A Microscopic View of Ceramic Production: An Analysis of Thin-Sections from Monte Albán

2007 ◽  
Vol 18 (3) ◽  
pp. 313-332 ◽  
Author(s):  
Lane F. Fargher
Keyword(s):  
Formative Period ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Sedimentary Petrology ◽  
Monte Alban ◽  
Part Time ◽  
Optical Mineralogy ◽  
Petrographic Study

This paper presents the results of a recent petrographic study of Monte Albán grayware pottery. Using INEGI bedrock maps, optical mineralogy, and sedimentary petrology techniques, I demonstrate that the organization of gray-ware production changed greatly through time at Monte Albán. During the Late-Terminal Formative period (Monte Albán I-II), the majority of the gray wares consumed at Monte Albán were probably imported to this hilltop center from some distance. Furthermore, I found the paste composition of this pottery was highly variable, suggesting that many small-scale part-time specialists were engaged in gray-ware production at this time. With the transition to the Classic period (Monte Albán III-IV), the organization of gray-ware production may have changed dramatically and nearly all of the gray wares recovered from Monte Albán were probably produced at this hilltop center. At the same time, we see extensive evidence of specialized gray-ware production at Monte Albán from both survey and excavation data.

A Ceramic Compositional Perspective on the Formative to Classic Transition in Southern Mesoamerica

1994 ◽  
Vol 5 (4) ◽  
pp. 333-358 ◽  
Author(s):  
Hector Neff ◽  
Frederick J. Bove ◽  
Eugenia J. Robinson ◽  
Barbara Arroyo L.
Keyword(s):  
Neutron Activation Analysis ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Regional Distribution ◽  
Analysis Data ◽  
Formative Period ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Raw Material ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
Production And Consumption ◽  
Pacific Slope

We use neutron-activation analysis data on Formative- and Classic-period pottery along with analyses of modern ceramics and raw materials to examine changes in ceramic production and consumption on the central Guatemalan Pacific slope at the beginning of the Classic period. In particular, we wonder if the processes that generated regional distributions of two Formative-period wares (White Paste and Fine Red) were the same as or different from the processes that generated regional distribution of Classic-period Flesh ware. We identify probable production zones for the three regionally distributed wares based on raw-material analyses, consideration of the geological context of different zones, and distributional evidence. We find major differences between production/consumption of the Formative and Classic regionally distributed wares. This reinforces the notion that some kind of dramatic historical discontinuity affected the lives of Pacific-slope people around A. D. 200.

scholarly journals Petrographic Study of Sedimentary Iron Ore in Shendi -Atbara Basin, River Nile State, Sudan.

2021 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Abubaker A. M. A. Abasher ◽  
Sadam H.M.A. Eltayib ◽  
El Sheikh M. Abdelrahman ◽  
Mohammed M.A. Amlas
Keyword(s):  
Chemical Weathering ◽  
Iron Ore ◽  
Field Work ◽  
Chemical Precipitation ◽  
Office Work ◽  
River Nile ◽  
Stratigraphic Sequence ◽  
Thin Sections ◽  
Geological Conditions ◽  
Petrographic Study

This paper presents the results of petrographic study of sedimentary iron ore from surface strata of the Shendi -Atbara Basin, River Nile State, Sudan. The aims of this study are to investigate the geological behavior and geological conditions affecting precipitation of sedimentary iron ore. The methodologies have been used to realize the objectives of this study included; field work, office work and labrotary work include thin sections and polished sections analysis. According to field observation sedimentary iron ore can broadly be considered as occurring in three major classes: Ferribands iron, ferricrete iron and oolitic iron ores. The modes of occurrence of iron ore was described at the outcrops and vertical sedimentary profiles revealed that the iron occurred in study area at different types in stratigraphic sequence such as cap, beded and interbeded conformable with Shendi Formation. Petrographic study of iron ore in collected samples using polarized microscope and ore microscope includes study of the textures and structures of ores to obtain ore history. The main types of textures and structures in studied samples are oolitic, granular, lamellar and bands. According to these results the origin of iron ore is formed by chemical precipitation during chemical weathering of surrounding areas in continental lacustrine environment. The iron ore in study area is potential for future mining works and steals industry.

scholarly journals FISH COMMUNITY COMPOSITION INDICATES LOW IMPACT OF CAPTURE EFFORTS IN WAR-TORN SOUTH SUDAN

2021 ◽  
Vol 7 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Luca Luiselli ◽  
John Sebit Benansio ◽  
Johnson J. Balli ◽  
Daniele Dendi ◽  
Stephanie Ajong ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Fish Community ◽  
Group Discussion ◽  
South Sudan ◽  
Good Health ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Dominant Type ◽  
Fishing Vessels ◽  
Part Time ◽  
White Nile

A survey conducted in Terekeka, Mongalla (=Mongalla) and Gemmaiza (= Gemeiza), payams of Central Equatoria in South Sudan using face-to-face interviews, structured questionnaire and focused group discussion provided information on income generating strategies of fishing communities. These included: full time or part time fishing, small-scale farming, cattle breeding and firewood collection. Stationary gill nets were the dominant type of fishing gear, followed by  monofilament, hook and long line, cast nets, spears and harpoons. Fishing vessels included planked canoes, steel boats and fibreglass. The best fishing months were August, September, followed by May. Main species caught included large bodied potamodromous predators adapted to channel habitats, as well as floodplain migrants. Overall the fish community appeared to be at equilibrium, with no evidence of impacts due to excessive catch efforts. The good health of the White Nile fishery is related to the high resilience of South Sudanese aquatic ecosystems as well as to the low potential of fish capture in a country disrupted by war and lack of security.

scholarly journals Comment: Agricultural Economics Research and Extension Needs of Small-Scale, Limited-Resource Farmers

1979 ◽  
Vol 11 (1) ◽  
pp. 57-59 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ben L. Perry
Keyword(s):  
Value Added ◽  
Limited Resource ◽  
Future Research ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Full Time ◽  
Small Farms ◽  
Small Farm ◽  
Social Scientists ◽  
Research Areas ◽  
Part Time

West is to be commended for (1) the organization of his discussion, (2) the careful delineation of the research areas, (3) the thoroughness of his research and the excellent documentation of the research efforts of social scientists in treating the problem/s of the small-farm operator, and (4) the development of a means-end schema of “what is,” “what ought to be” with implications for future research, programs, and public policy.As West indicates, there is need for a redefinition of small farm. The $20,000 gross sales limit is inadequate. Most definitions do not include the value added of products produced and consumed by the family. Some states, for example Florida, use figures much lower than $20,000 to characterize small farms. The distinction between full-time and part-time farmers and their incomes is not clearly delineated. A national concern should be the redefinition of the term, “small farm.” Heterogeneous characteristics of small farms should not inhibit the generation of profile information by geographic regions.

scholarly journals INTRODUCING IZAPA

2018 ◽  
Vol 29 (2) ◽  
pp. 255-264 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert M. Rosenswig ◽  
Julia Guernsey
Keyword(s):  
Twentieth Century ◽  
Formative Period ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Status Report ◽  
Regional Structure ◽  
Special Issue ◽  
The Past ◽  
New Information ◽  
Recent Developments ◽  
Middle Formative

AbstractThis paper introduces the articles that comprise this Special Issue on Izapa. First, we review early reporting and assessments of Izapa's monuments as well as archaeological investigations undertaken at the site during the twentieth century. Next, we describe more recent developments in interpretation and new archeological excavations and survey data collected during the past two decades. The papers in this Special Issue present new information that contribute to our evolving understanding of Izapa during the millennium that stretches from the Middle Formative period through the Middle Classic period (700 b.c.–a.d. 600). They serve as a status report on our understanding of the still largely enigmatic ancient kingdom, its regional structure, and connections to contemporaneous Isthmian sites.

SMALL-SCALE HOUSEHOLD CERAMIC PRODUCTION: NEUTRON ACTIVATION ANALYSIS OF PLAIN AND DECORATED CERAMICS FROM PRE-AZTEC XALTOCAN, MEXICO

2020 ◽  
pp. 1-19
Author(s):  
Kristin De Lucia ◽  
Matthew T. Boulanger ◽  
Michael D. Glascock
Keyword(s):  
Neutron Activation Analysis ◽  
Activation Analysis ◽  
Neutron Activation ◽  
Raw Materials ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Economic Systems ◽  
Early Postclassic ◽  
Ceramic Manufacture ◽  
Social Units

Abstract This study examines small-scale household ceramic production at the site of Xaltocan, Mexico, to understand the organization of household ceramic production prior to the development of the Aztec Empire. We examine utilitarian vessels and serving wares from an Early Postclassic (a.d. 900–1200) domestic context using neutron activation analysis (NAA). We also examine archaeological evidence for ceramic manufacture. The NAA data reveal that similar raw materials and paste recipes were used for both utilitarian and decorated wares, suggesting that households produced both plain and decorated pottery. We conclude that ceramic production was an intermittent activity that took place alongside other crafts and agriculture. By looking at ceramics within their contexts of use and production, we consider the practices and choices made by individual social units, which is crucial to interpreting broader Early Postclassic economic systems and the ways in which commoners influenced these systems.

The Isthmus and the Valley of Oaxaca: Questions about Zapotec Imperialism in Formative Period Mesoamerica

1990 ◽  
Vol 55 (2) ◽  
pp. 250-261 ◽  
Author(s):  
Robert N. Zeitlin
Keyword(s):  
Formative Period ◽  
Monte Alban ◽  
Valley Of Oaxaca ◽  
Economic Interaction ◽  
Late Formative ◽  
Isthmus Of Tehuantepec ◽  
Outlying Regions

Recent archaeological and epigraphic research suggests the existence of what could be Mesoamerica's first conquest state, centered at Monte Albán, the major Late Formative period Zapotec site in the Valley of Oaxaca. This paper explores the idea of an early Zapotec empire by examining evidence from one of Monte Albán's outlying regions, the southern Isthmus of Tehuantepec. The study is framed in terms of three hypothetical models of political and economic interaction, any one or combination of which could conceivably account for ancient Zapotec relationships with the southern Isthmus and its other hinterland regions.

Ceramic Production and Exchange in Late/Terminal Formative Period Oaxaca

2006 ◽  
Vol 17 (4) ◽  
pp. 579-594 ◽  
Author(s):  
Arthur A. Joyce ◽  
Hector Neff ◽  
Mary S. Thieme ◽  
Marcus Winter ◽  
J. Michael Elam ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Resource Use ◽  
Research Reactor ◽  
Formative Period ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
Modern Times ◽  
Chemical Signatures ◽  
Mixteca Alta ◽  
Ceramic Exchange ◽  
Valley Of Oaxaca ◽  
Production Practices

Patterns of Late/Terminal Formative period (ca. 500 B.C.–A.D. 300) ceramic exchange in Oaxaca are examined through instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). Samples of 453 Late/Terminal Formative period sherds were submitted to the Missouri University Research Reactor for INAA to determine elemental composition. The sherds came from 20 excavated sites and two surveys in the following regions: the Valley of Oaxaca, Mixteca Alta, Mixteca Baja, lower Río Verde Valley, and Cuicatlán Cañada. Selected for the study were vessel fragments from three recognized paste categories: grayware (gris), fine brownware (café fino), and creamware (crema). We also sampled clays and sherds from known sources in four modern pottery-making towns in the Oaxaca Valley. The research adds to the INAA database for Oaxaca by identifying the chemical signatures of six source groupings that we can link to specific regions and, in two cases, to particular source zones within regions. The evidence from chemical composition and typology indicates continuity in resource use and production practices in both Atzompa and Coyotepec from pre-Hispanic into modern times. The data show that the exchange of ceramics in Late/Terminal Formative Oaxaca was multidirectional, with ceramics imported both to and from the Oaxaca Valley.

Intensive Ceramic Production and Classic-Period Political Economy in the Sierra de los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico

1993 ◽  
Vol 4 (2) ◽  
pp. 175-191 ◽  
Author(s):  
Philip J. Arnold ◽  
Christopher A. Pool ◽  
Ronald R. Kneebone ◽  
Robert S. Santley
Keyword(s):  
Political Economy ◽  
Large Scale ◽  
Classic Period ◽  
Ceramic Production ◽  
Los Tuxtlas ◽  
Prestige Goods ◽  
Local Elite ◽  
Production Area ◽  
Sierra De Los Tuxtlas

AbstractMatacapan, a Classic-period center in the Sierra de los Tuxtlas, Veracruz, Mexico, is known for its strong stylistic affinities with Teotihuacan. The Comoapan complex is a ceramic-production area situated along the southern edge of Matacapan. Data from Comoapan indicate that pottery manufacture was large scale and intensive, with final products distributed outside of Matacapan and possibly beyond the Tuxtlas. These data suggest that models of Tuxtlas political economy emphasizing long-term Teotihuacan administration should be reconsidered. More reasonable is a perspective that views the Tuxtlas as a source of high-quality prestige goods whose distribution is administered by local elite.

scholarly journals Asilomar moments: formative framings in recombinant DNA and solar climate engineering research

2014 ◽  
Vol 372 (2031) ◽  
pp. 20140064 ◽  
Author(s):  
Stefan Schäfer ◽  
Sean Low
Keyword(s):  
Physical Environment ◽  
Ethical Issues ◽  
Recombinant Dna ◽  
Field Tests ◽  
Formative Period ◽  
Small Scale ◽  
Climate Engineering ◽  
Engineering Research ◽  
Technical Risks ◽  
External Governance

We examine the claim that in governance for solar climate engineering research, and especially field tests, there is no need for external governance beyond existing mechanisms such as peer review and environmental impact assessments that aim to assess technically defined risks to the physical environment. By drawing on the historical debate on recombinant DNA research, we show that defining risks is not a technical question but a complex process of narrative formation. Governance emerges from within, and as a response to, narratives of what is at stake in a debate. In applying this finding to the case of climate engineering, we find that the emerging narrative differs starkly from the narrative that gave meaning to rDNA technology during its formative period, with important implications for governance. While the narrative of rDNA technology was closed down to narrowly focus on technical risks, that of climate engineering continues to open up and includes social, political and ethical issues. This suggests that, in order to be legitimate, governance must take into account this broad perception of what constitutes the relevant issues and risks of climate engineering, requiring governance that goes beyond existing mechanisms that focus on technical risks. Even small-scale field tests with negligible impacts on the physical environment warrant additional governance as they raise broader concerns that go beyond the immediate impacts of individual experiments.

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