Ceramic Traditions of Early Northern China: Painted Pottery in Context

This project will contain research about provenance and production of Chinese Neolithic painted pottery which is attributed to the ancient Yangshao (5000-3000 BC) and Majiayao cultures (3000-2000 BC). The resembling style in decoration and shape led to the conclusion that these vessels were manufactured in the same tradition. Hence at the time of the discovery of these cultures, which took place in the early 20th century, the Majiayao was referred to as the Yangshao Gansu culture. Since these cultures both spread over the northern Chinese territory (Majiayao in the West and Yangshao in the East and Central area) the resemblance hints at the potential transfer of the production technique or clay import. The identification of the manufacturing sequence and approximate clay provenance can confirm a potential link between the Yangshao and Majiayao through the high-quality pottery tradition or it can dismiss it. If the location of the clay pit can be roughly identified, it may help to comprehend what measures were possibly taken in order to mine clay and transport it to the workshop/settlement. Additionally, the results would address the question whether the clay for the fine ceramics and utilitarian pottery belong to the same quarry.
The majority of the objects for the research, such as complete vessels or sherds, comes from the collections of the British Museum but it is intended to incorporate objects from other available sources (museums, institutions, recently excavated material) for a comparative study.
A macroscopic non-invasive analysis of the samples will be conducted at the beginning. It includes description and disposition of the shape, decoration, ornaments, first insights on the manufacturing technique, type of clay etc. Furthermore, the descriptive part will contain an evaluation of the pre-existent dating and the dating technique used previously. An index of the objects using a standardised descriptive vocabulary will be compiled at the end of the macroscopic analysis in order to have an overview of the most common characteristics and also singularities. Parallel to the compilation it is necessary to collect data (if available) about the sites: where an under which circumstances the objects were discovered and documented.
The next step consists of archaeometrical approach and microscopic analysis in order to investigate the fabric of the material. The aim of this procedure is to analyse the structure, whether it is homogenous or with inclusions and what does this mean for the several aspects of the vessel such as use or value. This scientific approach includes the invasive (e.g. thin-section) as well as non-invasive (e.g. X-Ray) methods. The most appropriate techniques for this research will be chosen during or after the process of the macroscopic analysis.
The aim at the end of the research is to establish a potential typology for the objects analysed. The criteria for this typology will be defined on the basis of the gained insights and results about provenance and manufacture. Moreover, a completed typology can provide a basis for future comparative studies.