Islamic glazed pottery from Adiabene (Iraq, Kurdistan): multianalytical research into its technological development and provenance
| Authors | |
|---|---|
| Year of publication | 2020 |
| Type | Article in Periodical |
| Magazine / Source | Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences |
| MU Faculty or unit | |
| Citation | |
| Web | https://doi.org/10.1007/s12520-019-01002-3 |
| Doi | http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s12520-019-01002-3 |
| Keywords | Islamic glazed pottery; Petrofabrics; Glaze composition; Early Islamic period; Provenance; Adiabene |
| Description | This paper explores the production characteristics and provenance of Islamic glazed pottery in the Adiabene region of northeastern Mesopotamia. Samples cover the entire time span under study, i.e., from the Early to the Late Islamic periods. Analytical techniques such as ceramic petrography, powder X-ray diffraction, scanning electron microscopy, and X-ray microanalysis were employed to determine compositional (mineralogical and chemical) and technological characteristics. Based on the comparison of ceramic fabrics with up-to-date knowledge of regional geology, local plain pottery, and the published petrography of Mesopotamian ceramics, several provenance groups of glazed pottery (and one group of unglazed pottery) in the sample collection, originating from the Zabs catchment, the middle course of the Tigris (Samarra?) and the middle and lower course of the Tigris (Baghdad and/or Basra?) were defined. Dynamic oscillations in the ratio of regionally produced and imported pottery enable a detailed study of the socio-economic differences between the Early and Middle Islamic periods. |