Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
under embargo until 2025-08-31
2025-08-31T00:00:00Z
Northern Gaul in Merovingian times (450-650 CE) is well known for its characteristic pottery assemblages in settlement- and burial sites consisting of wheel-thrown ceramics. Rooted in Roman...Show moreNorthern Gaul in Merovingian times (450-650 CE) is well known for its characteristic pottery assemblages in settlement- and burial sites consisting of wheel-thrown ceramics. Rooted in Roman traditions, these ceramics were produced in specialized potters workshops of which the majority was located along the rivers Rhine and Meuse. Another group of pottery, the handmade ceramics, however, are often given less attention. These handmade pots have often been perceived and described by archaeologists as rudimentary, poorly made and of low quality. In addition, they have been associated with Germanic culture. This is often followed by the assumption that this type of pottery is, in stark contrast to the wheel-thrown ceramics, made by unskilled potters, and therefore made locally on an occasional level in a household setting by woman and children. These claims are however based on modern assumptions only, since the production aspects of these handmade ceramics have hardly been studied. Furthermore, they show a strong bias that is rooted in our history with the industrial revolution and capitalism, and in value-associations and preconceptions regarding Roman and Germanic culture. The way archaeologists perceive and value these handmade ceramics should therefore not be mistaken for the perception and valuation of these ceramics by the early medieval societies that created and used them. By using an integrated chaîne opératoire approach that considers the technological, social and symbolic dimension of the production of ceramic vessels, this thesis attempts to gain insights on the production, perception and value of these handmade ceramics in the early medieval societies of Northern-Gaul. The ceramic assemblage of the recently excavated Merovingian cemetery of Nijmegen-Lentseveld (The Netherlands) was chosen as a case-study. At this site, roughly dating to the 6th century, an notably high concentration of handmade ceramics was found, together with well-known wheel-thrown vessels. This provided the unique opportunity to study both handmade and wheel-thrown ceramics together. A technological analysis, using a combination of macroscopic-, petrographic- and chemical techniques, was performed on the Lentseveld assemblage as well as on several local reference ceramics and clay samples. The results show that the production of the handmade ceramics found at the cemetery of Nijmegen-Lentseveld, was more complex than the assumed local household production. It is demonstrated that a large majority of the handmade ceramics from the site were made with a clay with very similar properties, that does not match with the clay samples collected in the vicinity of the site, nor with the known local ceramic productions. Although it was not possible to conclude with certainty whether the exact same clay source was used to create all ceramics and determine the location of such clay source, it can be concluded that the clay most likely was collected further away from the site and should be sought at a more regional level. The fact that there appears to be a consensus on the type of clay deemed suitable to create these ceramics and a similar or the same clay source was used for a large group of handmade ceramics, suggest the clay collection was rather well organized. This contradicts the previous assumptions of local household production whereby each household collects their own clay at a source near their house. The integrated chaîne opératoire approach used in this thesis has furthermore shown that production entails more than just technological actions, and also has a strong social and symbolic dimension. It uncovered the many material-, social – and imagined values that could have been associated with (the production of) handmade ceramics, such as the act of crafting itself, the transformation by fire and the value of materials. This shows that the perception and values attributed handmade ceramics by the early medieval societies of Northern Gaul who created and used them were mostly likely very different from negative perception and values projected onto these ceramics by archaeologists. This thesis therefore shows that there is a strong need for a re-evaluation and foremost a re-valuation of these handmade ceramics, and has taken the first step in doing so by taking a different approach to analysing them with the help of a case-study.Show less
This MA thesis focuses on ceramics from the Bronze and Iron Ages in the southern Netherlands (2000-12 BC) and their use for dating purposes. Researchers used to define and subsequently date types...Show moreThis MA thesis focuses on ceramics from the Bronze and Iron Ages in the southern Netherlands (2000-12 BC) and their use for dating purposes. Researchers used to define and subsequently date types on the basis of characteristics, which is known as a typo-chronology. Around the mid-20th century, absolute dating, and 14C dating in particular, was developed. The legacy of typo-chronology was kept alive, however, and only sporadically questioned by researchers that reverted to absolute dating. In many cases, this questioning was also carried out for narrower time periods. This thesis brings typo-chronologies and absolute dating together within the context of a wider time period, in order to discover the current status of research for this wider time period and to find out how/where research is currently lacking. This endeavour was started by initially compiling an overview of the applicable typo-chronologies considering a handful of variables relating to shape, decoration and material. Subsequently, a compilation of research was made that compares ceramics to absolute dating. Aside of this, a dataset of ceramic assemblages tied to absolute dating was created and discussed. The combined data was used for discussions and conclusions. Finally, the combined results were used to create a physical reference collection with a manual containing a lot of tables and imagery. The main conclusions are that some periods (e.g. Late Bronze Age) are typologically overshadowed by other periods (Iron Age). The vast amount of detail of the leading Iron Age typo-chronology generally causes researchers to make mistakes. Recommendations include paying more attention to some periods and types of ceramics in order to fill voids of knowledge created by focus and disregard. Better compilations and visualisations (e.g. 3D scans) of absolutely dated examples are also recommended.Show less
This MA thesis focuses on ceramics from the Bronze and Iron Ages in the southern Netherlands (2000-12 BC) and their use for dating purposes. Researchers used to define and subsequently date types...Show moreThis MA thesis focuses on ceramics from the Bronze and Iron Ages in the southern Netherlands (2000-12 BC) and their use for dating purposes. Researchers used to define and subsequently date types on the basis of characteristics, which is known as a typo-chronology. Around the mid-20th century, absolute dating, and 14C dating in particular, was developed. The legacy of typo-chronology was kept alive, however, and only sporadically questioned by researchers that reverted to absolute dating. In many cases, this questioning was also carried out for narrower time periods. This thesis brings typo-chronologies and absolute dating together within the context of a wider time period, in order to discover the current status of research for this wider time period and to find out how/where research is currently lacking. This endeavour was started by initially compiling an overview of the applicable typo-chronologies considering a handful of variables relating to shape, decoration and material. Subsequently, a compilation of research was made that compares ceramics to absolute dating. Aside of this, a dataset of ceramic assemblages tied to absolute dating was created and discussed. The combined data was used for discussions and conclusions. Finally, the combined results were used to create a physical reference collection with a manual containing a lot of tables and imagery. The main conclusions are that some periods (e.g. Late Bronze Age) are typologically overshadowed by other periods (Iron Age). The vast amount of detail of the leading Iron Age typo-chronology generally causes researchers to make mistakes. Recommendations include paying more attention to some periods and types of ceramics in order to fill voids of knowledge created by focus and disregard. Better compilations and visualisations (e.g. 3D scans) of absolutely dated examples are also recommended.Show less
The archaeology of the Ottoman Empire has rarely been the focus of research and the period has often been neglected by scholars. Although a lot of information is available from the extensive...Show moreThe archaeology of the Ottoman Empire has rarely been the focus of research and the period has often been neglected by scholars. Although a lot of information is available from the extensive historical record of the empire, the archaeological data is scarce. Pottery from the Ottoman period, however, is the exception and it has been the subject of a large number of publications. The aim of this research was to analyse the pottery assemblages from three cities - Belgrade, Sofia, and Varna, during the Ottoman period, from the 15th until the 19th century. Since historical sources mention that the cities are economically and demographically very different from each other, the research aimed to see if these differences were visible in the archaeological record. For that purpose, publications of Ottoman period pottery from the three cities were studied. The number and characteristics of both imported and local pottery vessels were noted and the gathered data was added to a database. Finally, this database was analysed and the results were compared with written evidence of trade and population change. The results showed noticeable differences in the pottery assemblages, during periods of migration and economic decay. For both Belgrade and Varna, the ratio of locally produced pottery made in the Ottoman tradition seemed to increase during periods of Muslim migration into the cities. Unfortunately, lack of local pottery data from Sofia prevented similar analysis. The economic situation in the cities also seemed to correlate to the type and amount of the imported ceramics they received. The decline in the economic strength of the Ottoman Empire could possibly be identified with the decline of the variety in both local and imported pottery. Overall, this thesis proves that combining both archaeological and historical data could provide us with a remarkably detailed picture of the processes not only in the Ottoman Empire, but also in every historical state. Further research could include new cities and regions into the dataset. This could allow for a better understanding of the economic and demographic processes within the Ottoman Empire.Show less
This thesis concerns the importance of replication studies in agent-based modelling, specifically in the field of archaeology. As a case study, the MERCURY model by Brughmans and Poblome is...Show moreThis thesis concerns the importance of replication studies in agent-based modelling, specifically in the field of archaeology. As a case study, the MERCURY model by Brughmans and Poblome is replicated. In the first chapter, a background is given to ABM in general, as well as to replication and its importance and scarcity. Replication allows us to confirm the findings of existing ABM models, or reject them. The second chapter gives an abstract of Brughmans and Poblome’s research. It includes the archaeological background to their research, a precise description of the MERCURY model and a summary of Brughmans and Poblome’s conclusions. In chapter three, the process of replicating MERCURY is explained. Each version of the replication is described in great detail. This final version is statistically compared to the original model. The replication was found to be, for the most part, statistically equivalent to the original. The source of the despondencies between the various versions of the replication and the original model were due to inaccuracies in the description of the model as well as due to my own coding mistakes. Chapter four includes a brief discussion of existing criticism of the MERCURY model, as well as my own critiques. These critiques are mostly concern the details of the model and the way the authors interpreted their data. Additional experiments are performed to complement the experiments in the original study. I conclude that some of the issues I identify could weaken the original authors’ conclusions. The relation of my replication of MERCURY to other replication studies is discussed in chapter five. The final chapter my research questions are answered. I also shortly discuss how my experiences with replication could help future researches who want to publish agent-based models or replication studies.Show less
The purpose of this thesis is to study the distribution of the Günsenin 3 amphora in Central Greece, during the Middle and Late Byzantine period (ca. 12th-15th centuries). Currently, this amphora...Show moreThe purpose of this thesis is to study the distribution of the Günsenin 3 amphora in Central Greece, during the Middle and Late Byzantine period (ca. 12th-15th centuries). Currently, this amphora is mostly known from shipwreck excavations in the Mediterranean region. Therefore, the two case studies of Orionos street excavation at Chalkis and the survey at the Almirós area, are used to study the distribution patterns of the Günsenin 3 amphora on land. The two case studies show that the amphora was a popular transport jar. This is supported by evidence from shipwrecks, where the amphora was present on shipwrecks dating from the 12th to the 14th century.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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This is a study of the ceramic material recovered from a surveyed rural area to the north of the ancient Greek city of Hyettos. This thesis attempts to identify the location of rural sites, their...Show moreThis is a study of the ceramic material recovered from a surveyed rural area to the north of the ancient Greek city of Hyettos. This thesis attempts to identify the location of rural sites, their date and their possible function through the study of ceramic survey material.Show less
Research master thesis | Archaeology (research) (MA/MSc)
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This Research Master thesis deals with societal contacts during the Middle to Late Bronze Age transitional period in the southern Levant. More specifically, it focusses on Tell Deir ‘Alla, a site...Show moreThis Research Master thesis deals with societal contacts during the Middle to Late Bronze Age transitional period in the southern Levant. More specifically, it focusses on Tell Deir ‘Alla, a site in the middle Jordan Valley. The main question to be answered in thesis is: What is the position of Deir ‘Alla in the societal landscape of the Middle to Late Bronze Age transitional period? An answer was provided through the study of the ceramic material from the site. After a discussion of the stratigraphic context of the material, a typology was constructed. This was compared with typologies at other sites. Based on these typological comparisons and some observations about the general pottery development throughout the region, the majority of the studied pottery assemblage of Deir ‘Alla was tentatively dated to the MB III period. The wider societal structures can be observed through the study of pottery. It is assumed that through certain technological traits in the pottery, certain aspects of the chaine opératoire can be inferred. This is done by looking at production technology, production organization and distribution and exchange. These observations were combined with conclusions in the literature that were made based on settlement patterns. It was possible to get to a better understanding of the interactions between sites in within the Jordan Valley.Show less
