Characterization and textural analysis of Middle Bronze Age Transdanubian inlaid wares of the Encrusted Pottery Culture, Hungary: a preliminary study

Abstract

Inlaid ceramics belonging to the Encrusted Pottery Culture and dated to the Middle Bronze Age (2000e1500 BC) are highly distinctive vessels with complex decorative motifs found in large numbers in the Transdanubia region of Hungary. Despite this considerable corpus of material there has been little systematic investigation of the composition of the inlays. Micro-analysis of Transdanubian inlaid wares by X-ray diffraction (XRD), micro-Fourier transform infrared microscopy (FT-IR), and scanning electron microscopy (SEM) provides new compositional, structural and textural information on the inlays. In contrast to common statements in the literature regarding the materials used to make inlays, these new data show that the majority of inlays are composed of hydroxyapatite (bone) that was previously ashed, although some of the inlays are composed of calcium carbonate. Additional compositional and textural variation in the bone inlays suggests that bone material from different skeletal elements and/or of different age may have been used, and that contrasting recipes for inlay preparation were employed during fabrication. These results suggest that the production of inlaid vessels of the Encrusted Pottery Culture was more complex than has hitherto been thought.

White Encrustation Produced from Deer Antler Phosphate on Prehistoric Ceramics from Podunavlje

“…Some authors have expressed assumptions about human bone use in prehistoric encrustations (Roberts et al . ). In our case, only plexiform animal bones were used in the encrustation paste.…”

“…Roberts et al . () analysed Middle Bronze Age encrustations by diffraction and spectroscopic methods and found a hydroxyapatite mineral structure and chemistry. They suggest that the inlay material is mostly mammal bone.…”

“…; Roberts et al . ; Parkinson et al . ), Macedonia and Thrace (Yiouni ), Romania (Ellis ), Greece (Gardner ) and Poland (Zastawny et al .…”

Recikliraj, ideje iz prošlosti: složena priroda recikliranja

“…Spomenut ćemo ovdje i jedan neobičan primjer "recikliranja" kosti, koji je bio vrlo česta prakse tijekom brončanog doba na prostoru Europe. Od mješavine vapnenca, gipsa ili kaolina i kosti pripremala se bijela pasta (inkrustacija) (Roberts et al 2008;Všianský et al 2014) kojom su popunjavane brazde načinjene na površini keramičkih posuda čime se postizao kontrastni efekt izražen kroz paletu složenih motiva (sl. 5).…”

Emulación decorativa y cerámicas ancestrales. Posibles fuentes de inspiración de las alfareras meseteñas de la Edad del Bronce

“…El estudio arqueométrico de las incrustaciones de pasta blanca en vasijas campaniformes y de Cogotas i está proporcionando datos cruciales para discutir con rigor la transferencia de técnicas decorativas entre repertorios temporalmente inconexos. Los resultados de caracterización química disponibles (Odriozola et al, 2012) afectan a un número aceptable de muestras campaniformes y de momento sólo dos ejemplares de Cogotas i. Aun así, de comprobarse la tendencia preliminar apuntada, cabe hablar de una interrupción de las decisiones tecnológicas entre ambos conjuntos: las pastas blancas en recipientes Ciempozuelos se elaboraron con carbonato cálcico -calcita de calizas o conchas de moluscos-, mientras que las alfareras de Cogotas i emplearon apatitos biológicos -huesos triturados y quemados- (Odriozola et al, 2012: 148, tabla 1) al igual que otras tradiciones alfareras de incrustación contemporáneas (Roberts et al, 2008). Esto significa que las artesanas de la Edad del Bronce buscaron un efecto estético comparable al alcanzado por sus homólogas de época campaniforme, pero empleando materias primas y procedimientos diferentes.…”