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Contemporary pottery-making in Rhodes: Approaching ancient through modern craft traditions
Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 27 (2019) 102003
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Contemporary pottery-making in Rhodes: Approaching ancient through modern craft traditions
T
Lisa Betina Saxo Institute, University of Copenhagen, Karen Blixens Plads 8, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
ARTICLE INFO
ABSTRACT
Keywords: Rhodes Ceramic workshops Raw material selectivity Clay manipulation Firing temperature Thin-section petrography Reference data
Petrographic analyses of ceramics from ethnographic and archaeological contexts on the Aegean island of Rhodes (Dodecanese, Greece) reveal diverse strategies in clay preparation and production sequences, although the same basic raw materials have been utilised. The aim of this study is to illuminate the technological choices made by contemporary and ancient potters (raw material selection, clay preparation, firing) based on the composition of the raw clays deposited on the island. Site-specific explanation models for potting behaviour will be formulated and discussed in terms of functional and socio-economic parameters. For the first time, a comprehensive insight into Rhodian pottery manufacturing will be given, providing valuable clay and ceramic reference data for future interdisciplinary studies.
1. Introduction Detailed knowledge of human-environment interactions in ancient and contemporary ceramic crafts is of particular relevance when trying to assess criteria of clay selectivity and the organisation of potting communities in demarcated regions. A key component of ceramic ethnoarchaeology is the investigation of interdependence between raw materials, possible modifications the clays have been subjected to (tempering, levigation, clay mixing) and the performance properties of the finished ceramic products (Stark, 2003). Questions related to ceramic technology and provenance are most commonly explored by scholarship; for instance, the degree of compositional variability within clay deposits (Hein et al., 2004) or vessels manufactured in individual workshops or villages is being measured, or activity zones in which potters sourced the reconstructed clays (Cau Ontiveros et al., 2015; Michelaki et al., 2015; Arnold, 2017; Fowler et al., 2019). The understanding of intentional choices in ceramic fabrication under known parameters is valuable for the interpretation of archaeological material remains. During the last two decades, natural-scientific analyses have increasingly been integrated into ethnoarchaeological research, leading to the creation of the term “ethnoarchaeometry” (Buxeda i Garrigós et al., 2003; Cantin and Mayor, 2018). By definition, ceramic ethnoarchaeometry is the application of scientific methods to contemporary materials in order to support the solution of archaeological issues. The island of Rhodes (Dodecanese, Greece) has favourable conditions that allow the comparison of petrographic results obtained from
the analysis of clay raw materials, modern ceramic samples provided by potters in Archangelos (central eastern Rhodes) and Hellenistic pottery wares from Rhodes Town. This is a unique opportunity to learn how native Rhodian clays are selected and processed by contemporary craftspeople, and the reasons for doing so; ancient potters interacted in the same environmental conditions as present-day craftspeople, having access to the same basic raw materials. The aim of this paper is to investigate if comparable clay selection and preparation strategies in pottery production can be detected in ethnoarchaeological and archaeological records in Rhodes. For this, I consider primarily the shape and function of the finished ceramic vessels. Is clay manipulation evident in the modern or ancient datasets, and if so, is this particular technological choice related the prevailing sociocultural and economic context? Roughly 2000 years separate both sets of ceramic samples and, therefore, time-related factors (e.g. changes in potting traditions) but also varied external influences imposed by changing environmental conditions need to be taken into account. How do Rhodian clays behave when fired at different temperatures and what effect does their performance have on the finished vessels? 2. Modern and ancient ceramic manufacture in Rhodes: the effects of industrialisation Unlike regions considered remote and unaffected by modern technologies, for example South America or the African subcontinent, ceramic production in present-day Rhodes has been considerably affected by industrialisation. The same applies to several other Greek
E-mail address: [email protected]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.102003 Received 6 June 2019; Received in revised form 21 August 2019; Accepted 3 September 2019 2352-409X/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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islands, but due to their limited surface area, confined space and the absence of commercial exploitation of clays, islands — such as Sifnos, Thasos, Aegina or Cyprus — have received considerable scholarly attention in ethnoarchaeological research during recent decades (London, 1989; Papadopoulos, 1999; Ionas, 2000; Kiriatzi et al., 2011; Kyriakopoulos, 2015). Traditional handcrafts occasionally survived in a few regions of considerably more industrialised islands, such as Crete (Gouin and Vogt, 2002). Ceramic production has been an indispensable element of Rhodes' economy since the early Hellenistic period, although it is mainly subsidiary in nature, providing receptacles for the transportation of wine (Gabrielsen, 1997: 64–71; Finkielsztejn, 2001; Lawall, 2011). In the 20th century, pottery produced on Rhodes in the Italian factory I.C.A.R.O. (later under Greek ownership: IKAROS), which stylistically resembled the well-known Iznik ceramics, was in high demand, resulting in an economic boom and wide dissemination (Ioannidis, 2017; Diakosavvas, 2019). Apart from long-distance trade, self-sustainable ceramic production was of immense significance for regional supply networks on the island. Particularly in the Hellenistic period, multiple workshop remains and associated finds document a flourishment of ceramic manufacture in different parts of the island (Empereur and Picon, 1986: 115; Lund, 2011: 283), fabricating a diverse range of ceramic shapes and wares. So far, the majority of these (potential) production sites has only been mentioned briefly in archaeological reports (for a summary of the evidence: Betina and Skaltsa, 2019). Comprehensive clay sampling and the formation of ceramic reference groups in multiple locations in Rhodes will allow for a delineation of social and commercial interrelationships in a regional and supra-regional perspective. A substantive contribution to this issue is currently being made in the frame of “The Rhodes Centennial Project”, a collaboration of the Saxo Institute/University of Copenhagen and the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Dodecanese. Archaeological and archaeometric analyses of ceramics excavated at the Papachristodoulou-Karika plot in Rhodes Town attest to the predominant use of white (“Aspropilos”) and red (“Kokkinochoma”) clays in Rhodian ceramic manufacture (Betina and Skaltsa, 2019; Dreliossi-Herakleidou and Betina, 2019). In the 19th and 20th century, the village of Archangelos at the central Eastern coastline of Rhodes and the adjacent settlement of Stegna (Fig. 1) developed into a potting centre with up to 50 active potters in its core period before World War II (Jones, 1986: 876; Papachristodoulou, 1989: 141). As such, the village and its surroundings were the main supplier of fired clay objects for the Rhodian
population. Increased interest in traditional workmanship in the Aegean led to the documentation of workshop structures and the pottery repertoire of these established businesses, just as it revealed the identities of the most successful potters operating in the region (Hampe and Winter, 1965: 154–157; Kyriazopoulou, 1984: 45–48; Psaropoulou, 1986: 56–59; Jones, 1986; Korre-Zografou, 1995: 292–300; Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, 2009: 317). These reports provide essential insights into paste preparation techniques employed in the individual workshops and allow researchers to create a timeline demonstrating periods of economic upturn and decline based on the number of functioning businesses. Scattered remains of ceramic wasters, moulds, heaps of pottery sherds and built installations facilitating treatment (water systems) of clays and firing operations (kiln structures) appear most concentrated in the area of Petronas. 3. Material and methods 3.1. Potters of Archangelos: the initial situation Today, almost all of the traditional pottery workshops around Archangelos are abandoned (e.g. the workshop of P. Pappouras at Petronas); existing workshops adapted to a different client base by specialising mainly on souvenirs rather than on functional pottery for daily use (Fig. 2). The most recent descriptions of contemporary pottery workshops in the region date back to the 1990s (Korre-Zografou, 1995). When initiating the study presented here in spring 2017, we did not know whether craftspeople still continue to use native clays for potting purposes as they did before. For this reason, nine pottery workshops located between Kolymbia and Masari along the Greek National Road 95 (Rhodes-Lindos) were visited in June 2017 (Fig. 1). The overall concept was to determine the extent of use of Rhodian clays in modernday pottery production and to learn the reasons for these particular choices, achieved by interviewing the craftspeople. Where applicable, samples of clays provided by the potters and samples of selected finished ceramic products have been collected; three clay samples and three modern ceramic fragments have been included in the study. A geological survey conducted in March 2018 in the environs of Archangelos aimed at understanding the diversity of clays characterising the landscape – resources that are freely available to the local potters. It was Jones (1986: 297) who first developed an interest for the naturalscientific analysis of clays and pottery from modern ceramic ateliers in Archangelos; although samples have been taken, the results remained unpublished.
Fig. 1. Map of Rhodes indicating the location of Archangelos and relevant site names. Numbers 1–9 refer to the ceramic workshops visited: (1) Artistic Village, (2) Giannis Ceramic, (3) Kostas Ceramic, (4) Michail Workshop, (5) Spathas Ceramic, (6) Bonis Ceramic, (7) Savvas Ceramic, (8) Giasiranis Ceramic, (9) Papas Ceramic. (Map adapted from StepMap.) 2
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Fig. 2. Modern ceramics produced around Archangelos. a–c) Cooking vessels and large plates, glazed and painted plates, and signature anthropomorphic figurines at Papas Ceramic workshop; d–e) traditional ceramics from the workshop of P. Pappouras (L. Betina and G. Kasiotis, © The Rhodes Centennial Project).
raw materials and archaeological ceramics are currently under way and will be presented separately. A first screening of clays from Archangelos and Rhodes Town by petrographic analysis emphasised a relative compositional homogeneity for each kind of clay (white and red clay respectively) thoughout both study regions (Archangelos and Rhodes Town); clay groundmasses and the suite of mineral and rock inclusions are comparable, with only minor discrepancies – these, however, would not influence the physical properties of the clays. Therefore, it is legitimate to include Hellenistic ceramics excavated at the PapachristodoulouKarika plot in Rhodes Town in the study and screen for common or divergent technological practices, assessing the value of modern for the interpretation of ancient potting traditions.
3.2. Fieldwork and laboratory analyses The radius of resource areas surveyed has been set to 4 km, starting from the centre of Archangelos. Particular focus was placed on areas defined by massive clay outcrops (Tsambika, north of Archangelos), spots in close proximity to abandoned workshop units (Petronas), and locations where field names known to the locals indicate the occurrence of sediments appropriate for potting (Kerami, southeast of Archangelos). Clay samples have been taken, supplemented by rock and sand samples, and the sample locations have been geo-referenced and photographically documented. This paper does not attempt to introduce the full range of geological samples studied, as reference will only be given to specimens relevant to the current research questions. The clays obtained were soaked in water, shaped into briquettes and fired in an electrical furnace for 1 h at a maximum temperature of 750 °C. In addition, the three clays provided by a potter in Archangelos (“Papas Ceramic”) have been fired at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C each in order to evaluate the behaviour of the clays at different temperatures, both visually and in terms of micro-structural changes. Subsequently, thin-sections have been prepared and studied with a Zeiss Axioskop 40 polarising microscope; furthermore, three modern ceramic samples have been analysed in thin-section. Thin-section petrography was chosen as scientific technique it is the most reliable analytical method to identify clay manipulation (Fowler et al., 2019). Diagnostic characteristics of clay manipulation are: the quantities, coarseness, degree of angularity or grain size distribution of non-plastic inclusions, as well as colour and texture of the clay groundmass. Chemical analyses of clay
4. Results and discussion 4.1. Assessment and decision making: practicabilities of imported versus Rhodian clays Only one of the nine pottery workshops visited utilises Rhodian clays in its business, and that is “Papas Ceramic” (Fig. 1, no. 9). The eight remaining workshops (Fig. 1, nos. 1–8) exclusively import clays from Crete (red clays) and Thessaloniki or Italy (white clays). As reason for the preference of imported over Rhodian clays, potters continuously refer to the great efforts needed to make the native clays workable. Clays from Rhodes require a refinement by levigation to remove natural coarse inclusions. Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou (2009: 302) cites that 3
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Table 1 Overview of clays processed in individual workshops around Archangelos as extracted from published literature. Potter
Workshop location
No. of clays
Types of clays and mining locations
Reference
N. Sakkelaris P. Pappouras N. Giasiranis Various
Stegna Petronas Archangelos Archangelos region
3 5 3 5
Psaropoulou, 1986: 26 Jones, 1986: 296 Korre-Zografou, 1995: 297 Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, 2009: 303
Papas Ceramic
Archangelos
3
Green clay (Archipoli); dark grey clay (Petronas); dark red clay (Ag. Theodoros) Clays of different colour and texture (Petronas); red clay (Petronas) Dark yellow clay (Archipoli); grey clay (Petronas); dark red clay (Ag. Theodoros) Melegkas, chostis, patelia (green clay), red clay, black (grey) clay (Archangelos and Petronas) Green clay (Archipoli); white clay (Tsambika); dark red clay (Kastro of Archangelos)
the clays processed in Archangelos had to pass through three filters in order to provide the fineness needed for wheel-throwing. Another factor directly related to this issue is the high risk of failure of the vessels during the firing process, induced by the remaining rock fragments still present in the clay paste after levigation. Spalling and ultimately breakage of the pots could result in a considerable rate of rejection; the majority of interviewed potters are certain that they would not profit from the use of native Rhodian clays. Commercial industrial facilities that could provide refined and processed instant clays appropriate for immediate potting, like for instance on Crete, do not exist on Rhodes. Papas Ceramic, specialising in ceramic manufacture with traditional raw materials, was investigated in more detail. The owners make use of three clays: white, red and green. Based on the potters' statements, white clay (“Aspropilos”) is mined in the area of Tsambika and red clay (“Kokkinochoma”) is locally sourced behind the Kastro of Archangelos, southeast of the modern residential zone. The green clay (“Prasinopilos”) is a mixture of two sediments extracted in the vicinity of Archipoli, 7 km linear distance northwest of Archangelos (Fig. 1). A
pattern of local and distant clay sources being exploited does emerge. Obviously, these three clays best meet the demands of the potters, but can the transportation of clays from afar also – at least partially – be considered a consequence of the unavailability and inappropriateness of further clays than the red clay in the local area of Archangelos? This question builds directly on research conducted by Michelaki et al. (2015), challenging to find an explanation not only for the use of specific clays, but also for the disregard of others. Ethnographic research performed in the past in Archangelos demonstrates certain variability in clay selection (Table 1), with three to five different clays being processed by individual potters. Moreover, the clay extraction sites are, to a certain extent, variable: red clay has always been sourced locally, either in Ag. Theodoros located ca. 2 km south of Archangelos (Rhodes-Lindos highway), in the Petronas area or around the Kastro of Archangelos. There is an evident tradition to supply green and yellow clays from the Archipoli region. Grey clays have been obtained from Petronas, but in the case of Papas Ceramic they have been replaced by the use of white clay from Tsambika (Fig. 3a–b).
Fig. 3. Clay deposits and installations for clay preparation. a) View of the Tsambika hill with extensive resources of white clay; b) red clay deposited in the area of Sira, southeast of Archangelos; c) site location of Petronas with remains of white, red and grey sediments visible; d) abandoned facility for clay levigation at Petronas (L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) 4
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Although pottery making could have been achieved by relying on local clays exclusively, as in the case of P. Pappouras at Petronas who obtained all raw materials within a 10 min walking distance from his workshop, fellow potters deliberately made different choices. It remains uncertain whether this is, for example, related to the spectrum of (functional) vessels produced in separate workshops, requiring particular clays, or to the use of clay quarries located and exploited continuously within individual families of artisans. Either way, the evidence from Archangelos highlights that even within a single village, no standardisation in potting practices can be discerned.
various Rhodian clays through levigation. In 1928, when the Italians began to establish the I.C.A.R.O. ceramic factory in Rhodes, clays from the island were tested in order to evaluate if they can be utilised in the business. It included, among others, a clay sample from Archangelos. The report depicted recently by Ioannidis (2017: 32, Fig. 21) provides the test results of an almost brown clay defined by high plasticity, which is likely to be identified as “Kokkinochoma”. It naturally contains a high proportion of sand, making sieving necessary to remove coarse particles. Generally, its use cannot be recommended for the production of ceramic objects, as the finish would be complicated; therefore, the report concluded that this clay would be rather applicable for tile or brick production. Testimonies collected over the past decades in Archangelos indeed verify the use of red clay in its native state (or filtered only once) for brick-making (Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, 2009: 302–303). In the raw state, the sample of red clay (Fig. 4, left and Fig. 7c) provided by our potter is characterised by large (up to 2.2 mm) and very angular fragments of chert in high proportions in a bimodal grain size distribution. Subordinate are fragments of radiolarite, dark reddish mudstones and shales, serpentinite, quartzite and phyllite. Accessories of fine quartz, quartzite, sandstone, sparite, micas, plagioclase, amphibole and discrete volcanic rock fragments are evident. White clay is calcareous with natural fine inclusions, represented mainly by fine serpentinite. Other ingredients are quartz, micas and phyllite, micrite, sparite, calcite, chert, opaque minerals, clinopyroxenes and plagioclase (Fig. 4, right).
4.2. Clay raw materials and pottery-making recipes Considering the variability in clay raw materials used, we might assume that it was not aspired to follow a standard clay paste recipe. Every other year, owners of Papas Ceramic levigate the three clays in an appropriate installation adjacent to their family home, about 350 m from the location of their workshop and showroom. The installation, built from concrete, comprises a facility to mix and homogenise the lumpy clay, multiple channels for directing the water and clay suspension, and a catchment basin. The liquid clay suspension is then deposited on a specifically prepared rooftop of an outbuilding, where the clay can settle and surplus water evaporates, resulting in a plastic clay paste. Several tons of clay are produced in this specific way and used over the following two years. Similar installations are still preserved at Petronas (Fig. 3c–d), emphasising the necessity to process
Fig. 4. Microphotographs of Rhodian red, green and white clays fired at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C respectively. The petrographic composition of the clays in general, as well as the behaviour of the clays at different firing temperatures is illustrated (L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) 5
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Rock and mineral inclusions reflect the local geology defined by sedimentary rocks (chert, radiolarite, limestone, sandstone, shales) and greenish-grey marls. Serpentinite is related to ophiolite (Mutti et al., 1970). Red and white clays are exposed in various areas of Rhodes, with white clay dominating by far. The latter has been utilised in the production of the majority of Rhodian ceramics, including transport amphoras, and is the only clay studied archaeometrically to date (for example: Empereur and Picon, 1988; Whitbread, 1995: 53–67; Élaigne, 2012; Bezeczky, 2013: 41–50; Villing and Mommsen, 2017). The clay deposits relate to the Katavia Flysch (Lower Oligocene), Malona formation (Upper Liassic to Senonian) and Sgourou Formation (Upper Pliocene to Pleistocene). Most characteristic for green clay (Fig. 4, centre) is frequent micrite and a few inclusions of siltstone (up to 4.42 mm) with less chert, serpentinite, sparite and fine quartz. Traces of microfossils, lime- and sandstones, radiolarite, phyllite, shale, amphibole, marble and volcanic rock fragments complement the range of non-plastic clay paste constituents. This clay relates to the so-called Archipoli flysch (Paleocene – Lower Eocene) – a greyish marl with inclusions of microfossils (Mutti et al., 1970). There exists a certain compositional variability in regard to the individual types of clay presented. White clay is distributed all-over the island and from a petrographic view the variation between individual regions (e.g. Rhodes and Archangelos) or sites concerns primarily the abundance and size of the inclusions rather than the spectrum of mineral- and rock constituents (Betina and Skaltsa, 2019). For provenance
determination, chemical analyses will be most conclusive. Petrographic results obtained from selected clay samples highlight a considerably stronger heterogeneity in the character of red clays from Rhodes. Around the Kastro of Archangelos, Sira and Kerami it has been noted that chert and radiolarite inclusions dominate the natural clay; in the area of Petronas, however, additional fragments of micritic limestone are present. A clay sample from Rhodes Town attests as well to the sporadic occurrence of micritic limestone in Rhodian red clays. As only a single sample of green clay has been analysed to date, no further assessment on the possible degree of variability of this clay sediment can be provided. Extensive clay sampling over the entire island would be necessary in order to establish secure compositional reference groups and as such distinguishing features of Rhodian clays. 4.3. Firing properties of Rhodian clays The behaviour of the three raw clays from Papas Ceramic had been examined through re-firing experiments and thin-section petrography. It was attempted to review if in fact clays that have been neither levigated nor mixed would disintegrate and thus be inappropriate for potting. Psaropoulou (1986: 26) noted that green clay used in its pure state would make a pot brittle. At the same time, the re-firing experiment allowed to monitor for temperature-related changes at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C to mineral and rock inclusions, as well as trace for effects on the optical activity, colour and microstructure of the clays (Figs. 4 and 5).
Fig. 5. Experimental briquettes of Rhodian red, green and white clays fired at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C respectively (J. Gait and L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) 6
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Here, a generic overview of the properties of all three clays as observed on the macroscopic and microscopic level will be given. Visually, the colour of the clay briquette made of red clay turns from dark-reddish orange to dark reddish-brown as the temperature increases. It is intact at 700 °C but develops fissures at 950 °C, which extend at 1050 °C and would ultimately lead to complete deterioration; it becomes apparent that this is caused by cracks emerging around the angular chert inclusions starting at 700 °C and intensifying considerably thereafter. Green clay is characterised by a pale yellowish-pinkish to light
orange pink colour when fired in the set range of temperatures. The breakage of the clay briquette at 900 °C is not due to the general instability of the paste, as the thin-sections confirm; only minor microfissures emerge around the non-plastic inclusions. Rather, the accidental presence of large limestone inclusions causing spalling promotes the deterioration of the briquette; the same applies to the cracking of the briquette formed of white clay at 900 °C. White clay is defined by a visually pale pinkish colour when fired at 700 °C and exhibits a white to light yellowish surface when exposed to higher temperatures.
Fig. 6. Morphology and thin-sections of defect modern ceramics from the Papas Ceramic workshop. a) Cooking pot; b) juglet; c) insert of a storage canister for olives (L. Betina and G. Kasiotis, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). 7
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Fig. 7. Microphotographs of Hellenistic cooking ware compared to sampled clay raw materials. a) Chytra, sample Π33364; b) cooking ware lid, sample Π33471; c) sample of red clay provided by potters of Papas Ceramic; d) geological sample from Sira, sample SI1 (L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
Notable are the different stages and degrees of vitrification of the three clays analysed as estimated in thin-section, with red clay vitrifying at around 700 °C, white clay at 900 °C and green clay below 1050 °C. In order to verify or correct these preliminary results, the micromorphology of the re-fired clay samples needs to be investigated with Scanning Electron Microscopy in the future. Changes in the colour and optical properties of mineral and rock inclusions concern primarily serpentinite (turning from a yellowishorange colour to dark brown), micrite, muscovite micas and phyllite (Fig. 4). Apart from red clay, which, due to the character of clay paste ingredients, starts to disorientate above 700 °C, the other analysed Rhodian clays are stable at all the tested temperatures, provided that large limestone inclusions that would cause flaking of the surface are absent.
chert is still bimodal, making clay manipulation less obvious. Naturally, the red clay is dominated by non-plastic inclusions and a lower percentage of clay minerals (see Fig. 7c). Due to the removal of parts of the coarse inclusions and the addition of green and white clays, the volume of clay groundmass has been multiplied. Compositionally, the contribution of particularly white clays to the paste is understandable by increased amounts of fine serpentinite and phyllite. As a response to the high silica content of the clay (chert), the vessels are durable and efficient for cooking purposes and exposure to repeated heating. A different clay mixture has been applied for other items of everyday use: thin-section analysis of a broken juglet (Fig. 6b) and an insert of a storage canister for olives (Fig. 6c) provided by the potters attest to the use of red clay as a sole colouring agent without affecting the physical properties of the vessels. For both samples, the clay paste is fine with inclusions of quartz, serpentinite, micrite, opaque minerals, micas, chert, quartzite, sandstone, amphiboles and volcanic rock fragments. The dominance of white and green clay in this clay mixture is apparent.
4.4. Preparing the paste After levigation, the potters of Papas Ceramic blend the three clays in varying proportions based on the intended vessel function. In all instances green clay is always used as the base ingredient, while white clay is solely added to increase the volume of the clay mass. Red clay, in contrast, is responsible for providing shades of pinkish to reddish colour to the finished pot for aesthetic reasons. Significant amounts of red clay have been used in the production of contemporaneous cooking pots fabricated at Papas Ceramic (Fig. 6a). Petrographic analysis reveals that, as an effect of levigation, larger chert inclusions have been removed from the clay (max. 0.8 mm compared to max. 2.2 mm before levigation) and as such the overall quantity of chert present reduced. Yet, the grain size distribution of
4.5. Comparing ancient and modern potting practices Being aware of the choices made by contemporary potters, it is most interesting to elucidate how ancient craftspeople tackled the challenges connected to each of the Rhodian clay pastes as described above. Samples of a representative number of domestic pottery dating to the Hellenistic period has been analysed in thin-section; however, only a short summary of the petrographic results will be provided here. White and red clays have been predominantly used in Rhodian pottery production. Similarly, as recorded in today's Archangelos, ancient potters preferred the visually dark red clay paste (“Kokkinochoma”) for the 8
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fabrication of cooking ware; even more, cooking vessels appear exclusively in this paste. Petrographic analyses demonstrate that the clay has been used in its raw state without any evidence of clay manipulation (Fig. 7a–b) which contrasts modern practices. Variation in the character of inclusions and distribution of non-plastic particles between the individual samples is due to clay extraction at different sites, best exemplified by the clay obtained from the potters in Archangelos (Fig. 7c) and a clay sample taken in the area of Kerami (Fig. 7d). The latter is defined by smaller quantities and sizes of chert inclusions, as well as a higher amount of clay minerals/clay groundmass compared to the former. Based on the present evidence, it appears that the successful utilisation of raw clay in antiquity has been achieved by selecting naturally more fine-grained clays (compare Fig. 7a–b) and exposing them to firing at low temperatures instead of refining them in a time-consuming manner: Based on the optical activity of the clay matrices and the bright yellowish-orange colour of serpentinite inclusions in the cooking ware samples, firing at around 700–750 °C can be estimated. The most extensively used clay in ancient Rhodian ceramic manufacture is white clay. Archaeometric analyses again confirmed use in its natural state. In a recent paper, we stressed the multi-functionality of this clay, as any kind of tableware, domestic pottery and other ceramic objects have been formed of it (Betina and Skaltsa, 2019); an exception is cooking ware. The utilisation of white clay in its natural state (still, the removal of large inclusions by hand cannot be excluded) once more contradicts modern pottery practices completely refusing its use alone due to a high risk of failure. Indeed, the Hellenistic vessels do often show spalling or flaking on their surfaces, but were serviceable for their intended function. Evidence for the mixing or sole use of green clay in ancient Rhodian pottery production is unknown until now.
workshop units organised independently? It is noteworthy that three of the workshops visited around Archangelos are operated by the members of one extended family (the Giasiranis family and relatives), namely Spathas Ceramic, Giasiranis Ceramic and Papas Ceramic. However, only Papas Ceramic makes use of Rhodian clays. By interviewing the potters it was shown that Spathas Ceramic used to employ Rhodian clays in the past, and Giasiranis Ceramic would occasionally receive levigated clays from the potters at Papas Ceramic, but generally work with imported clays. This incoherence in contemporaneous family-based potting businesses might make one reconsider common principles quoted in scholarship. Further diachronic investigation of pottery production in Rhodes under consideration of multiple ceramic landscapes and geological conditions will allow researchers to better characterise this Rhodian craft branch and enable them to detect and explain regionally and chronologically determined disparities. Acknowledgements This research has been carried out in the frame of “The Rhodes Centennial Project” (Saxo Institute/University of Copenhagen and Ephorate of Antiquities of the Dodecanese), funded by the Carlsberg Foundation. The author would like to thank all team members and collaborators for their support and valuable help. Additional financial support has been provided by the Elisabeth Munksgaard Fonden. The Ephorate of Antiquities of the Dodecanese and Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports kindly granted permission for the sampling of the archaeological ceramics, while the permit for geological fieldwork has been issued by the Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration. E. Kaninia thankfully provided the two ceramics from Pappouras workshop depicted in Fig. 2. Many thanks to the Fitch laboratory/British School at Athens for the preparation of the thin-sections and the possibility to use the laboratory infrastructure for petrographic analysis. This paper would not have been possible without the potters of the visited ceramic workshops in Rhodes, giving valuable insights into their field. The author wishes to thank the reviewers of the paper for their valuable comments.
5. Conclusion Combining ethnographic, ethno-archaeometric and archaeometric approaches to modern and ancient ceramic material remains on the Aegean island of Rhodes, various concepts in the preparation of native clays for potting purposes have been revealed. While contemporary and past potters had access to and made use of the same clays, different requirements for the clay paste and ultimately the finished product led to divergent technological choices. Sustainability and economic success were unquestionably crucial for businesses at any time, achieved by minimising the risk of failure during the production process. In order to eliminate undesired properties of the native Rhodian clays, today's craftspeople levigate the sediments in a laborious way to remove coarse inclusions that could cause damage to the pots during firing. Furthermore, mixing of (at least) three clays in varying proportions became habitual. This process, or the use of imported clays as noted for most of the modern Rhodian ceramic workshops, guarantees the manufacture of an aesthetically pleasing and saleable produce. Ancient craftspeople shaped pots from unprocessed raw clays and counteracted damage of the vessels by controlling the firing temperature. Firing at around 700 °C lowered the risk of breakage given by the present coarse non-plastic inclusions, for example in the case of cooking pots made from red clay. Spalling and chipping of the ceramics' surfaces (i.e. in the case of vessels made from white clay) seems to have been tolerated and did not abstain from selling such vessels, as excavated examples verify. The production seems to have been rapid and thus the production rate high, balancing out the increased risk of failure. In-depth knowledge of material properties is evident when comparing the character of the clays and function of the manufactured vessels in modern days and in the past (Sillar and Tite, 2000; Hein et al., 2008; Müller et al., 2010; De Bonis et al., 2014; Roux, 2019: 16–32), most strikingly attested in cooking ware production. A central research issue in ceramic ethnoarchaeology has always been the organisation of production: is pottery manufacture a family affair where people interact and share their knowledge, or are different
References Arnold, D.E., 2017. Raw material selection, landscape, engagement, and paste recipes: Insights from ethnoarchaeology. In: Burnez-Lanotte, L. (Ed.), Matières à Penser: Raw Materials Acquisition and Processing in Early Neolithic Pottery Productions. Proceedings of the Workshop of Namur (Belgium), 29 and 30 May 2015. Société Préhistorique Française, Paris, pp. 15–27. Betina, L., Skaltsa, S., 2019. Clays, amphoras and workshop locations of ancient Rhodes. In: Proceedings of the Conference “Amphoras in Need of Archaeology and Archaeometry”. Humboldt University Berlin (6-7 July 2018, in press). Bezeczky, T., 2013. The Amphorae of Roman Ephesos, Forschungen in Ephesos XV/1, Wien. Buxeda i Garrigós, J., Cau Ontiveros, M.A., Kilikoglou, V., 2003. Chemical variability in clays and pottery from a traditional cooking pot production village: testing assumptions in Pereruela. Archaeometry 45 (1), 1–17. Cantin, M., Mayor, A., 2018. Ethno-archaeometry in eastern Senegal: the connections between raw materials and finished ceramic products. J. Archaeolog. Sci. Rep. 21, 1181–1190. Cau Ontiveros, M., Montana, G., Tsantini, E., Randazzo, L., 2015. Ceramic ethnoarchaeometry in Western Sardinia: production of cooking ware at Pabillonis. Archaeometry 57 (3), 453–475. De Bonis, A., Cultrone, G., Grifa, C., Langella, A., Morra, V., 2014. Clays from the Bay of Naples (Italy): new insight on ancient and traditional ceramics. J. Eur. Ceram. Soc. 34, 3229–3244. Diakosavvas, G.A., 2019. I.C.A.R.O – ΙΚΑΡΟΣ. 60 χρόνια Καλλιτεχνικής Αγγειοπλαστικής Ροδιοανατολικής Τέχνης. Ιστορία, έργα, βιωματικές αναφορές των δημιουργών του, Ρόδος. Dreliossi-Herakleidou, A., Betina, L., 2019. Preliminary report on the excavation at the Papachristodoulou-Karika plot in Rhodes. In: ProcDanInstAth IX, pp. 197–205. Élaigne, S., 2012. La vaisselle fine de l'habitat alexandrin: Contribution à la connaissance de la mobilité des techniques et des produits céramiques en Méditerranée du IIe siècle avant J-C à l'époque claudienne, (Études alexandrines 21), Cairo. Empereur, J.-Y., Picon, M., 1986. A la recherché des fours d’amphores. In: Empereur, J.Y., Garlan, Y. (Eds.), Recherches sur les amphores grecques, pp. 103–126 BCH suppl. 13. Empereur, J.-Y., Picon, M., 1988. The production of Aegean amphorae: field and laboratory studies. In: Jones, R.E., Catling, H.W. (Eds.), New Aspects of Archaeological
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L. Betina Science in Greece: Proceedings of a Meeting Held at the British School at Athens, January 1987, (Fitch Laboratory Occasional Paper 3), Athens, pp. 33–38. Finkielsztejn, G., 2001. Chronologie détailée et révisée des éponymes amphoriques rhodiens, de 270 á 108 av. J.-C. environ, (BARIntSer 990), Oxford. Fowler, K.D., Middleton, E., Fayek, M., 2019. The human element: discerning the effects of potter’s behaviour on the chemical composition of ceramics. Archaeol. Anthrop. Sci. 11, 171–198. Gabrielsen, V., 1997. The Naval Aristocracy of Hellenistic Rhodes, (Studies in Hellenistic Civilization VI). Aarhus. Gouin, P., Vogt, C., 2002. Les pithoi des Margaritès (Crète). Données techniques et apercu historique. Techniques & Culture. 38. pp. 1–20. Hampe, R., Winter, A., 1965. Bei Töpfern und Zieglern in Süditalien, Sizilien und Griechenland. Mainz. Hein, A., Day, P.M., Quinn, P.S., Kilikoglou, V., 2004. The geochemical diversity of Neogene clay deposits in Crete and its implications for provenance studies of Minoan pottery. Archaeometry 46 (3), 357–384. Hein, A., Müller, N.S., Kilikoglou, V., Day, P.M., 2008. Thermal conductivity of archaeological ceramics: the effect of inclusions, porosity and firing temperature. Thermochim. Acta 480, 35–42. Ioannidis, Y., 2017. ICARO-IKAPOΣ. The Pottery Factory of Rhodes. pp. 1928–1988 (Athens). Ionas, I., 2000. Traditional Pottery and Potters in Cyprus. The Disappearance of an Ancient Craft Industry in the 19th and 20th Centuries. Birmingham Byzantine and Ottoman Monographs 6 (Aldershot–Burlington). Jones, R.E., 1986. Greek and Cypriot Pottery: A Review of Scientific Studies. (Fitch Laboratory occasional paper 1) London). Kiriatzi, E., Georgakopoulou, M., Pentedeka, A., 2011. Section C. Pottery production and importation at Bronze Age Kolonna: the ceramic fabrics and the island’s landscape. In: Gauss, W., Kiriatzi, E. (Eds.), Pottery Production and Supply at Bronze Age Kolonna, Aegina: An Integrated Archaeological and Scientific Study of a Ceramic Landscape, (Ägina-Kolonna Bd. 5, Contributions to the Chronology of the Eastern Mediterranean Vol. 27, Denkschriften der Gesamtakademie Bd. 65), Vienna, pp. 69–156. Korre-Zografou, K., 1995. Tα κεραμικά του Ελλινικού χώρου. Aθήνα. Kyriakopoulos, Y., 2015. Aegean cooking-pots in the modern era (1700–1950). In: Spataro, M., Villing, A. (Eds.), Ceramics, Cuisine and Culture: The Archaeology and Science of Kitchen Pottery in the Ancient Mediterranean World, Oxford –
Philadelphia, pp. 252–268. Kyriazopoulou, V.D., 1984. Ελληνικά παραδοσιακά κεραμικά. (Aθήνα). Lawall, M.L., 2011. Early Hellenistic Amphoras from two closed contexts: Kerynia shipwreck and Ephesos well LB. In: Drougou, S. (Ed.), Z’ Επιστημονική Συνάντηση για την ελληνιστική κεραμική, Αιγίο, 4–9 Απριλίου 2005, pp. 673–682 Αθήνα. London, G., 1989. Past present. The village potters of Cyprus. Biblic. Archaeol. 52 (4), 219–229. Lund, J. 2011. Rhodian Transport Amphorae as a source for economic ebbs and flows in the Eastern Mediterranean in the Second Century BC, in: Z. Archibald – J. K. Davies – V. Gabrielsen (eds.), The Economies of Hellenistic Societies, Third to First Centuries BC, Oxford, pp. 280–295. Michelaki, K., Braun, G.V., Hancock, R.G.V., 2015. Local clay sources as histories of human-landscape interactions: a ceramic taskscape perspective. J. Archaeol. Method Th. 22 (3), 783–827. Müller, N.S., Kilikoglou, V., Day, P.M., Vekinis, G., 2010. The influence of temper shape on the mechanical properties of archaeological ceramics. J. Eur. Ceram. Soc. 30, 2457–2465. Mutti, E., Orombelli, G., Pozzi, R., 1970. Geological Studies on the Dodecanese Islands (Aegean Sea). IX. Geological Map of the Island of Rhodes (Greece). Explanatory Notes. (Athens). Papachristodoulou, I.C., 1989. Οι αρχαίοι Ροδιακοί δημοί. In: Ίστορική Έπισκόπηση - Ή Ίαλυσία. Αθήνα. Papadopoulos, S., 1999. Παραδοσιακά αγγειοπλαστεία της Θάσου. (Αθήνα). Psaropoulou, B., 1986. Last Potters of the East Aegean. (Nauplion). Roux, V., 2019. Ceramics and Society: A Technological Approach to Archaeological Assemblages. (Cham). Sillar, B., Tite, M.S., 2000. The challenge of “technological choices” for materials science approaches in archaeology. Archaeometry 42 (1), 2–20. Stark, M.T., 2003. Current issues in ceramic ethnoarchaeology. J. Archaeol. Res. 11 (3), 193–242. Villing, A., Mommsen, H., 2017. Rhodes and Kos: East Dorian pottery production of the Archaic period. BSA 112, 99–154. Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, M., 2009. Παραδοσιακή Κεραμική της Νεότερης Ελλάδας. (Αθήνα). Whitbread, I.K., 1995. Greek Transport Amphorae. A Petrological and Archaeological Study. (Fitch Laboratory Occasional Paper 4), Athens).
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Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports journal homepage: www.elsevier.com/locate/jasrep
Contemporary pottery-making in Rhodes: Approaching ancient through modern craft traditions
T
Lisa Betina Saxo Institute, University of Copenhagen, Karen Blixens Plads 8, 2300 Copenhagen, Denmark
ARTICLE INFO
ABSTRACT
Keywords: Rhodes Ceramic workshops Raw material selectivity Clay manipulation Firing temperature Thin-section petrography Reference data
Petrographic analyses of ceramics from ethnographic and archaeological contexts on the Aegean island of Rhodes (Dodecanese, Greece) reveal diverse strategies in clay preparation and production sequences, although the same basic raw materials have been utilised. The aim of this study is to illuminate the technological choices made by contemporary and ancient potters (raw material selection, clay preparation, firing) based on the composition of the raw clays deposited on the island. Site-specific explanation models for potting behaviour will be formulated and discussed in terms of functional and socio-economic parameters. For the first time, a comprehensive insight into Rhodian pottery manufacturing will be given, providing valuable clay and ceramic reference data for future interdisciplinary studies.
1. Introduction Detailed knowledge of human-environment interactions in ancient and contemporary ceramic crafts is of particular relevance when trying to assess criteria of clay selectivity and the organisation of potting communities in demarcated regions. A key component of ceramic ethnoarchaeology is the investigation of interdependence between raw materials, possible modifications the clays have been subjected to (tempering, levigation, clay mixing) and the performance properties of the finished ceramic products (Stark, 2003). Questions related to ceramic technology and provenance are most commonly explored by scholarship; for instance, the degree of compositional variability within clay deposits (Hein et al., 2004) or vessels manufactured in individual workshops or villages is being measured, or activity zones in which potters sourced the reconstructed clays (Cau Ontiveros et al., 2015; Michelaki et al., 2015; Arnold, 2017; Fowler et al., 2019). The understanding of intentional choices in ceramic fabrication under known parameters is valuable for the interpretation of archaeological material remains. During the last two decades, natural-scientific analyses have increasingly been integrated into ethnoarchaeological research, leading to the creation of the term “ethnoarchaeometry” (Buxeda i Garrigós et al., 2003; Cantin and Mayor, 2018). By definition, ceramic ethnoarchaeometry is the application of scientific methods to contemporary materials in order to support the solution of archaeological issues. The island of Rhodes (Dodecanese, Greece) has favourable conditions that allow the comparison of petrographic results obtained from
the analysis of clay raw materials, modern ceramic samples provided by potters in Archangelos (central eastern Rhodes) and Hellenistic pottery wares from Rhodes Town. This is a unique opportunity to learn how native Rhodian clays are selected and processed by contemporary craftspeople, and the reasons for doing so; ancient potters interacted in the same environmental conditions as present-day craftspeople, having access to the same basic raw materials. The aim of this paper is to investigate if comparable clay selection and preparation strategies in pottery production can be detected in ethnoarchaeological and archaeological records in Rhodes. For this, I consider primarily the shape and function of the finished ceramic vessels. Is clay manipulation evident in the modern or ancient datasets, and if so, is this particular technological choice related the prevailing sociocultural and economic context? Roughly 2000 years separate both sets of ceramic samples and, therefore, time-related factors (e.g. changes in potting traditions) but also varied external influences imposed by changing environmental conditions need to be taken into account. How do Rhodian clays behave when fired at different temperatures and what effect does their performance have on the finished vessels? 2. Modern and ancient ceramic manufacture in Rhodes: the effects of industrialisation Unlike regions considered remote and unaffected by modern technologies, for example South America or the African subcontinent, ceramic production in present-day Rhodes has been considerably affected by industrialisation. The same applies to several other Greek
E-mail address: [email protected]. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jasrep.2019.102003 Received 6 June 2019; Received in revised form 21 August 2019; Accepted 3 September 2019 2352-409X/ © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
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islands, but due to their limited surface area, confined space and the absence of commercial exploitation of clays, islands — such as Sifnos, Thasos, Aegina or Cyprus — have received considerable scholarly attention in ethnoarchaeological research during recent decades (London, 1989; Papadopoulos, 1999; Ionas, 2000; Kiriatzi et al., 2011; Kyriakopoulos, 2015). Traditional handcrafts occasionally survived in a few regions of considerably more industrialised islands, such as Crete (Gouin and Vogt, 2002). Ceramic production has been an indispensable element of Rhodes' economy since the early Hellenistic period, although it is mainly subsidiary in nature, providing receptacles for the transportation of wine (Gabrielsen, 1997: 64–71; Finkielsztejn, 2001; Lawall, 2011). In the 20th century, pottery produced on Rhodes in the Italian factory I.C.A.R.O. (later under Greek ownership: IKAROS), which stylistically resembled the well-known Iznik ceramics, was in high demand, resulting in an economic boom and wide dissemination (Ioannidis, 2017; Diakosavvas, 2019). Apart from long-distance trade, self-sustainable ceramic production was of immense significance for regional supply networks on the island. Particularly in the Hellenistic period, multiple workshop remains and associated finds document a flourishment of ceramic manufacture in different parts of the island (Empereur and Picon, 1986: 115; Lund, 2011: 283), fabricating a diverse range of ceramic shapes and wares. So far, the majority of these (potential) production sites has only been mentioned briefly in archaeological reports (for a summary of the evidence: Betina and Skaltsa, 2019). Comprehensive clay sampling and the formation of ceramic reference groups in multiple locations in Rhodes will allow for a delineation of social and commercial interrelationships in a regional and supra-regional perspective. A substantive contribution to this issue is currently being made in the frame of “The Rhodes Centennial Project”, a collaboration of the Saxo Institute/University of Copenhagen and the Ephorate of Antiquities of the Dodecanese. Archaeological and archaeometric analyses of ceramics excavated at the Papachristodoulou-Karika plot in Rhodes Town attest to the predominant use of white (“Aspropilos”) and red (“Kokkinochoma”) clays in Rhodian ceramic manufacture (Betina and Skaltsa, 2019; Dreliossi-Herakleidou and Betina, 2019). In the 19th and 20th century, the village of Archangelos at the central Eastern coastline of Rhodes and the adjacent settlement of Stegna (Fig. 1) developed into a potting centre with up to 50 active potters in its core period before World War II (Jones, 1986: 876; Papachristodoulou, 1989: 141). As such, the village and its surroundings were the main supplier of fired clay objects for the Rhodian
population. Increased interest in traditional workmanship in the Aegean led to the documentation of workshop structures and the pottery repertoire of these established businesses, just as it revealed the identities of the most successful potters operating in the region (Hampe and Winter, 1965: 154–157; Kyriazopoulou, 1984: 45–48; Psaropoulou, 1986: 56–59; Jones, 1986; Korre-Zografou, 1995: 292–300; Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, 2009: 317). These reports provide essential insights into paste preparation techniques employed in the individual workshops and allow researchers to create a timeline demonstrating periods of economic upturn and decline based on the number of functioning businesses. Scattered remains of ceramic wasters, moulds, heaps of pottery sherds and built installations facilitating treatment (water systems) of clays and firing operations (kiln structures) appear most concentrated in the area of Petronas. 3. Material and methods 3.1. Potters of Archangelos: the initial situation Today, almost all of the traditional pottery workshops around Archangelos are abandoned (e.g. the workshop of P. Pappouras at Petronas); existing workshops adapted to a different client base by specialising mainly on souvenirs rather than on functional pottery for daily use (Fig. 2). The most recent descriptions of contemporary pottery workshops in the region date back to the 1990s (Korre-Zografou, 1995). When initiating the study presented here in spring 2017, we did not know whether craftspeople still continue to use native clays for potting purposes as they did before. For this reason, nine pottery workshops located between Kolymbia and Masari along the Greek National Road 95 (Rhodes-Lindos) were visited in June 2017 (Fig. 1). The overall concept was to determine the extent of use of Rhodian clays in modernday pottery production and to learn the reasons for these particular choices, achieved by interviewing the craftspeople. Where applicable, samples of clays provided by the potters and samples of selected finished ceramic products have been collected; three clay samples and three modern ceramic fragments have been included in the study. A geological survey conducted in March 2018 in the environs of Archangelos aimed at understanding the diversity of clays characterising the landscape – resources that are freely available to the local potters. It was Jones (1986: 297) who first developed an interest for the naturalscientific analysis of clays and pottery from modern ceramic ateliers in Archangelos; although samples have been taken, the results remained unpublished.
Fig. 1. Map of Rhodes indicating the location of Archangelos and relevant site names. Numbers 1–9 refer to the ceramic workshops visited: (1) Artistic Village, (2) Giannis Ceramic, (3) Kostas Ceramic, (4) Michail Workshop, (5) Spathas Ceramic, (6) Bonis Ceramic, (7) Savvas Ceramic, (8) Giasiranis Ceramic, (9) Papas Ceramic. (Map adapted from StepMap.) 2
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Fig. 2. Modern ceramics produced around Archangelos. a–c) Cooking vessels and large plates, glazed and painted plates, and signature anthropomorphic figurines at Papas Ceramic workshop; d–e) traditional ceramics from the workshop of P. Pappouras (L. Betina and G. Kasiotis, © The Rhodes Centennial Project).
raw materials and archaeological ceramics are currently under way and will be presented separately. A first screening of clays from Archangelos and Rhodes Town by petrographic analysis emphasised a relative compositional homogeneity for each kind of clay (white and red clay respectively) thoughout both study regions (Archangelos and Rhodes Town); clay groundmasses and the suite of mineral and rock inclusions are comparable, with only minor discrepancies – these, however, would not influence the physical properties of the clays. Therefore, it is legitimate to include Hellenistic ceramics excavated at the PapachristodoulouKarika plot in Rhodes Town in the study and screen for common or divergent technological practices, assessing the value of modern for the interpretation of ancient potting traditions.
3.2. Fieldwork and laboratory analyses The radius of resource areas surveyed has been set to 4 km, starting from the centre of Archangelos. Particular focus was placed on areas defined by massive clay outcrops (Tsambika, north of Archangelos), spots in close proximity to abandoned workshop units (Petronas), and locations where field names known to the locals indicate the occurrence of sediments appropriate for potting (Kerami, southeast of Archangelos). Clay samples have been taken, supplemented by rock and sand samples, and the sample locations have been geo-referenced and photographically documented. This paper does not attempt to introduce the full range of geological samples studied, as reference will only be given to specimens relevant to the current research questions. The clays obtained were soaked in water, shaped into briquettes and fired in an electrical furnace for 1 h at a maximum temperature of 750 °C. In addition, the three clays provided by a potter in Archangelos (“Papas Ceramic”) have been fired at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C each in order to evaluate the behaviour of the clays at different temperatures, both visually and in terms of micro-structural changes. Subsequently, thin-sections have been prepared and studied with a Zeiss Axioskop 40 polarising microscope; furthermore, three modern ceramic samples have been analysed in thin-section. Thin-section petrography was chosen as scientific technique it is the most reliable analytical method to identify clay manipulation (Fowler et al., 2019). Diagnostic characteristics of clay manipulation are: the quantities, coarseness, degree of angularity or grain size distribution of non-plastic inclusions, as well as colour and texture of the clay groundmass. Chemical analyses of clay
4. Results and discussion 4.1. Assessment and decision making: practicabilities of imported versus Rhodian clays Only one of the nine pottery workshops visited utilises Rhodian clays in its business, and that is “Papas Ceramic” (Fig. 1, no. 9). The eight remaining workshops (Fig. 1, nos. 1–8) exclusively import clays from Crete (red clays) and Thessaloniki or Italy (white clays). As reason for the preference of imported over Rhodian clays, potters continuously refer to the great efforts needed to make the native clays workable. Clays from Rhodes require a refinement by levigation to remove natural coarse inclusions. Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou (2009: 302) cites that 3
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Table 1 Overview of clays processed in individual workshops around Archangelos as extracted from published literature. Potter
Workshop location
No. of clays
Types of clays and mining locations
Reference
N. Sakkelaris P. Pappouras N. Giasiranis Various
Stegna Petronas Archangelos Archangelos region
3 5 3 5
Psaropoulou, 1986: 26 Jones, 1986: 296 Korre-Zografou, 1995: 297 Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, 2009: 303
Papas Ceramic
Archangelos
3
Green clay (Archipoli); dark grey clay (Petronas); dark red clay (Ag. Theodoros) Clays of different colour and texture (Petronas); red clay (Petronas) Dark yellow clay (Archipoli); grey clay (Petronas); dark red clay (Ag. Theodoros) Melegkas, chostis, patelia (green clay), red clay, black (grey) clay (Archangelos and Petronas) Green clay (Archipoli); white clay (Tsambika); dark red clay (Kastro of Archangelos)
the clays processed in Archangelos had to pass through three filters in order to provide the fineness needed for wheel-throwing. Another factor directly related to this issue is the high risk of failure of the vessels during the firing process, induced by the remaining rock fragments still present in the clay paste after levigation. Spalling and ultimately breakage of the pots could result in a considerable rate of rejection; the majority of interviewed potters are certain that they would not profit from the use of native Rhodian clays. Commercial industrial facilities that could provide refined and processed instant clays appropriate for immediate potting, like for instance on Crete, do not exist on Rhodes. Papas Ceramic, specialising in ceramic manufacture with traditional raw materials, was investigated in more detail. The owners make use of three clays: white, red and green. Based on the potters' statements, white clay (“Aspropilos”) is mined in the area of Tsambika and red clay (“Kokkinochoma”) is locally sourced behind the Kastro of Archangelos, southeast of the modern residential zone. The green clay (“Prasinopilos”) is a mixture of two sediments extracted in the vicinity of Archipoli, 7 km linear distance northwest of Archangelos (Fig. 1). A
pattern of local and distant clay sources being exploited does emerge. Obviously, these three clays best meet the demands of the potters, but can the transportation of clays from afar also – at least partially – be considered a consequence of the unavailability and inappropriateness of further clays than the red clay in the local area of Archangelos? This question builds directly on research conducted by Michelaki et al. (2015), challenging to find an explanation not only for the use of specific clays, but also for the disregard of others. Ethnographic research performed in the past in Archangelos demonstrates certain variability in clay selection (Table 1), with three to five different clays being processed by individual potters. Moreover, the clay extraction sites are, to a certain extent, variable: red clay has always been sourced locally, either in Ag. Theodoros located ca. 2 km south of Archangelos (Rhodes-Lindos highway), in the Petronas area or around the Kastro of Archangelos. There is an evident tradition to supply green and yellow clays from the Archipoli region. Grey clays have been obtained from Petronas, but in the case of Papas Ceramic they have been replaced by the use of white clay from Tsambika (Fig. 3a–b).
Fig. 3. Clay deposits and installations for clay preparation. a) View of the Tsambika hill with extensive resources of white clay; b) red clay deposited in the area of Sira, southeast of Archangelos; c) site location of Petronas with remains of white, red and grey sediments visible; d) abandoned facility for clay levigation at Petronas (L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) 4
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Although pottery making could have been achieved by relying on local clays exclusively, as in the case of P. Pappouras at Petronas who obtained all raw materials within a 10 min walking distance from his workshop, fellow potters deliberately made different choices. It remains uncertain whether this is, for example, related to the spectrum of (functional) vessels produced in separate workshops, requiring particular clays, or to the use of clay quarries located and exploited continuously within individual families of artisans. Either way, the evidence from Archangelos highlights that even within a single village, no standardisation in potting practices can be discerned.
various Rhodian clays through levigation. In 1928, when the Italians began to establish the I.C.A.R.O. ceramic factory in Rhodes, clays from the island were tested in order to evaluate if they can be utilised in the business. It included, among others, a clay sample from Archangelos. The report depicted recently by Ioannidis (2017: 32, Fig. 21) provides the test results of an almost brown clay defined by high plasticity, which is likely to be identified as “Kokkinochoma”. It naturally contains a high proportion of sand, making sieving necessary to remove coarse particles. Generally, its use cannot be recommended for the production of ceramic objects, as the finish would be complicated; therefore, the report concluded that this clay would be rather applicable for tile or brick production. Testimonies collected over the past decades in Archangelos indeed verify the use of red clay in its native state (or filtered only once) for brick-making (Voyatzoglou-Sakellaropoulou, 2009: 302–303). In the raw state, the sample of red clay (Fig. 4, left and Fig. 7c) provided by our potter is characterised by large (up to 2.2 mm) and very angular fragments of chert in high proportions in a bimodal grain size distribution. Subordinate are fragments of radiolarite, dark reddish mudstones and shales, serpentinite, quartzite and phyllite. Accessories of fine quartz, quartzite, sandstone, sparite, micas, plagioclase, amphibole and discrete volcanic rock fragments are evident. White clay is calcareous with natural fine inclusions, represented mainly by fine serpentinite. Other ingredients are quartz, micas and phyllite, micrite, sparite, calcite, chert, opaque minerals, clinopyroxenes and plagioclase (Fig. 4, right).
4.2. Clay raw materials and pottery-making recipes Considering the variability in clay raw materials used, we might assume that it was not aspired to follow a standard clay paste recipe. Every other year, owners of Papas Ceramic levigate the three clays in an appropriate installation adjacent to their family home, about 350 m from the location of their workshop and showroom. The installation, built from concrete, comprises a facility to mix and homogenise the lumpy clay, multiple channels for directing the water and clay suspension, and a catchment basin. The liquid clay suspension is then deposited on a specifically prepared rooftop of an outbuilding, where the clay can settle and surplus water evaporates, resulting in a plastic clay paste. Several tons of clay are produced in this specific way and used over the following two years. Similar installations are still preserved at Petronas (Fig. 3c–d), emphasising the necessity to process
Fig. 4. Microphotographs of Rhodian red, green and white clays fired at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C respectively. The petrographic composition of the clays in general, as well as the behaviour of the clays at different firing temperatures is illustrated (L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) 5
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Rock and mineral inclusions reflect the local geology defined by sedimentary rocks (chert, radiolarite, limestone, sandstone, shales) and greenish-grey marls. Serpentinite is related to ophiolite (Mutti et al., 1970). Red and white clays are exposed in various areas of Rhodes, with white clay dominating by far. The latter has been utilised in the production of the majority of Rhodian ceramics, including transport amphoras, and is the only clay studied archaeometrically to date (for example: Empereur and Picon, 1988; Whitbread, 1995: 53–67; Élaigne, 2012; Bezeczky, 2013: 41–50; Villing and Mommsen, 2017). The clay deposits relate to the Katavia Flysch (Lower Oligocene), Malona formation (Upper Liassic to Senonian) and Sgourou Formation (Upper Pliocene to Pleistocene). Most characteristic for green clay (Fig. 4, centre) is frequent micrite and a few inclusions of siltstone (up to 4.42 mm) with less chert, serpentinite, sparite and fine quartz. Traces of microfossils, lime- and sandstones, radiolarite, phyllite, shale, amphibole, marble and volcanic rock fragments complement the range of non-plastic clay paste constituents. This clay relates to the so-called Archipoli flysch (Paleocene – Lower Eocene) – a greyish marl with inclusions of microfossils (Mutti et al., 1970). There exists a certain compositional variability in regard to the individual types of clay presented. White clay is distributed all-over the island and from a petrographic view the variation between individual regions (e.g. Rhodes and Archangelos) or sites concerns primarily the abundance and size of the inclusions rather than the spectrum of mineral- and rock constituents (Betina and Skaltsa, 2019). For provenance
determination, chemical analyses will be most conclusive. Petrographic results obtained from selected clay samples highlight a considerably stronger heterogeneity in the character of red clays from Rhodes. Around the Kastro of Archangelos, Sira and Kerami it has been noted that chert and radiolarite inclusions dominate the natural clay; in the area of Petronas, however, additional fragments of micritic limestone are present. A clay sample from Rhodes Town attests as well to the sporadic occurrence of micritic limestone in Rhodian red clays. As only a single sample of green clay has been analysed to date, no further assessment on the possible degree of variability of this clay sediment can be provided. Extensive clay sampling over the entire island would be necessary in order to establish secure compositional reference groups and as such distinguishing features of Rhodian clays. 4.3. Firing properties of Rhodian clays The behaviour of the three raw clays from Papas Ceramic had been examined through re-firing experiments and thin-section petrography. It was attempted to review if in fact clays that have been neither levigated nor mixed would disintegrate and thus be inappropriate for potting. Psaropoulou (1986: 26) noted that green clay used in its pure state would make a pot brittle. At the same time, the re-firing experiment allowed to monitor for temperature-related changes at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C to mineral and rock inclusions, as well as trace for effects on the optical activity, colour and microstructure of the clays (Figs. 4 and 5).
Fig. 5. Experimental briquettes of Rhodian red, green and white clays fired at 700 °C, 900 °C and 1050 °C respectively (J. Gait and L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.) 6
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Here, a generic overview of the properties of all three clays as observed on the macroscopic and microscopic level will be given. Visually, the colour of the clay briquette made of red clay turns from dark-reddish orange to dark reddish-brown as the temperature increases. It is intact at 700 °C but develops fissures at 950 °C, which extend at 1050 °C and would ultimately lead to complete deterioration; it becomes apparent that this is caused by cracks emerging around the angular chert inclusions starting at 700 °C and intensifying considerably thereafter. Green clay is characterised by a pale yellowish-pinkish to light
orange pink colour when fired in the set range of temperatures. The breakage of the clay briquette at 900 °C is not due to the general instability of the paste, as the thin-sections confirm; only minor microfissures emerge around the non-plastic inclusions. Rather, the accidental presence of large limestone inclusions causing spalling promotes the deterioration of the briquette; the same applies to the cracking of the briquette formed of white clay at 900 °C. White clay is defined by a visually pale pinkish colour when fired at 700 °C and exhibits a white to light yellowish surface when exposed to higher temperatures.
Fig. 6. Morphology and thin-sections of defect modern ceramics from the Papas Ceramic workshop. a) Cooking pot; b) juglet; c) insert of a storage canister for olives (L. Betina and G. Kasiotis, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). 7
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Fig. 7. Microphotographs of Hellenistic cooking ware compared to sampled clay raw materials. a) Chytra, sample Π33364; b) cooking ware lid, sample Π33471; c) sample of red clay provided by potters of Papas Ceramic; d) geological sample from Sira, sample SI1 (L. Betina, © The Rhodes Centennial Project). (For interpretation of the references to colour in this figure legend, the reader is referred to the web version of this article.)
Notable are the different stages and degrees of vitrification of the three clays analysed as estimated in thin-section, with red clay vitrifying at around 700 °C, white clay at 900 °C and green clay below 1050 °C. In order to verify or correct these preliminary results, the micromorphology of the re-fired clay samples needs to be investigated with Scanning Electron Microscopy in the future. Changes in the colour and optical properties of mineral and rock inclusions concern primarily serpentinite (turning from a yellowishorange colour to dark brown), micrite, muscovite micas and phyllite (Fig. 4). Apart from red clay, which, due to the character of clay paste ingredients, starts to disorientate above 700 °C, the other analysed Rhodian clays are stable at all the tested temperatures, provided that large limestone inclusions that would cause flaking of the surface are absent.
chert is still bimodal, making clay manipulation less obvious. Naturally, the red clay is dominated by non-plastic inclusions and a lower percentage of clay minerals (see Fig. 7c). Due to the removal of parts of the coarse inclusions and the addition of green and white clays, the volume of clay groundmass has been multiplied. Compositionally, the contribution of particularly white clays to the paste is understandable by increased amounts of fine serpentinite and phyllite. As a response to the high silica content of the clay (chert), the vessels are durable and efficient for cooking purposes and exposure to repeated heating. A different clay mixture has been applied for other items of everyday use: thin-section analysis of a broken juglet (Fig. 6b) and an insert of a storage canister for olives (Fig. 6c) provided by the potters attest to the use of red clay as a sole colouring agent without affecting the physical properties of the vessels. For both samples, the clay paste is fine with inclusions of quartz, serpentinite, micrite, opaque minerals, micas, chert, quartzite, sandstone, amphiboles and volcanic rock fragments. The dominance of white and green clay in this clay mixture is apparent.
4.4. Preparing the paste After levigation, the potters of Papas Ceramic blend the three clays in varying proportions based on the intended vessel function. In all instances green clay is always used as the base ingredient, while white clay is solely added to increase the volume of the clay mass. Red clay, in contrast, is responsible for providing shades of pinkish to reddish colour to the finished pot for aesthetic reasons. Significant amounts of red clay have been used in the production of contemporaneous cooking pots fabricated at Papas Ceramic (Fig. 6a). Petrographic analysis reveals that, as an effect of levigation, larger chert inclusions have been removed from the clay (max. 0.8 mm compared to max. 2.2 mm before levigation) and as such the overall quantity of chert present reduced. Yet, the grain size distribution of
4.5. Comparing ancient and modern potting practices Being aware of the choices made by contemporary potters, it is most interesting to elucidate how ancient craftspeople tackled the challenges connected to each of the Rhodian clay pastes as described above. Samples of a representative number of domestic pottery dating to the Hellenistic period has been analysed in thin-section; however, only a short summary of the petrographic results will be provided here. White and red clays have been predominantly used in Rhodian pottery production. Similarly, as recorded in today's Archangelos, ancient potters preferred the visually dark red clay paste (“Kokkinochoma”) for the 8
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fabrication of cooking ware; even more, cooking vessels appear exclusively in this paste. Petrographic analyses demonstrate that the clay has been used in its raw state without any evidence of clay manipulation (Fig. 7a–b) which contrasts modern practices. Variation in the character of inclusions and distribution of non-plastic particles between the individual samples is due to clay extraction at different sites, best exemplified by the clay obtained from the potters in Archangelos (Fig. 7c) and a clay sample taken in the area of Kerami (Fig. 7d). The latter is defined by smaller quantities and sizes of chert inclusions, as well as a higher amount of clay minerals/clay groundmass compared to the former. Based on the present evidence, it appears that the successful utilisation of raw clay in antiquity has been achieved by selecting naturally more fine-grained clays (compare Fig. 7a–b) and exposing them to firing at low temperatures instead of refining them in a time-consuming manner: Based on the optical activity of the clay matrices and the bright yellowish-orange colour of serpentinite inclusions in the cooking ware samples, firing at around 700–750 °C can be estimated. The most extensively used clay in ancient Rhodian ceramic manufacture is white clay. Archaeometric analyses again confirmed use in its natural state. In a recent paper, we stressed the multi-functionality of this clay, as any kind of tableware, domestic pottery and other ceramic objects have been formed of it (Betina and Skaltsa, 2019); an exception is cooking ware. The utilisation of white clay in its natural state (still, the removal of large inclusions by hand cannot be excluded) once more contradicts modern pottery practices completely refusing its use alone due to a high risk of failure. Indeed, the Hellenistic vessels do often show spalling or flaking on their surfaces, but were serviceable for their intended function. Evidence for the mixing or sole use of green clay in ancient Rhodian pottery production is unknown until now.
workshop units organised independently? It is noteworthy that three of the workshops visited around Archangelos are operated by the members of one extended family (the Giasiranis family and relatives), namely Spathas Ceramic, Giasiranis Ceramic and Papas Ceramic. However, only Papas Ceramic makes use of Rhodian clays. By interviewing the potters it was shown that Spathas Ceramic used to employ Rhodian clays in the past, and Giasiranis Ceramic would occasionally receive levigated clays from the potters at Papas Ceramic, but generally work with imported clays. This incoherence in contemporaneous family-based potting businesses might make one reconsider common principles quoted in scholarship. Further diachronic investigation of pottery production in Rhodes under consideration of multiple ceramic landscapes and geological conditions will allow researchers to better characterise this Rhodian craft branch and enable them to detect and explain regionally and chronologically determined disparities. Acknowledgements This research has been carried out in the frame of “The Rhodes Centennial Project” (Saxo Institute/University of Copenhagen and Ephorate of Antiquities of the Dodecanese), funded by the Carlsberg Foundation. The author would like to thank all team members and collaborators for their support and valuable help. Additional financial support has been provided by the Elisabeth Munksgaard Fonden. The Ephorate of Antiquities of the Dodecanese and Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports kindly granted permission for the sampling of the archaeological ceramics, while the permit for geological fieldwork has been issued by the Institute of Geology and Mineral Exploration. E. Kaninia thankfully provided the two ceramics from Pappouras workshop depicted in Fig. 2. Many thanks to the Fitch laboratory/British School at Athens for the preparation of the thin-sections and the possibility to use the laboratory infrastructure for petrographic analysis. This paper would not have been possible without the potters of the visited ceramic workshops in Rhodes, giving valuable insights into their field. The author wishes to thank the reviewers of the paper for their valuable comments.
5. Conclusion Combining ethnographic, ethno-archaeometric and archaeometric approaches to modern and ancient ceramic material remains on the Aegean island of Rhodes, various concepts in the preparation of native clays for potting purposes have been revealed. While contemporary and past potters had access to and made use of the same clays, different requirements for the clay paste and ultimately the finished product led to divergent technological choices. Sustainability and economic success were unquestionably crucial for businesses at any time, achieved by minimising the risk of failure during the production process. In order to eliminate undesired properties of the native Rhodian clays, today's craftspeople levigate the sediments in a laborious way to remove coarse inclusions that could cause damage to the pots during firing. Furthermore, mixing of (at least) three clays in varying proportions became habitual. This process, or the use of imported clays as noted for most of the modern Rhodian ceramic workshops, guarantees the manufacture of an aesthetically pleasing and saleable produce. Ancient craftspeople shaped pots from unprocessed raw clays and counteracted damage of the vessels by controlling the firing temperature. Firing at around 700 °C lowered the risk of breakage given by the present coarse non-plastic inclusions, for example in the case of cooking pots made from red clay. Spalling and chipping of the ceramics' surfaces (i.e. in the case of vessels made from white clay) seems to have been tolerated and did not abstain from selling such vessels, as excavated examples verify. The production seems to have been rapid and thus the production rate high, balancing out the increased risk of failure. In-depth knowledge of material properties is evident when comparing the character of the clays and function of the manufactured vessels in modern days and in the past (Sillar and Tite, 2000; Hein et al., 2008; Müller et al., 2010; De Bonis et al., 2014; Roux, 2019: 16–32), most strikingly attested in cooking ware production. A central research issue in ceramic ethnoarchaeology has always been the organisation of production: is pottery manufacture a family affair where people interact and share their knowledge, or are different
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