Examining Origins of Ceramic Production in Lerik, Azerbaijan (Late Iron Age to Late Antique Period): Insights from Ceramic Petrographic Analysis

Summary

This is an abstract from the "SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts" session, at the 89th annual meeting of the Society for American Archaeology.

This research examines manufacturing technology and origin of production of ceramics from the necropolis at Piboz Tepe and site at Yoladoy Bin in the Lerik region of Azerbaijan through utilization of ceramic petrography and surface treatment analysis. Data obtained through petrography analysis indicates whether ceramics were locally produced or imported from elsewhere, in correlation with regional geological data. The research investigates choices made by dwellers in this highland region, whose mortuary assemblages suggest a relationship with their imperial neighbors—extending previous research to learn more about the role of these dwellers within the larger sociopolitical system. The data come from the Lerik Azerbaijan-America Project (LAAP), which considers living communities contemporaneous with the creators the necropolis at Piboz and its landscape to better understand local cultures and practices from the Late Iron Age to the Late Antique Period (c. 500 BCE–500 CE). The methodology provides a lens through which to center lesser-known contributions to the success of dominant empires, based on proximity or other factors. Further analysis will help to reconstruct aspects of production, social organization, and exchange for the living population using data from mortuary contexts and provide a baseline against which to compare to other excavated contexts.

This Resource is Part of the Following Collections

• SAA 2024: Individual Abstracts   •
• Society for American Archaeology 89th Annual Meeting, New Orleans, LA (2024)

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Record Identifiers

Abstract Id(s): 39273.0