Investigation Of The Hellenistic Period Pottery Production Technology From The Seyitömer Mound (Kütahya/Turkey)

Abstract

Anatolia has hosted many civilizations from ancient times to the present. There are many settlements belonging to past civilizations. One of them is the Seyitömer Mound. The Seyitömer Mound is located 25 km northwest of Kütahya. It is a 5,000 year-old mound. It has been enlightened that the Seyitömer Mound has been inhibited by civilizations in the Bronze Age, Achaemenid, Hellenistic and Roman periods. From the excavations performed between 2006 and 2013, over 7,000 inventorial and 20,000 finds to be examined have been delivered to the Archaeological Museum of Kütahya and 1,381 artifacts have been exhibited in one of the first private museums belonging to archaeological excavation sites in Turkey at Dumlupınar University. In this study, chemical and mineralogical/phase composition of 30 pottery body sherds unearthed in the Seyitömer Mound belonging to the Hellenistic Period (334–330 BC) have been investigated. Chemical analysis of samples was obtained by wavelength dispersive X-ray fluorescence (WDXRF) and mineralogical/phase composition was obtained by X-ray diffraction (XRD). Scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and microanalysis technique (EDX) were performed for microstructural and microchemical analysis. Thermal analysis (TG–DTA) was also employed as a complementary characterization technique to estimate firing temperature of the potsherds. From the results, ceramic bodies have been produced from clay deposits rich in iron, containing illitic type minerals and carbonated minerals such as calcite and dolomite. Raw materials contain calcite-rich and magnesium minerals. Firing temperatures of the potsherds range from 600°C to 1100°C.