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Low Hauxley Archive: Why Do Archaeologists Study Pottery?
Archaeologists study the lives of people who lived thousand of years ago by looking at the things that have survived
from that time. Pottery is an important type of evidence because, unlike the baskets, blankets, wooden tools, ropes
and clothing, it survives under the soil for thousands of years. Even when pottery is broken into tiny pieces, it can
still tell us something about the past.
In the Bronze Age, between 2500BC and 800BC, people were using pottery for domestic purposes and as an important part
of their funerary rituals. Nearly every burial or cremation found by archaeologists from this time contains at least
one highly decorated pot. The decoration itself is often an insight into the past, being made from fingernail
impressions or fingerprints, and is a way of getting closer to people from the past.
Analysis of the inside of pottery vessels can tell us what it might have contained. Sadly, this process can be
destructive and so was not used on the pots from Low Hauxley.
The fabric of the pot itself can also be analysed to see where the clay came from. Small pieces of grit added to the
clay can be sourced from different parts of the country and can sometimes tell us where a pot was made and how far it
travelled before being used in a funeral. This in turn gives us an insight into prehistoric trading patterns.
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