-rimmed pots were introduced in Southern Owens Valley and were used in small numbers over hundreds of years. Likewise, around AD 1350 pots with recurved rims were introduced in Death Valley and were also used in small numbers. Around AD 1550 the direct-rimmed technology diffused to the east, to China Lake and Death Valley, where it was rapidly adopted. By contrast, recurved-rim technologies were abandoned, a failed innovation. Our data suggest that prehistoric pottery diffusions follow a similar S-shaped curve, but that diffusion among hunter-gatherers happens at a much slower rate, over centuries instead of decades.Ó 2014 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. IntroductionOne of the key components of human technology is information, and the means by which such information spreads among potential users. Anthropologists, especially archaeologists, have long made variation in technology a major focus of research. The archaeological record documents a remarkable and diverse range of technologies over time and across space. It is clear that technology, much more so than human biology, has been the major force in the spread of humans across the globe, promoting occupation of even the harshest of arctic, desert, and high altitude environments.One long-standing pursuit of archaeologists is the identification of the oldest instance of a particular technology (e.g., Kuttruff et al., 1998;Pinhasi et al., 2010) since it is assumed that these events mark important inventions in human evolution (e.g., oldest fire, oldest tools) and their recognition contributes to national pride (e.g., oldest noodle). However, documenting the oldest often erroneously treats technological innovation as a single instance of human ingenuity (i.e., the ''solitary genius''), rather than placing technology in a broader evolutionary context. A similar argument can be made regarding the youngest, or last, instance of a technology (i.e., its extinction). As Basalla (1988) has argued, changes in technology are contingent since technological innovation continually borrows ideas and materials from other domains. The evolution of technologies, then, focuses on issues such as the technological environment and context of innovation, recombination and inheritance, the production and winnowing of technological variation, and rates of technological change (Henrich, 2001).Such an approach is common among scholars of contem...

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Section: Western Great Basin Potterymentioning

confidence: 99%

A tale of two technologies: Prehistoric diffusion of pottery innovations among hunter-gatherers

Eerkens

Lipo

2014

Journal of Anthropological Archaeology

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“…Pottery is often portrayed as a technological advance over organic cooking containers: it is highly plastic when wet, sturdy when fired, and is able to withstand long periods of exposure to direct heat without supervision (Arnold 1985;Brown 1989;Crown and Wills 1995;Rice 1999). Yet, there are several examples of societies that are aware of ceramic technology but do not adopt it, opting instead to prepare and cook foods with baskets or other organic containers (Driver and Massey 1957: 245-247;Rocek 2013;Speth 2015;Thoms 2009).…”

Section: Basketry and Potterymentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Figure 2 Range Of Potential Technology Comparisons For Baskmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Directheat cooking provides greater returns in contexts where scheduling conflicts, fuel scarcity, and environmental uncertainty are common (Braun 1983;Crown and Wills 1995;Nelson 2010). Simmering foods directly over a fire allows cooks to multitask, which may be especially valuable in regions with marked seasons or in communities with a limited labor pool (Crown and Wills 1995;IkawaSmith 1976:514;Sassaman 1993). Second, direct boiling requires less fuel than indirect boiling, making it a more efficient cooking strategy in areas where fuel is scarce or the timing and degree of rainfall are unpredictable (Braun 1983;Harry and Frink 2009;Nelson 2010).…”

Section: Figure 2 Range Of Potential Technology Comparisons For Baskmentioning

confidence: 99%

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The Logic of Ceramic Technology in Marginal Environments: Implications for Mobile Life

2016

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Explanations for the use of pots as practical domestic tools permeate the literature of technological adoption and change. While many arguments focus on the economic merits of pots, few have attempted to trace the conditions that promote or deter the adoption of pottery. This is especially true for the use of pottery by mobile peoples. We adapt an established model of technological investment to draw attention to three key variables affecting pottery adoption: manufacturing time, utility, and use time. We use the logic of this model to examine how social and environmental contexts, specifically residential mobility in marginal environments, impacts use of and investment in ceramic technology. We further illustrate how the model can be used to reveal seasonal patterns of behavior from the spatial distribution of pottery discarded by mobile foragers and herders.

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“…Baker et al (2011) and Eerkens (2007) have experimentally demonstrated that the rim and upper body parts are the most concentrated in organic residues after cooking. According the ethnographic observations, generally, hightemperature boiling is regarded as particularly effective cooking method in the preparation of faunal and floral resources in pots (Crown and Wills 1995;Stahl 1989;Wandsnider 1997). During this process, convection currents of boiling water pushes extracted lipids from food stuffs to the pot wall.…”

Section: Samplingmentioning

confidence: 99%

What Did They Cook? A Preliminary Investigation Into Culinary Practices and Pottery Use in the Central Part of the Korean Peninsula During the Mid to Late Holocene

Kwak

Marwick

2015

JIPA

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This study attempts to understand prehistoric human subsistence in Korean peninsula through the preliminary initiation of organic geochemical analyses on potsherds. While traditional approaches focus on reconstructing the ancient pot function or relative chronology, organic geochemical analyses on archaeological potteries endeavors to be precise about the types of food groups that were cooked or stored in a pot by attempting to identify the specific organic compounds trapped in the clay matrix. Since organic compounds are often preserved in direct association with archaeological pots, organic geochemical analyses have become an important method of investigation which archaeologists use to better understand the function of ceramic artifacts such as pottery and local diets. The sherd samples for the analyses in this paper were collected from the two prehistoric habitation sites located in the central part of the Korean peninsula: Kimpo-Yangchon site and Eupha-ri site. The main habitation period of the former is around 2800 BP (B. Kim et al. 2013), and the latter site was occupied around 1900 BP (H. Wang et al. 2013). We show that terrestrial animals are strongly represented in the organic residues, suggesting that views of a crop-dominated diet might need revision. Our results provide a critical clue to understand ancient subsistence of the central part of the Korean peninsula.

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The Origins of Southwestern Ceramic Containers: Women's Time Allocation and Economic Intensification

Cited by 54 publications

References 26 publications

A tale of two technologies: Prehistoric diffusion of pottery innovations among hunter-gatherers

A tale of two technologies: Prehistoric diffusion of pottery innovations among hunter-gatherers

The Logic of Ceramic Technology in Marginal Environments: Implications for Mobile Life

What Did They Cook? A Preliminary Investigation Into Culinary Practices and Pottery Use in the Central Part of the Korean Peninsula During the Mid to Late Holocene

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