Reconstruction of Iberian ceramic potteries using generative adversarial networks

Several aspects of past culture, including historical trends, are inferred from time-based patterns observed in archaeological artifacts belonging to different periods. The presence and variation of these objects provides important clues about the Neolithic revolution and given their relative abundance in most archaeological sites, ceramic potteries are significantly helpful in this purpose. Nonetheless, most available pottery is fragmented, leading to missing morphological information. Currently, the reassembly of fragmented objects from a collection of thousands of mixed fragments is a daunting and time-consuming task done almost exclusively by hand, which requires the physical manipulation of the fragments. To overcome the challenges of manual reconstruction and improve the quality of reconstructed samples, we present IberianGAN, a customized Generative Adversarial Network (GAN) tested on an extensive database with complete and fragmented references. We trained the model with 1072 samples corresponding to Iberian wheel-made pottery profiles belonging to archaeological sites located in the upper valley of the Guadalquivir River (Spain). Furthermore, we provide quantitative and qualitative assessments to measure the quality of the reconstructed samples, along with domain expert evaluation with archaeologists. The resulting framework is a possible way to facilitate pottery reconstruction from partial fragments of an original piece.Fil: Navarro, Jose Pablo. Universidad Nacional de la Patagonia "San Juan Bosco". Facultad de Ingeniería - Sede Puerto Madryn. Departamento de Informática; Argentina. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto Patagónico de Ciencias Sociales y Humanas; ArgentinaFil: Cintas, Celia. Catholic University Of Eastern Africa; KeniaFil: Lucena, Manuel. Universidad de Jaén; EspañaFil: Fuertes, José Manuel. Universidad de Jaén; EspañaFil: Segura, Rafael. Universidad de Jaén; EspañaFil: Delrieux, Claudio Augusto. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Bahía Blanca. Instituto de Ciencias e Ingeniería de la Computación. Universidad Nacional del Sur. Departamento de Ciencias e Ingeniería de la Computación. Instituto de Ciencias e Ingeniería de la Computación; Argentina. Universidad Nacional del Sur; ArgentinaFil: Gonzalez-Jose, Rolando. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Centro Científico Tecnológico Conicet - Centro Nacional Patagónico. Instituto Patagónico de Ciencias Sociales y Humanas; Argentin

Maya Ceramic Production in the Yalahau Region: A Diagnostic Analysis of Unslipped Sherds From Vista Alegre, Quintana Roo

Along the northern coast of Quintana Roo, Mexico, prehistoric ceramic usage included a variety of unslipped forms. During field excavations at the Maya coastal site of Vista Alegre, Drs. Jeffrey Glover and Dominique Rissolo recovered a high volume of sherds comprising a number of vessel type-varieties and forms. Vessel fragments collected from the Vista Alegre assemblage are comprised largely of ambiguous unslipped plain and unslipped striated sherds. This study explores distinct diagnostic attributes associated with these unlipped plain and unslipped striated sherds such as paste composition, texture, color, rim forms, and handle styles. This research facilitates future ceramic research along the northern coast of Quintana Roo promoting otherwise undefined sherds into a more systematic classification based on recorded modal characteristics

The Cambria Connection: Identifying Ceramic Production and Community Interaction in Late Prehistoric Minnesota, AD 1050-1300

The Cambria phase (AD 1050-1300) is an archaeological complex primarily centered on the elevated terraces of the Minnesota River in south-central Minnesota. Cambria phase pottery demonstrates technical and stylistic influences from several different late prehistoric cultures, and although the Cambria phase is currently classified as part of the Initial Middle Missouri Variant, certain affinities are evident between the grit-tempered, rolled rim ceramics at Cambria and the Powell-Ramey series at Cahokia. Although this pottery is a minority ware at Cambria, it is ubiquitous in the site literature, where it is interpreted as evidence for interaction with the Mississippian world. However, the nature and degree of the relationship between the two cultural areas has never been defined clearly. This project utilizes attribute and compositional analysis to identify the range of variation in the ceramic assemblages of three sites referred to collectively as the Cambria Locality: the Cambria, Price, and Owen D. Jones sites. A theoretical framework is structured from integrating articulated facets of world systems theory, community studies and the internal frontier concept. The results are interpreted at multiple levels of analysis, but are primarily focused on understanding interaction locally amongst the three sites, and in a micro-regional context within southern Minnesota. The evidence for and mechanisms of cultural interaction with Mississippian communities are evaluated. Finally, a model is developed to explain the emergence of the Cambria Locality village sites as intra-regional migration by cultural groups trending towards sedentism and maize agriculture from other areas in southern Minnesota

Ancient pots and potters of the Atures Rapids region: occupation and interaction processes in pre-colonial Middle Orinoco, Venezuela

The earliest written sources on the Middle Orinoco inhabitants singled-out the Átures Rapids as a key trading centre between the 16th and 18th century and from before the Spanish arrival. The previous archaeological studies described the ceramic materials in terms of form and style, following a cultural historic approach, and mostly interested in answering chronological questions. However, the pre- colonial indigenous occupation of the area and exchange network was still poorly known. In particular, the peopling of this area has been the centre of debate since most of the archaeological materials found along the river present a varied range of co-occurring paste recipes that used several different inorganic and organic ingredients, followed distinct production technologies and displayed different vessel forms, challenging the idea of a traditionally defined ‘ceramic culture’. Co-existing, distinct ceramic wares with different production sequences are reconstructed in the present research using petrography, portable X-ray fluorescence and macro trace analysis, which suggest a more nuanced ‘reading’ on the ancient inhabitants of the Orinoco river. Based on ceramic technology studies, interaction, emulation, innovation and trading activities are discussed through the analysis of pottery sherds recovered from three newly excavated sites: Culebra (cal. AD 437-1155), Rabo de Cochino island (cal. 100 BC- AD 1440) and Picure island (cal. AD 310-1480). The stratigraphic distribution, persistence of ceramics through the sequence and variability in these sites will be presented as part of an initial discussion that intends to contribute to the reconstruction of various pre-colonial occupations and interaction processes of the Átures region in Venezuela

Manufacturing Ceramics: Ceramic Ecology and Technological Choice in the Upper Cumberland River Valley

Ceramic material culture recovered from archaeological sites has more to offer the researcher than placing the site or strata into a cultural historic timeline. By examining the characteristics of ceramics manufactured during the Woodland Period in southern Kentucky, this thesis answers questions related to the behavior of the potters who lived and worked there. Using the theoretical basis of ceramic ecology and technological choice, this thesis examines the choices made by the potters of two sites, the Long (15Ru17) and Rowena (15Ru10) sites, located along the Cumberland River in Russell County, Kentucky. The two sites are also compared to one another and similar assemblages in the Upper Cumberland River Valley, in terms of temporal occupation and utilization of tempering resources. Ultimately, the potters who occupied the Long and Rowena sites during the Woodland Period used locally available materials to temper their clay, even as they emulated other ceramic types. In terms of the two sites themselves, it appears that while they were not occupied by the same population of potters, they did employ similar tempering agents and stylistic types. Examining the behavior of potters who occupied these two sites informs the researcher about the behavior of the larger region of the Upper Cumberland Valley

Oysters and catfish: resource exploitation at Rollins Shell Ring, Ft. George Island, Florida

Detailed faunal analyses were conducted on two major subsistence resources, oysters and marine catfish, at Rollins Shell Ring, a Late Archaic (5000 – 3000 B.P.) site on the northeast coast of Florida. The focus of this investigation was on resource exploitation, and, specifically, whether there was evidence that oysters from this site were over-exploited. Three units from previous excavations at the site were selected for analysis, and represent the span of occupation recorded for this site. Measurements were obtained from oysters to determine habitat, and, along with shell height, were compared across time for any changes in the pattern of exploitation that would indicate over-exploitation. Marine catfish otoliths were used to provide seasonal data for oyster harvesting, as well as information on fish ages and harvesting of this resource. My analysis revealed that the majority of oysters used in the construction of the main shell ring, ringlets, and other structures at this site were harvested from the same habitat. While there were differences in oyster habitat exploitation and shell height between samples, the difference was attributed to the variability of oyster habitats exploited and shell height in the earliest sample of the analysis, Test Unit 10, and in the latest sample, Test Unit 2; there was less variability noted in oyster habitat and shell height for the middle activity period recorded at the site, Test Unit 12c. Further results indicated a seasonal preference for exploitation of both oyster and marine catfish in warm water temperatures, and that oyster resources did not appear to be under stress during the period of activity recorded for the site. These data suggest that it is unlikely that over-exploitation of oysters played a role in permanent site abandonment

Archaeological Investigations between Cayenne Island and the Maroni River

Stratigraphic archaeological research in French Guiana is barely 50 years old and has been conducted primarily in the coastal zone, stretching approximately between 5 and 50 kilometres from the Atlantic coast to the Precambrian Shield. This bias, mainly caused by means of modern infrastructure, has sketched an archaeological record concerning pre-Columbian French Guiana focussing on the Late Ceramic Age (AD 900-1500) of Cayenne Island as well as the western Holocene coastal plains. The present study contains the results of six archaeological investigations, conducted from a compliance archaeological perspective, in order to enhance our knowledge of the afore-mentioned coastal area. It not only presents us with fresh archaeological data on the (Late) Archaic and Early Ceramic Age, a hiatus that is now partially filled up, but also sheds new light on the Late Ceramic Age of this specific region concerning funerary rites, ceramic series and subsistence economy. Martijn van den Bel studied History and Archaeology of Indigenous America at Leiden University and graduated in 1995 with an ethnoarchaeological study on the Palikur potters of French Guiana. Currently he works as a project leader for Inrap in French Guiana. He carries out compliance archaeological research in the French Guiana and the French Lesser Antilles. Next to archaeology, Martijn is interested in the early history of the Guianas and the Lesser Antilles, notably the encounter between Amerindians and Europeans during the 16th and 17th century, resulting in various publications

Mossy Oak Revisited: A Case Study in Mississippian Ceramics

The research presented here seeks to better understand the relationship between the Macon Plateau site and Mossy Oak ceramics. The Early Mississippian period in central Georgia was a time of great change with emerging political centralization and social ranking. This thesis aims to better understand Macon Plateau’s relationship with outlying areas. To accomplish this objective the ceramic assemblage site from the site of Mossy Oak (11 Bi 17) is revisited and reanalyzed using spatial analysis and detailed investigations of Vining Simple Stamped pottery. Rather than taking a top-down, elite-focused approach, this thesis explores the impact of horizontal relationships between groups present at the inception of social institutions and social inequality at the dawn of the Early Mississippian and the rise of Macon Plateau

Intensive Agriculture and Political Economy of the Yaguachi Chiefdom of Guayas Basin, Coastal Ecuador

This dissertation examines the relationship between intensive agriculture and the development of chiefly societies in the Lower Guayas Basin, coastal Ecuador. The Yaguachi chiefdom arose in the area at least during the Integration Period AD 700-Spanish contact. This social formation built intensive agriculture technology (raised fields) and large earth mounds. Two approaches, top-down and a bottom-up, are contrasted to identify where along a socio-political continuum the organization of the Yaguachi chiefdom lay. The research aimed to reconstruct regional settlement patterns using the spatial distribution of sites and their relationships to raised field zones. Data gathering included methods such as aerial photogrametry and subsurface testing. Excavation was conducted through shovel tests, auger probes and a limited number of excavation units. The surveyed area consisted of 428. 29 km², and survey results identified 622 mounds clustered into 16 settlements located along the borders of a large zone of raised fields. These settlements form a three-tiered hierarchy with three main regional centers, sub-centers, agricultural villages and isolated households. Raised fields were found in large tracts. Sites show a strong tendency to cluster, and, for the most part, large centers had large supporting populations. Those centers are located adjacent to raised field zones. Evidence at the core of one of the sites indicates that considerable feasting activities took place. Differences in access to resources among households correspond to their location within the three-tiered hierarchy. Raised field construction required large labor inputs, and they provided large outputs. Mound building activities, feasting and burial practices indicate strong sense of community in the local population. This evidence leads to the conclusions that local chiefs were engaged in the management of raised field production, and that public mound building and feasting activities served to make this possible