Ethnoarchaeological examination of workspaces for rural producers of market-oriented wares

• Published in: Journal of archaeological science, reports Vol. 53; p. 104329
• Main Author: London, Gloria
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Elsevier Ltd 01.02.2024
• Subjects: Ceramic technology; Craft specialists; Cyprus; Ethnoarchaeology; Mediterranean; Philippines; Potters; Mediterranean; Potters; Cyprus; Philippines; Craft specialists; Ethnoarchaeology; Ceramic technology
• ISSN: 2352-409X
• DOI: 10.1016/j.jasrep.2023.104329

•Ethnoarchaeological research among traditional potters in the Philippines and Cyprus shows that women working at made and sold 1000′s of handmade unglazed utilitarian pots annually.•The organisation of traditional pottery industry varied within and between Cypriot villages.•Dearth of ancient workshops suggests that home-based industries could have played a role in producing ordinary jugs, jars, cookware, ovens, and ritual forms.•Female potters in Cyprus worked with a specific clay body for water jugs which differed from the clay mixture used for all other pot types. Communities of traditional female potters produced thousands of utilitarian market-oriented wares from local clays on the islands of Cyprus and Luzon in the 1980s. They worked inside and outside their homes, together with members of their nuclear family, or in a communal workspace. Although the physical evidence of production tends to be sparse, the two ethnoarchaeological studies of craft specialists discussed here provide clues to identify ancient potters who worked in their household courtyards. In Cyprus, a partial move to a dedicated village workspace, away from home courtyards, initiated the use of a communal kiln and a shift from reliance on help from spouses and children. At the same time, continuity prevailed for independent potters who continued to work at home. The household production of market-oriented pottery, by male and female craftspeople in Cyprus and the Philippines, supported their family and village while meeting the needs of customers in villages and towns.