Throughout human history and pre-history, we’ve had the need for vessels, and their production became an important cultural activity that allowed groups to adapt and expand the use of their environment. In all likelihood, given the nomadic hunter-gatherer lifestyle of our ancestors, materials used in the manufacture of these vessels were lightweight and flexible like skins, bark, wild gourds, and so on. Pottery is a relatively recent development, though its use extends before the Neolithic period (Wikipedia, 2023). Its production is fairly universal and has been found in China, Japan, Russia, Sub-Sahara Africa, and so forth. The material is durable and prominent in the archaeological record. Archeologists are interested in pottery because because pottery-making was closely related to a group’s socio-cultural organization, transformation, and identity (Fagan, 1994).
Making pottery by hand in a prehistoric environment was no easy feat. Good quality clay had to be found over long distances (without wheels to get you there), then the potter engaged in a careful and meticulous process of pounding, kneading, molding, firing, tempering, and so on. This was done usually over an open hearth, and later we got all fancy with kilns. Surface finishes were applied to improve durability. Waterproofness was accomplished through burnishing. Glazing also improved the aesthetics, along with decorations stamped with shells, combs, and other tools. The potters were skillful, and their vessel-making process is assumed to reflect the proximate processes of his/her cultural group. Thus studying this process can tell us much about the people that produced it (Fagan, 1994).
The analysis of pottery can be a tedious endeavor, and even to this day the processes have not been standardized. Archaeologists use several methods that Fagan (1994) broadly outlined as follows:
- Analogy and experimentation seeks to replicate the methods and techniques used by ancient potters.
- Form and function are sometimes easily inferred but not always, so analysis of artifacts seeks to find commonalities that will allow groupings into greater categories. A large change in form and function is usually indicative of some transformative event in that culture’s history.
Stylistic (typological) analysis focuses on the decorative styles used by potters because they’re considered non-functional and therefore a reflection of cultural choices. Attempts at stylistic classification of attributes have produced frameworks of hierarchies, types, varieties, and modes that have been used to trace cultural variations over many years (Fagan, 1994). Not everyone thinks these methods are accurate, and alternate frameworks have been proposed (e.g., Stephen Plog, 2009).
Specific techniques of analysis include petrography, chemical analysis, radiocarbon dating, and contextual analysis are also employed in the study of pottery artifacts.
While some variations in the pottery making process are a reflection of the potter’s own style, others are a reflection of a culture’s social organization and development. Early pottery was usually clay or earthenware, but other types like stoneware, and porcelain also came into use. It is believed that in the early stages, pottery was used for basic needs like cooking, carrying water, and storing foodstuff. Later, the use of pottery became more specialized as vessels were used for ceremonial purposes, lamps, urns, salt making, and so on.
The images sprinkled throughout this post are egg cups from local first nations and demonstrate the cultural transformations that have occurred in the face of economic globalization. Some indigenous groups in Canada have adapted to this new economic reality and taken full advantage of it. They have combined the elements of non-indigenous mainstream society with their own cultural processes.
The egg cup themselves were made in China but designed in Canada. They came in a box decorated with motifs common in native art of this region. On the top of the boxes, the name of the art and artists have been printed along with the word “fine porcelain.” On the back of the box, there is a short description of the myth behind the art along with pertinent information about the artist (including their nation) and the product itself.
The first egg cup contains art called Raven Transforming by Kelly Robinson of Nuxalk & Nuu-chah-nulth heritage.
The second cup depicts Hummingbird by Bill Hellin of the Tsimshian community. These two symbols are important in the myth and legends of Northwest coast indigenous people.
An early egg cup was found in the ruins of Pompeii, so the use of this item extends far into the past. I don’t know if ancient native Americans used egg cups, but in all likelihood, this item’s form and function, and the methods of production, were introduced by Europeans, along with the economic system that shifted manufacturing to Asia. The first nations have adapted and also use this global economic system to develop their own products that contain stylistic designs and narratives based on their unique cultural heritage. They are a wonderful example of how cultures change and adapt, growing even closer thanks to the transformative power of economic production.
Resources
- Pottery Wikipedia page, accessed March 2023: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pottery
- In the Beginning : An Introduction to Archaeology by Brian M. Fagan
- Pottery Analysis in Archeology:
- Stephen Plog: Stylistic Variation in Prehistoric Ceramics: Design Analysis in the American Southwest
- Egg cup on Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Egg_cup
