Pottery identification training

Pottery interpretation training was provided by pottery specialist Beverley Ballin Smith in February 2014 in the National Museum store, Edinburgh. This gave an opportunity to review some of the Shetland material curated there, including

assemblages from Benie Hoos in Whalsay and Jarlshof (See Fig. 8, Map of sites). The study allowed the acquisition of photographs of a sample of diagnostic sherds to use for comparison with the material in Shetland (see below). One full week’s

training in Shetland allowed a review of the Clickhimin assemblage under her supervision. Further analysis of the remaining sites was then completed. 2.2.5 Typological classification method

Typological studies offer a chronological sequence by comparing a vessel to similar finds that have been securely dated (see Renfrew & Bahn 2004: 124-126). Cunliffe suggests regional sequences can be achieved which can then be correlated with neighbouring areas, creating ‘style-zones’, which can highlight a region, within which, communities maintain contact and share cultural values (Cunliffe 2005: 87). ‘Style- zone’ typologies, from secure stratigraphic contexts, can be employed to chart trends in pottery and the rate of change within regions (ibid).

Typological evidence was gathered using three headings – pottery fabric, rim type and decoration. While previously published material has included individual

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Lowe 1999; Downes & Lamb 2000), the Museum collection has not been analysed using a universal system of categorisation. For this study, a set of classifications for each typological category was applied to each sherd examined – see Tables 2-4. The description of fabric identification for fabric types F2, F3 and F4 was

appropriated from Yarrington’s summary of fabric groups used to categorise the Sumburgh Airport assemblage (2000: 38-39). The current author’s classifications were then added to cover the other fabric types that were identified in the eight sites re-assessed here. A decision was taken to limit these fabric identifiers or codes to eight, F1-F8 (see Table 2). MacSween suggests, when analysing course pottery assemblages, fabric groups should be kept as general as possible and questions the usefulness of recording ‘minute variations’; for her analysis at Kebister she specified four fabric types (see MacSween 1999:148). The fabric series applied to the Old Scatness assemblage, analysed by Louise Brown, is rather cumbersome with ten headings (A-K), and within each heading are further sub-types, for example A1-A4 (Brown 2015: 338).

Twenty-one identifiers were employed to distinguish variations in decoration (see Table 3). Additional codes were inserted when new decoration types were

recognised. A conscious decision was made to use separate codes for carinated vessels (D2 - vessel displays a carinated shoulder and D4 – vessel has carinated shoulder and is burnished). These characteristics were thus divided because

carinated vessels are observed during LBA/EIA, while burnished examples are later (MIA-LIA). Similar possibilities were considered with incised decoration types, so various codes were adopted.

The third data set of fifteen indicators was employed to differentiate between rim types, R1-R15, (see Table 4). Some terms, such as ‘beaded rim’ has been used to describe rolled rims in the past, therefore it was important for this research to highlight the types identified in this study, within the Typology Sheets, offering a digitised reference gazetteer (see Appendices 4-6).

Each pottery sherd examined in the current study was recorded on an Excel sheet (see Appendices 3 and 7) and assigned identification codes according to each classification. This enabled the analysis to be evaluated both for each site and the

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whole study parameter. For photographic examples of each classification please refer to Typology Sheets (Appendices 4-6).

Table 2: Pottery Fabric Type Classifications

Fabric Identifier Fabric type

F1 Untempered clay including sandy clay

F2 Vesicular pottery – The vessels are generally

thick (10mm-14mm) hard, well fired and fairly heavily gritted. Organic or similar inclusions have mostly been burnt away in firing or dissolved during deposition leaving

characteristic large angular vesicles. Some sherds were heavily gritted and now the vesicular fabric crumbles easily. Where the grits have survived they are dull white or yellow, soft and angular in shape. One possible inclusion is bone and there is some grits of hard rock. (Yarrington 2000: 38).

F3 Coarse pottery – this group of sherds is

similar to F2 with the addition of large angular inclusions including fragments of various hard rocks and a few grits of steatite. Many of the grits protrude through the

surface of this very coarse ware (ibid 2000: 38).

F4 Steatite gritted pottery – The sherds from this group are largely or wholly gritted with

steatite. The finely to coarsely crushed steatite is found in various proportions from sparse to heavy - some with so much they could be mistaken for actual steatite vessels (ibid 2000: 38).

F5 Mixed rock-gritted fabric – the temper is

composed of fragments of various rocks including some steatite. Rock-grits include quartz, granite, unidentified grey rock and mica dust.

F6 Mixed fabric including rock-grits, steatite and grass or chaff.

F7 Grass tempered fabric – sherds of grass or

chaff tempered ware.

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Table 3:Pottery Decoration Type Classifications

Decoration Identifier Decoration type

D1 Undecorated sherds

D2 No decoration but has shoulder carination

D3 No decoration but vessel is burnished

D4 Carinated and burnished

D5 Impressed circles and geometric shapes

D6 Incised curvilinear and geometric decoration

D7 Incised triangles or parallel lines

D8 Border of incised parallel horizontal lines (x2), with vertical lines, chevrons between

D9 Fingernail impressions

D10 ‘Stabbed’ decoration, made with bone or

feather

D11 ‘Pie crust’ applied neckband

D12 Applied cordon below rim which has deep

incised horizontal slashes

D13 Applied cordon with wavy fluting

D14 Sherd with multiple holes, possibly from a

strainer

D15 Applied plain cordons

D16 Incised lines with pin prick dots, burnished

D17 Incised/dragged vertical lines over whole

vessel

D18 Chevrons or herring-bone

D19 Impressed shell-edge (cockle)

D20 Cord impressed

24 Table 4:Pottery Rim Type Classifications

Rim Identifier Rim type

R1 Plain

R2 Plain, flattened

R3 Plain, rounded

R4 Plain (R2 and R3) everted, including slightly everted

R5 Everted facetted, or decorated

R6 Everted with bevelled interior

R7 Plain inverted, some flattened

R8 Rolled

R9 Rolled, everted

R10 Plain, fluted

R11 Rolled and flattened

R12 Flat, or squared – T-shaped

R13 Beaded

R14 Everted rim with applied cordon below rim,

with pie crust neckband

R15 Everted rounded with applied cordon below

rim, deep horizontal slashes on cordon