Archaeology Lab



Archaeology Lab

ANTL 207

Exercise 7 – Analysis of Prehistoric Ceramic Artifacts

10 October 2012

In this exercise you will be learning some of the basic methods of analysis for prehistoric pottery. This is a two-part lab exercise that is due in one week - at the latest next Wednesday the 17th by the end of class. In other words, you have three entire class periods (3+ hrs) to finish Lab Exercise 7. If you finish the exercise early (by next Monday the 15th) then when you come in next Wednesday the 17th you can begin making aboriginal-style pottery yourself in the Archaeology Lab.

Part I

The first part of the exercise involves watching a short (8 min.) YouTube video on archaeological ceramics that’s part of the Archaeos0up “Aspects of Archaeology” series. You can view this video anywhere – in the Archaeology Lab (using headphones), at home, or anywhere else. Go to and watch the entire video. After viewing it answer the following questions (please type):

1). Why are archaeologists so interested in ancient pottery? Provide at least three reasons why they spend so much time analyzing ancient ceramic artifacts.

2). What kinds of attributes do archaeologists examine and record in the process of classifying ancient ceramics?

3). How can archaeologists date ancient pottery? What methods were discussed?

4). What is ceramic petrology and what kinds of things can petrological analyses tell archaeologists?

5). Why are some archaeologists keen on studying fingerprints in ceramics?

Part II

The second part of this lab exercise involves you analyzing ceramic sherds (broken pieces of fired clay vessels) from coastal North Carolina. You’ll complete this part of Exercise 7 in the Archaeology Lab. Begin by reading the “Background” section of the handout titled “North Carolina Indigenous Pottery: A Summary View.” Next, read the following sections of the handout titled “7 FABRICS:” 7.1 Color; 7.4 Feel and 7.5 Inclusions (only sections 7.5.1 & 7.5.2). Both of these can be found on-line (on our class web page under “Student Resources”) or there are several print copies on the lab tables in the Archaeology Lab. Describing ceramic fabric, which includes color, texture (feel) and inclusions (temper) is a major part of any analysis of ceramic artifacts.

Once you’ve finished reading address each of the following points for each of four different ceramic sherds you’ll select from the trays in the lab. You may hand write this lab exercise but be sure to do so very neatly!

• Assign an arbitrary number to each sherd.

• Make a plan view drawing of each numbered sherd using a sharp pencil.

• Describe the color(s) of each numbered sherd using the Munsell soil Color Chart and specify which color chart you used for each sherd. Does your sherd have more than one color? Describe where (using arrows on your drawings) each of the different colors is found. Why do you think your sherd might have more than one color?

• Describe the surface texture or ‘feel’ of each sherd. Use the classification categories (Harsh, Rough, Smooth, etc) listed under section 7.4 of the handout on ceramic fabrics to describe surface texture (‘feel’).

• Look at the inclusions with first your naked eye then with a hand lens or loop.

o Try to determine what kind of temper is present in each sherd. You might see sand, shell, grog (broken sherds), rock and organic material (which is often seen as voids as grass or moss burns out during firing) and possibly a combination of tempering material.

o Estimate the frequency of aplastic inclusions (temper) using the modified Udden-Wentworth Scale seen in your handout on ceramic fabrics. Note frequency in terms of percentages (1, 3, 5, 10 or 20%). Also estimate the size of inclusions (temper) using the categories of ‘Large to Very Large,” “Medium to Very Large” and “Medium.”

o If there is more than one kind of tempering material describe the type and size of the minority aplastic inclusions using the criteria above.

• If you have a rim sherd estimate rim diameter using the rim diameter chart.

• What kind of surface decoration (if any) is present on each sherd? To do this use one of the handouts in the Lab titled “Decorative Tools & Motifs for Prehistoric Ceramics.”

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