TY - JOUR
T1 - Lead-glazing technology from Medieval Central Asia
T2 - A case study from Aktobe, Kazakhstan
AU - Klesner, C. E.
AU - Akymbek, Y.
AU - Vandiver, P. B.
N1 - Funding Information:
This research was funded through the National Science Foundation (grant # 1916298 ). The Institute of Archaeology of Kazakhstan provided the ceramics for analysis, and we thank them for their ongoing support and collaboration. Radiocarbon analysis was funded through the NSF (Grant # 1122398 ). We thank the two anonymous reviewers whose thoughtful comments helped improve and clarify this manuscript. We are also grateful to Dr. Kenneth Domanik for the assistance with the electron microprobe analysis (Electron Microprobe Lab, Lunar and Planetary Science Department, University of Arizona), and Dr. Brandi MacDonald (Archaeometry Lab, University of Missouri Research Reactor) and Dr. Laure Dussubieux (EAF, Field Museum of Natural History) for their continual assistance with compositional analysis.
Funding Information:
This research was funded through the National Science Foundation (grant #1916298). The Institute of Archaeology of Kazakhstan provided the ceramics for analysis, and we thank them for their ongoing support and collaboration. Radiocarbon analysis was funded through the NSF (Grant #1122398). We thank the two anonymous reviewers whose thoughtful comments helped improve and clarify this manuscript. We are also grateful to Dr. Kenneth Domanik for the assistance with the electron microprobe analysis (Electron Microprobe Lab, Lunar and Planetary Science Department, University of Arizona), and Dr. Brandi MacDonald (Archaeometry Lab, University of Missouri Research Reactor) and Dr. Laure Dussubieux (EAF, Field Museum of Natural History) for their continual assistance with compositional analysis.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2021 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2021/4
Y1 - 2021/4
N2 - A representative group of lead-glazed ceramics excavated from the Medieval city of Aktobe, in what is today southern Kazakhstan, was analyzed to reconstruct the production technology. Fifteen sherds, which date from the 9th–12th c. CE, were previously identified by neutron activation analysis as locally produced (Klesner et al., 2019). The ceramics, which represent four common Early Islamic wares (monochrome, underglaze painted, underglaze slip-painted, and opaque) were examined by scanning electron microscopy and electron microprobe analysis to establish the variability of local artisans’ use of raw materials, glazing methods, and decorative techniques. Early Islamic ceramics are the first glazed wares produced in southern Kazakhstan, and through their technological reconstruction, we determined how this new ceramic technology was produced. We show evidence that the ceramics were introduced by skilled craftspeople who knew the production technology that was being used in Islamic centers in southwest and Central Asia. The ceramic technology differs, however, in the use of antimony as an opacifier in opaque glazes containing high-lead oxide. This research adds to the growing body of knowledge about glazing technologies in Central Asia and helps to define the technological and cultural ties present in the Early Islamic Period.
AB - A representative group of lead-glazed ceramics excavated from the Medieval city of Aktobe, in what is today southern Kazakhstan, was analyzed to reconstruct the production technology. Fifteen sherds, which date from the 9th–12th c. CE, were previously identified by neutron activation analysis as locally produced (Klesner et al., 2019). The ceramics, which represent four common Early Islamic wares (monochrome, underglaze painted, underglaze slip-painted, and opaque) were examined by scanning electron microscopy and electron microprobe analysis to establish the variability of local artisans’ use of raw materials, glazing methods, and decorative techniques. Early Islamic ceramics are the first glazed wares produced in southern Kazakhstan, and through their technological reconstruction, we determined how this new ceramic technology was produced. We show evidence that the ceramics were introduced by skilled craftspeople who knew the production technology that was being used in Islamic centers in southwest and Central Asia. The ceramic technology differs, however, in the use of antimony as an opacifier in opaque glazes containing high-lead oxide. This research adds to the growing body of knowledge about glazing technologies in Central Asia and helps to define the technological and cultural ties present in the Early Islamic Period.
KW - Central Asia
KW - Ceramic production technology
KW - Electron microprobe analysis
KW - Islamic
KW - Kazakhstan
KW - Lead-glazed pottery
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U2 - 10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.102825
DO - 10.1016/j.jasrep.2021.102825
M3 - Article
AN - SCOPUS:85100389373
SN - 2352-409X
VL - 36
JO - Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
JF - Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports
M1 - 102825
ER -