Technology and Social Aspects of Prehistoric Pottery Production and Use

Since 2012, the Center for Experimental Archeology in cooperation with the Institute of Archeology systematically conducts experimental research aimed at reconstructing the technological process of the production of ceramic vessels from the Bronze Age. The aim of the project is to reconstruct the way of procurement and preparation of raw materials and to test various techniques of shaping and decorating pottery vessels, the method of baking as well as the function of the specific forms of the vessel. Some of the goals are to create a database of experimentally produced samples and to educate through the organization of workshops and lectures. Some project stages were recorded in a short documentary film Eci peci peć with the purpose of popularizing archaeology and experimental approach.

In the course of 2014 and 2015, a project entitled Technology of Pottery Production in Prehistoric Times through Experimental Archeology was developed under the auspices of the Department of Archeology at the Faculty of Humanities and Social Sciences of the University of Zagreb and the Institute for Archeology. The project was funded by the Ministry of Science of the Republic of Croatia within the science popularization programme. Throughout the project a series of lectures and practical workshops were carried out, whose direct users were the students of the Department of Archeology. The aim of the project was to convey the basic theoretical and practical knowledge about the various phases of the process of making pottery vessels: from considering the possibility of utilizing natural resources in prehistoric times to the implementation of a series of experiments related to the techniques of making pottery vessels. The final part of the programme was aimed at applying the acquired knowledge through the group work of students and the presentation of the obtained results.

Eci peci peć

 

Bibliography:
Kudelić, A. 2017. Will we ever be able to reconstruct prehistoric pottery production processes – the role of experiments. Experimental archaeology conference, book of abstracts / Paardekooper, Roeland (ur.). Leiden, EXARC, 49-49 (conference presentation).
Kudelić, A. 2016, Experiment in Archeology - Preparation and Composition of Clay Paste, Annales Instituti Archaeologici XII, 207–211.
Pavlić, A., Šprem, K., Kudelić, A., Miloglav, I. 2016, Experimental pottery production, 4th scientific conference Methodology and Archaeometry, 2016, book of abstract Zagreb, 38, poster
Kudelić, A., Sirovica, F. 2013, Prapovijesno lončarstvo – mogućnosti eksperimentalnog istraživanja, Arheologija na Dunavu, Hrvatsko arheološko društvo, Vukovar 2013, poster
Kudelić, A. 2013, Testing of ceramic vessel production technology and reconstruction of a hypothetical horizontal ceramic kiln, Annales Instituti Archaeologici IX, 2013.
Kudelić, A. 2012, Experimental testing of prehistoric archaeological features and theresults of firing pottery on an open fire, Annales Instituti archaeologici VIII, 2012.