Ceramic analysis and the indus civilization. A review

Jonathan Mark Kenoyer has a long history of work with the ceramic vessels of the Indus Civilization and co-authored the most comprehensive assessments of the pottery from Mohenjo-daro yet attempted (Dales and Kenoyer 1986). For archaeologists, pottery is one of the most significant sources of data, not only for the durability and abundance of ceramic artefacts in the archaeological record, but also for the vast range of information on ancient societies that can be inferred from its study. Amongst various approaches to ceramic analysis, two main methods have dominated the field: the morphological approach, where pottery assemblages are grouped according to macroscopic attributes; and scientific analysis, where ceramics are understood in terms of composition and technologies. Even though the latter approach has been tentatively used in the study of ceramic industries in South Asia since the 1930s, it has become significant only in the past three decades. This contribution reviews the use and development of geochemical and petrographic methods for the study of South Asian ceramic traditions, with special emphasis on assemblages produced and used during the Urban and Post-Urban phases of the Indus Civilization (2500-1600 BC)

Using digital and hand printing techniques to compensate for loss: re-establishing colour and texture in historic textiles

Conservators use a range of 'gap filling' techniques to improve the structural stability and presentation of objects. Textile conservators often use fabric supports to provide reinforcement for weak areas of a textile and to provide a visual infill in missing areas. The most common technique is to use dyed fabrics of a single colour but while a plain dyed support provides good reinforcement, it can be visually obtrusive when used with patterned or textured textiles. Two recent postgraduate dissertation projects at the Textile Conservation Centre (TCC) have experimented with hand printing and digital imaging techniques to alter the appearance of support fabrics so that they are less visually obtrusive and blend well with the colour and texture of the textile being supported. Case studies demonstrate the successful use of these techniques on a painted hessian rocking horse and a knitted glove from an archaeological context

Experimental Archaeology and Formation Processes: New Experiments with Spatial Modeling

Formation processes, or the ways that ancient sites are formed, are of central interest to archaeology. Experimental archaeology has been useful in connecting and correlating human behavior with patterns in the archaeological record and has proved to be a growing field within the discipline. This thesis outlines an experimental study that examines the dispersal patterns of modern pottery during breakage, which can be used to simulate the structure of ceramic sherd assemblages in archaeological contexts. The study demonstrates the utility of 3D modeling in these archaeological contexts and its assistance in understanding the assemblages in a three dimensional context. The results offer a preliminary framework for documenting and analyzing artifact breakage and the formation of archaeological sites

Materials Surface Science Applied to the Investigation of Cultural Heritage Artefacts

This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/4.0/International audienceThe skill of ancient artisans manufacturing artistic or everyday artworks surprises the modern material scientists. We show, through the study of archaeological pieces, how laboratory research instruments use enlightens the fabrication processes of unique items at antic periods. The specificity of surface science research favouring non-invasive means for investigations on museum objects is emphasised. The examples concern: Nanostructured layers on ceramic surface to obtain the so-called lustre effect, invented by ancient Islam potters; Intentional coloration of metallic objects by chemical patination, attested in Egypt on 2nd millenary BC and still applied by Japanese artisans; The history of gilding objects: leaf gilding, mercury gilding, and other processes; The Fresco technique, a perennial wall painting, known by ancient Roman and propagated through centuries. The examples open new fields belonging to the modern materials science, to understand the mechanism involved in processes with the constraint that one does not know all the fabrication steps

3D Acquisition of Archaeological Ceramics and Web-Based 3D Data Storage

Motivated by the requirements of modern archaeology, we are developing an automated system for archaeological classification and reconstruction of ceramics. The goal is to create a tool that satisfies the criteria of accuracy, performance (findings/hour), robustness, transportability, overall costs, and careful handling of the findings. Following our previous work, we present new achievements on the documentation steps for 3D acquisition, 3D data processing, and 3D reconstruction. We have improved our system so that it can handle large quantities of ceramic fragments efficiently and computes a more robust orientation of a fragment. In order to store the sherd data acquired and hold all the information necessary to reconstruct a complete vessel, a database for archaeological fragments was developed. We will demonstrate practical experiments and results undertaken onsite at different excavations in Israel and Peru

Archaeological and ethnographic survey in the Paikuli Area (Iraqi Kurdistan)

The Italian Archaeological Mission in Iraqi Kurdistan (MAIKI) of the Sapienza University of Rome aims to study the archaeological, historical, linguistic and cultural development of the Kurdish region through a wide historical period. MAIKI started by focusing on the archaeological and philological analysis of the Sasanian site of Paikuli. In recent years, however, investigation has been expanded to include an accurate survey of the area between the Dyala and Basara rivers, around the main road that connects the city of Chamchamal to Darbandikhan, in order to implement a complete and updated archaeological map of the entire territory. The continuing work includes a preparatory study of the few bibliographical records available and an overall analysis of the accessible, current and historical satellite imagery in order to obtain a reliable context for the results of archaeological field surveys. During the field campaigns, which are currently suspended because of the political instability and war in the region, archaeological material was collected in all the visited sites and a detailed morphological and archaeometric study was set up. A complete map of the currently inhabited villages of the area has been compiled because up-to-date base cartography of the area did not exist; this new map has proved to be useful not only for locating archaeological records but also for the activities of the ethnological research that joined the Mission in 2013. The area suffered very much during Saddam Hussein’s Al-Anfal campaign when all of the people were forced to leave. The ethnological study will help to reveal the impact that these recent traumatic events have had on the preservation of the cultural heritage whilst supplying rich documentation for further investigation, including on relationship between man and territory, local economy, migration policies and religious practice

Assessment of plastics in the National Trust: a case study at Mr Straw's House

The National Trust is a charity that cares for over 300 publically accessible historic buildings and their contents across England, Wales and Northern Ireland. There have been few previous studies on preservation of plastics within National Trust collections, which form a significant part of the more modern collections of objects. This paper describes the design of an assessment system which was successfully trialled at Mr Straws House, a National Trust property in Worksop, UK. This system can now be used for future plastic surveys at other National Trust properties. In addition, the survey gave valuable information about the state of the collection, demonstrating that the plastics that are deteriorating are those that are known to be vulnerable, namely cellulose nitrate/acetate, PVC and rubber. Verifying this knowledge of the most vulnerable plastics enables us to recommend to properties across National Trust that these types should be seen as a priority for correct storage and in-depth recording

Cross-Modal Search and Exploration of Greek Painted Pottery

This paper focuses on digitally-supported research methods for an important group of cultural heritage objects, the Greek pottery, especially with figured decoration. The design, development and application of new digital methods for searching, comparing, and visually exploring these vases needs an interdisciplinary approach to effectively analyse the various features of the vases, like shape, decoration, and manufacturing techniques, and relationships between the vases. We motivate the need and opportunities by a multimodal representation of the objects, including 3D shape, material, and painting. We then illustrate a range of innovative methods for these representations, including quantified surface and capacity comparison, material analysis, image flattening from 3D objects, retrieval and comparison of shapes and paintings, and multidimensional data visualization. We also discuss challenges and future work in this area.Comment: 14 pages, 10 figures, preprint for a book chapter, supplementary video available at https://youtu.be/x_Xg0vy3nJ

Preliminary report on the research of the JU Institute of Archeology and the AGH UST Faculty of Geo-Data Science, Geodesy, and Environmental Engineering at the Dajaniya and Tuwaneh sites in Jordan – seasons 2018-2019

W artykule publikowane są wyniki badań ekspedycji Instytutu Archeologii UJ i Wydziału Geodezji Górniczej i Inżynierii Środowiska AGH w południowo-zachodniej Jordanii na stanowiskach Dajaniya (Ma’an Husseiniyeh) i Tuwaneh (Tafila Hessa) z lat 2018-2019.. Badania miały na celu wykonanie szczegółowych planów stanowisk oraz zadokumentowanie stanu zachowania pozostałości architektonicznych z użyciem fotogrametrii (z wysięgnika oraz latawca) oraz skaningu laserowego. Ponadto zarejestrowano również wkopy rabunkowe na obu stanowiskach. Przeprowadzono również prospekcję powierzchniową zbierając materiał ceramiczny oraz pojedyncze zabytki metalowe, która w przypadku Tuwaneh objęła centralną część stanowiska (w okolicach tzw. karawanseraju) oraz część wkopów rabunkowych i ich hałd. W 2019 roku wykonano również badania wykopaliskowe w obrębie trzech wykopów sondażowych w Tuwaneh na terenie starożytnych termhe article presents the preliminary results of research conducted by the expedition of the Institute of Archeology of the Jagiellonian University and the Faculty of Geo-Data Science, Geodesy, and Environmental Engineering of the AGH University of Science and Technology in the south-western Jordan at Dajaniya (Ma’an Husseiniyeh) and Tuwaneh (Tafila Hessa) sites in 2018-2019. The main aim of the research was to create plans for both sites and document the state of preservation of architectural remains using photogrammetry (both pole- and kite-based) as well as terrestrial laser scanning. Additionally, robber pits were recorded at both sites. A surface prospection was also conducted, collecting ceramic and metal artifacts, which, in the case of Tuwaneh, covered the central part of the site (the area around the so-called caravanserai) and part of the robber trenches and their waste piles. In 2019, three trial trenches were also excavated in the vicinity of the ancient baths at Tuwane