METODE SI ETAPE ÎN STUDIUL TEHNOLOGIILOR DE CONFECłIONARE A CERAMICII PREISTORICE
METHODS AND STAGES IN THE STUDY OF POTTERY MANUFACTURING TECHNIQUES FROM PREHISTORY

Summary/Abstract: Studying ancient artifacts means identifying the type and age to which they belong, as well as analyzing how they were produced. An investigation of the technology used to manufacture prehistoric pottery may yield information pertaining to the sources of raw materials, the level of technological development of that time and the social role of the potter. The analysis of the technology of pottery making is manifold. It is initially visual and then it involves identifying the type of firing and the chemical and mineral composition of the artifact and also tracking the raw material sources. When it comes to the chemical and physical analysis of the material, useful information might be provided by modern rural communities where pottery is still made in the traditional way. The stages of pottery manufacturing might thus be identified. A final part of the analysis may consist of recreating the entire process of making a pot in an experiment, now that sources of raw material, manufacturing techniques and tools are known. The entire pottery manufacturing process can therefore be described with the help of physical and chemical analyses, of real life observations made in manufacturing communities and of a final experiment. Even the social and economic consequences of pottery making during a certain period of time may be thus identified.

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