The origins and use of the potter's wheel in ancient Egypt / / S.K. Doherty.

• Superior document: Archaeopress Egyptology ; 7
• VerfasserIn: Doherty, S. K.,
• Place / Publishing House: Oxford : : Archaeopress,, [2015]; ©2015
• Year of Publication: 2015
• Edition: 1st ed.
• Language: English
• Series: Archaeopress Egyptology ; 7.
• Physical Description: 1 online resource (x, 140 pages) :; illustrations.

Despite many years work on the technology of pottery production it is perhaps surprising that the origins of the potter's wheel in Egypt have yet to be determined. This volume seeks to rectify this situation by determining when the potter's wheel was introduced into Egypt.

Table of Contents

Cover -- Title page -- Copyright page -- Dedication -- Contents -- List of Figures -- List of Tables -- Acknowledgements -- Acknowledgments -- Map of sites -- Chronology -- Introduction -- Seeking the Potter's Wheel -- Figure 2.1: Different Types of Potter's Wheels with French Mistranslations identified by Childe (1954) tour, tournette, the stick and kick wheels. After Miller, 2009, pg 114, fig 4.5. Drawing: S. Doherty -- Figure 2.2: Tomb of Ty showing potter with possibly the earliest known representation of a potter's wheel in Egypt, storeroom, register 7 Saqqara, Egypt c.2450-2300 B.C. (Épron &amp -- Daumas, 1939, p. pl 71) -- Figure 2.3: An example of an s-shaped crack, indicative of thrown pottery, from goblet P03-219, Tell Sabi Abyad, Syria, Late Bronze Age (Duistermaat, 2008, pp. 379, fig V27) -- Figure 2.4: The Twist Reverse Twist Drill. A) Old Kingdom example with 2 stone weights, Gardiner's U25 determinative B) The New Kingdom variety with a single limestone weight. These would have either a forked shaft attachment as shown, or a hollow borer w -- Figure 2.5: Manufacturing Meidum bowls over a mould or former. The clay is firmly pressed over the mould and curved over. Then a knife or similar tool is used to scrape away excess clay to shape the base. Drawing: S. Doherty -- Figure 2.6: An example of a CD7 bowl, 4th dynasty, Giza. AW9944-3. Photo A Wodzińska -- Figure 2.8: Left: Japanese potter's wheel with socketed disk (a) hardwood pivot -- (b) hardwood wheel with a porcelain cup as bearing -- (c) hollow cylinder extends down the pivot to provide an annual bearing at (d) which steadies the wheel -- (e) stick to pla -- Figure 2.9: Clay wheelhead from pottery quarter at Ur 44kg, dia 75cm, 5cm thick, c.3000 B.C. Note the 8 pin marks, possibly for an attachment to the spindle of the pivot (Simpson, 1997b, pp. 50, fig 1).

Figure 2.10: The remains of the potter's workshop, with the 20cm deep slot and short walls (a) and (b). After Verner (1995, pl 5, fig 26). Labels: S Doherty after Verner (1995, pg 26) -- Figure 2.11: Left: The Abu Sir clay wheel-head. Burnt clay, 45cm in diameter. (Odler, in press -- Verner, 1992 -- 1995, pp. 27, fig 27a, pl 5) and Right: Verner's interpretation of how the wheel was set up (Verner, 1992 -- Verner, 1995, pp. 27, fig 27b) -- Figure 2.12: The reconstructed potter's wheel, with the pivot head curved or in the shape of a "mushroom" in the upper example, flat in the lower examples. Drawing: S. Doherty -- Figure 2.13 The British Museum Collection of unprovenanced Egyptian Potter's Wheel bearings. Photo: S. Doherty ©The British Museum -- Ancient Sources for the potter's wheel -- Figure 3.1: Possible potter's wheel scene from the rock cut tomb of Nebemakhet, Giza (After Holthoer 1977, pg 6, fig 1) -- Figure 3.2: Potter's Workshop from tomb of Ty, storeroom, register 7 Saqqara, Egypt c.2450-2300 B.C. (After: Épron &amp -- Daumas, 1939, p. pl 71) -- Figure 3.4: Tomb of Khentika from Saqqara, in the cemetery of Pharoah Teti, depicting two potters, 6th dynasty. (After: Holthoer 1977, pp. 8-9, Harpur 2011, pp. 444-445) -- Figure 3.5: The loose block of a seated potter working on his potter's wheel, with a second potter's wheel with completed vessel to the right. After: Vachala 2004, p. 179, Fragment I 204 -- Figure 3.6: The tomb of Bakt III pottery making scene. After Holthoer 1977, pg 12, fig 14 -- Figure 3.7: The pottery workshop scene from the tomb of Amenemhat. After: Newberry 1893, pg 30-31, pl XI -- Figure 3.8: The pottery workshop of Khnumhotep III at Beni Hasan. After: Newberry, 1893, pp. 68, pl XXIX -- Figure 3.10: The pottery workshop scene in the tomb of Djeutihotep. Newberry &amp -- Griffith 1985, pl 25.

Figure 3.9: The most complete potter representation from the pottery scene from tomb of Nomarch Djeutihotep, Deir el Bersha (After: Newberry &amp -- Griffith 1895, Pl. 25) -- Figure 3.11: The potters from the tomb of Horemkawef, Hierakonpolis, Second Intermediate Period. After Friedman 2006, pg 25 -- Figure 3.12: Pottery workshop of Kenamun (TT 93), Thebes. After: Davies 1930, pl 59 -- Figure 3.13: Servant Statuette of Potter, perhaps from 5th dynasty tomb of Nikauinpu, Giza [E10628] 13.2 x 6.7 x 12.5cm. Photo: Oriental Museum Collections, Chicago -- Figure 3.14: A close up of the potter's wheel in Gemniemhat's tomb at Saqqara, AEIN 1633 ©Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. Photo: Ivor Pridden -- Figure 3.15: Wooden model from the tomb of Gemniemhat at Saqqara, AEIN 1633 ©Ny Carlsberg Glyptotek. Right: bird's eye view showing carpenters at work behind the potters in the partially covered buildings, while the potters work outside. One works the whe -- Figure 3.16: Relief from the tomb of the 5th dynasty Vizier Ptahshepses pA iqdw n pr dt Wri "the potter of the mortuary estate, Weri" iqdw "potter" is circled in red. After Vachala 2004a, p. 179, Fragmente 57(B)+81+93+221 -- Figure 3.17: Section of papyrus from the archive of the Raneferef's mortuary temple showing the inscription qd nTr at the top of the column. After Posener-Kriéger, Verner &amp -- Vymazalová 2006, pl 49. -- Figure 3.19: The Pyramid text representations of potters (L-R) A-C from Pyramid of Pepi I (Leclant, Mathieu, &amp -- Pierre-Croisiau, 2001, pl XVI: col 8, XXIV: col 30), D from the Pyramid of Merenre (Sethe, 1910, p. 160) from the Pyramid text spell 1185 -- Inventing the potter's wheel.

Figure 4.1: The Chaîne Opératoire approach. The four basic links are raw material procurement, technology (separated into primary and secondary reduction and typology), use and discard. After: Grace (1989, p. 3) -- Figure 4.2: An example of Petrie's Black topped ware, UC9546 ©Petrie Museum of Egyptian Archaeology, UCL -- Figure 4.4: Representation of a shrine on the top of the Uruk Vase. Showing from left: man carrying basket of offerings to priestess in front of shrine or temple of goddess Ianna. Shrine is represented by two reed bundle standards, with streamers which ar -- Figure 4.5: Map of the Near East and Egypt, showing keys sites mentioned in the text. S. Doherty -- Figure 4.6: Polychrome handbuilt pottery © Trustees of the British Museum AN144655 -- Figure 4.7: The plan of the city of Uruk-Warka, showing the temple complexes of its patron gods in the centre of the city on the highest ground. Within these precincts, craft workers' workshops were located. Roaf 1990, pg 60, fig 60b -- Figure 4.8: The Twist Reverse Twist Drill. A) Old Kingdom example with 2 stone weights, Gardiner's U25 determinative B) The New Kingdom variety with a single limestone weight. These would have either a forked shaft attachment as shown, or a hollow borer w -- Figure 4.9: Door Socket made of Quartzite found near to the temple revetment at Hierakonpolis, and about 10m away from the Main deposit within the temple enclosure. Note the socket for the pivot of the doorjamb and the human head to left. After Quibel -- Figure 4.10: Map of the Town of Hierakonpolis, with the findspot of the quartzite doorsocket and stone grinders' workshop indicated After:Quibell 1900, plate LXXIII.

Figure 4.11: Map of Egypt showing basalt outcrops (solid black) and areas containing Triassic to Tertiary felsic and/or mafic flows, sills, dykes and plugs. (Mallory-Greenough et al. 1999 Pg 1263) -- Figure 4.12: Niuserre upper temple, Abu Sir 5th Dynasty. Basalt blocks in situ in temple floor, with other blocks of basalt and granite lying about. Note the remains of socket joint in the circular granite block in centre of the picture, possibly indicati -- Figure 4.13: Examples of V-shaped bowls, made by arranging coils of clay and then thinned and shaped on the potter's wheel. Left and Centre: BM 125942 -- 1937, 1211.224 from Tell Brak ©Trustees of the British Museum Middle photo: S. Doherty. Right: profile -- Figure 4.14: The Chaine Operatoire of the v-rimmed bowl. (1) It is built up with coils (letter A-I), upon the potter's wheel. (2) The wheel is spun and the coiled pot is thinned and shaped (J-O). (3) The pot is cut off the wheel and the base removed (P-Q) -- How did the Potter's Wheel come to Egypt? -- Figure 5.1: Ceramics from Stratum Ia in Buto. Left: Indigenous Egyptian Ma'adi style handmade jar, Right: Uruk style coil-made and potter's wheel finished V-rim jars made in Nile clay. ©DAI 2012 -- Figure 5.2: The Complete wall from the storeroom of the tomb of Ty, depicting the various craft scenes. Women are coloured yellow, men brown (After Épron &amp -- Daumas, 1939, p. pl 71) Osiris.net 2012: http://www.osirisnet.net/mastabas/ty/e_ty_04.htm -- Figure 5.3: A relatively rare example of a man making pottery using the hammer and anvil technique, an activity normally undertaken by women. El Nazla, Faiyoum,Egypt. Photo: S. Doherty.

Figure 5.4: Evidence for social status of the potter at the wheel displaying prominent ribs. Limestone statuette, body and wheel in red/brown, base black 6th dynasty, tomb of Nikauinpau, Giza, 13.2 x 6.7 x 12.5cm, Oriental Institute, University of Chicago.