The Clay World of Çatalhöyük: A fine-grained perspective

Description

This book addresses a paradox concerning the role of clay at Çatalhöyük that arises from conflicting material culture and landscape views of what clay truly afforded this early agricultural community. The highly-developed and artistically rich clay-based material culture points to clay being a major contributor to the site's success. However, the underlying thick, impermeable clay beds are also thought to have impeded the drainage of seasonal floods, periodically isolating the community in extensive wetlands and clearly hostile to early agriculture. A landscape re-appraisal is made based on the recognition that the heavier clay artifacts must have been locally sourced and can therefore be read as direct samples of the local Neolithic landscape. The result is a revised landscape interpretation that no longer conflicts with the observed patterns of clay use or broader subsistence practice at Çatalhöyük. Clay’s roleis re-examined in this revised landscape context to demonstrate a fuller and more complex picture than previously thought. The Clay World of Çatalhöyük: a fine-grained perspective Contents List of figures List of tables 1 The clay world of Çatalhöyük Clay in the Neolithic - why study? Situating Çatalhöyük The regional context A familiarity with clay A clay paradox A holistic clay materials-clay landscape approach Clay defined Key themes How was clay used at Çatalhöyük? What were the clay resources and how did these change? What was the nature of Çatalhöyük’s clay landscape? What was the relationship between material culture and landscape? Was Çatalhöyük’s success due to its clays? Landscape, taskscape, clayscape 2 Clay-based material culture studies at Çatalhöyük: a review Clay in the Neolithic Clay-based materials at Çatalhöyük Mudbrick Plaster Pottery Clay Balls Geometric clay objects Stamp seals Figurines Beyond the existing studies 3 The clay landscape of Çatalhöyük New landscape thinking questions clay’s role Biogenic studies Clay studies Summary 4 Establishing the sequences of clay use Mapping the clay-based material culture The clays Clay colour as an investigative approach Clay colour explained The four fundamental clay groups of Neolithic Çatalhöyük Summary 5 Reinterpreting the Holocene alluvium: challenging Çatalhöyük’s clay foundation Reconstructing the Holocene Landscape of Çatalhöyük KOPAL’s wetland Physiographic constraints The wrong river Alluvial deposition – vertical not lateral accretion Why these clays are dark The clayscape emerges Summary 6 The Holocene alluvium – a clay for all purposes What kind of clay is the Lower Alluvium? Performance Non-architectural uses Clay ball and geometric clay objects (GCOs) Mini-balls Figurines Pottery Early mudbricks – buildings and consequences Châine opératoire Alluvial clay abandoned – understanding the first major clay transition at Çatalhöyük Possible causes A likely story Wider Consequences Landscape expression Summary 7 A common ground: the white marls and lake clays of the Konya Plain The plaster sequence in detail The white marls at Çatalhöyük Differentiating white marl and burnt lime plasters The burnt lime plaster up close Up in smoke – re-examining the evidence for burnt lime technology Implications The multi-layer plasters Single layer white marl plaster Beyond the pale – The non-white marls The geomorphological setting Material culture expression Landscape affordances Summary 8 Colluvium: the rise of a new clay Colluvium and the ‘clay cycle’ at Çatalhöyük The composition of East Mound colluvium The processes and variables of colluvium formation The main areas of colluvium formation Early occupation – the beginnings of the clay cycle Mid to late occupation – the full clay cycle established Interpreting the use of colluvial clay Çatalhöyük’s History Houses and colluvium Stable clay aggregates The consequences of colluvial clay use Social implications Local landscape consequences Summary 9 Arrivals from a distant clayscape Pottery at Çatalhöyük The fabric sequence Questions: what, how, where, why and who? Procedure Fabrics and sources Thin section analysis The expected local fabric The ‘gritty ware’ fabrics A non-local provenance confirmed Possible volcanic sources Findings Modelling a higher resolution provenance Closing in Gritty ware production and properties How – comparative production sequences Why? Who? Wider activity Summary 10 Conclusions Findings Çatalhöyük’s four main clay groups The need to re-interpret Çatalhöyük’s clay landscape The Lower Alluvium – both a versatile raw material and a soil resource Changes in Lower Alluvium use explained White plasters – challenging held views and recognising innovation The non-white marls Colluvium and the clay cycle at Çatalhöyük Distant clays Answering the question Another view Final remarks Bibliography