Exploring the Function of Ceramic Crescents from the Copper Age of Southwestern Iberia (Third Millennium BCE)

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2021: General Sessions" session, at the 86th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

Lightweight crescent-shaped ceramics with perforations on each end are fairly common finds at Copper Age settlements in southwestern Iberia. These objects are usually assumed to be related to textile production, however, the actual function of these objects is often debated. Were these ceramic crescents, often weighing less than 100 g, heavy enough to function as loom weights on a warp-weighted loom? This poster presents the results of weaving experiments using reproductions of these ceramic crescents to explore their effectiveness as loom weights. Larger and heavier crescent-shaped loom weights found in the eastern region of the Mediterranean from the Bronze Age have been shown through experimental weaving to have unique advantages especially for twill style weaves on a warp-weighted loom. My research builds on these previous studies and illustrates that the crescents from the Copper Age of Iberia were also capable of functioning as loom weights effectively. This experimental work contributes to our understanding of textile production both within the Iberian Peninsula and in other regions of the Mediterranean.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• Society for American Archaeology 86th Annual Meeting, Online (2021)   •
• SAA 2021: General Sessions

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 32268