Analysis of the Structure of Archeological Objects - Ceramic Pottery
D. Riegert, K. Konopka · Archives of Metallurgy and Materials · 2011
ANALIZA STRUKTURY OBIEKTÓW ARCHEOLOGICZNYCH -NACZYŃ CERAMICZNYCHThe aim of the present study was to check whether the research methods used in materials engineering could be useful for examining archeological ceramic pottery.The experiments were conducted with the use of stereoscopic microscopy, scanning electron microscopy, and optical profilometry.The examined material included pieces of the archeological clay vessels excavated from various sites and dated at two various historical periods.The first group includes samples from the 5 th century B.C. from Biehla (Germany) and Starosiedle (Poland), the second group consists of fragments of vessels of the 10 th century A.D. from Starosiedle (Poland) and Rosenhof (Germany).The structure of the matrix and the mineral admixtures distributed throughout it were analyzed on the cross-sections of the archeological material.The examinations were performed using the fractographic method and optical profilometery, which permitted determine the shapes and morphology of the admixtures, examine their embedding in the matrix material (clay), and also revealing possible layers or delaminations within the matrix.