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Pottery Summary

Locus 32

Locus 33

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Locus 34

Locus 35

Locus 36

Locus 37

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Locus 38

Locus 39

Locus 40

In total, 1245 sherds of pottery were recovered from T90 in 2022. This quantity is consistent with ceramic recovery from T90 in the 2017 and 2018 seasons of excavation, when we recovered 1445 and 893 sherds, respectively, but is far less than we recovered in 2019, when we recovered 3822 sherds of pottery.

The largest concentrations of pottery were recovered from deposits that are identified as containing debris. Locus 33, which is associated with the collapse of EPOC4’s southern wall, contained 314 sherds, or 25% of all ceramics recovered in T90 in 2022, while Loci 38 and 39, which are deposits identified as debris from

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occupation and activities prior to the construction of EPOC4, yielded 437 sherds, or 35% of all ceramics recovered in T90 in 2022; Locus 38 contained 336 sherds and Locus 39 had 101 sherds of pottery. Additionally, Locus 36, a deposit identified as EPOC4’s subfloor, contained 209 sherds, or 17% of all ceramics found in T90 in 2022. This is not surprising, as EPOC4’s subfloor is comprised of debris; small stones (maximum dimension 20cm), terracotta tile fragments, and large coarseware ceramics comprise these subfloor deposits, which seem to have been laid down prior to the construction of EPOC4’s plaster-rich floor both to create a level floor surface and to facilitate drainage of EPOC4’s earthen floor. The remaining loci, which all were associated with various features of EPOC4 itself (Loci 34 and 37 are portions of EPOC4’s plaster-rich floor) or with later phases of occupation in the area of EPOC4’s front porch (Locus 32), all contained fewer ceramics.

The vast majority of ceramics recovered from T90 in 2022 consisted of coarseware and impasto ceramics; of the 1245 sherds recovered in 2022, 649 sherds (52% of all ceramics recovered) were coarseware and 470 sherds (38% of all ceramics recovered) were impasto sherds. Only a scattering of finewares were found in T90 in 2022 and we recovered only seven sherds of bucchero, some of which intruded into earlier deposits (more details on this below).

The coarseware ceramics recovered from T90 are especially important for understanding activities that occurred within the area of EPOC4, both during the occupation of the building itself and in the occupational period prior to its construction. In total, we documented 52 crucible fragments in T90 in 2022 and 9 coarseware ceramic fragments with adhered slag; this is in conjunction with 15 fragments of tile with adhered slag and over 1000 fragments of slag (see Slag Summary).

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The material culture recovered from T90 in 2022 provides strong evidence that metallic ores were processed and refined in the area of EPOC4’s front porch, especially during the period preceding the construction of EPOC4 itself; 64% of all finds associated with metallurgy were recovered from Loci 38 and 39, deposits underlying EPOC4’s floor. Specifically, the ceramic evidence provides some of the best evidence for smelting, as we have recovered 24 crucible fragments from these same deposits. T90’s ceramic finds also have yielded some of the most puzzling evidence for metallurgy. Specifically, in 2022, we recovered 9 fragments of coarseware ceramics that have slag adhered to one surface, along with 15 fragments of terracotta tiles that also have slag adhered to one surface. These materials suggest that terracotta and coarseware ceramic materials were utilized in the processing and refining of metallic ores in innovative, non-traditional ways, perhaps as heat-resistant surfaces atop which smelting could be conducted safely, to minimize the risk of fire.

Few examples of finewares were recovered from T90 in 2022; this is in keeping with prior years of excavation in T90. In total, only 119 sherds of fine impasto (10% of all ceramics recovered in 2022) and 7 sherds of bucchero (1% of all ceramics recovered in 2022) were found this season. Most examples of finewares were found in deposits overlying EPOC4’s floor and therefore postdate the occupation of EPOC4; Locus 32, a deposit associated with the

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small, rectilinear hut built atop the remains of EPOC4’s front porch following its abandonment, yielded 19 sherds of fine impasto, while Locus 33, a deposit identified as the collapse of EPOC4’s southern wall, contained 53 sherds of fine impasto and two sherds of bucchero. Very few finewares were recovered from EPOC4’s floor or from underlying deposits. Two notable exceptions are a fluted bucchero carination (20220038) and carinated bowl fragments (20220047). Both finds appear to be types of vessels that date to the mid-7^th century and both were recovered from deposits stratigraphically underlying EPOC4’S floor. However, both finds were recovered next to a series of large stones (app. 50cm in maximum dimension) that likely are associated with the aforementioned later hut. These stones are positioned in line with a series of larger stones that were removed during the 2018 field season in T90 and were stratigraphically positioned at the same level as the later rectilinear hut. Therefore, we conclude that they have intruded into underlying, earlier deposits, explaining the presence of these ceramic examples that date to the mid-7 ^th century in deposits underlying EPOC4’s floor.

No other firmly datable ceramics were recovered from T90 in 2022, although a number of ceramic finds are suggestive of an early date for the construction and occupation of EPOC4. In total, we recovered five fragments of coil-made or hand-made ceramics (20220018, 20220024, 20220028, 20220034, 20220055). These were recovered from a variety of deposits, both overlying and underlying EPOC4’s floor. 20220018, a large sherd of coil-made impasto, 20220024, a hand-made ridged impasto rim, and 20220028, a hand-made impasto fragment, were recovered from Locus 33, EPOC4’s southern wall collapse. A hand-made, ridged impasto rim (20220034) was recovered from Locus 36, a deposit associated with EPOC4’s subfloor, while 20220055, a hand-made fragment of ridged pottery, was found in Locus 38, the charcoal-rich deposit underlying EPOC4’s subfloor and associated with earlier occupation of the area of EPOC4. The presence of hand-made and coil-made ceramics in deposits both underlying EPOC4’s floor and in deposits associated with its destruction is suggestive of an early date for EPOC4’s construction and occupation, perhaps as early as end of the 8^th or start of the 7 ^th century BCE.