Micro-Geoarchaeological Study of Pyrotechnological Products at Atlit-Yam
摘要
This chapter presents an overview of analyses conducted on heat-altered materials and features identified at Atlit-Yam, a submerged Pre-Pottery Neolithic site dated between the late tenth through 9th millennia BP. The materials examined include: (1) heated mudbricks, (2) combustion features, and (3) pottery along with other clay-based pyrotechnological products. All analyses employed micro-geoarchaeological techniques, including mineralogical analysis, micro-remain identification and quantification, and micromorphology/petrography. Our findings reveal a complex and varied pyrotechnological industry at Atlit-Yam. The heated mudbricks were produced at extremely high temperatures (700–900 ºC) under low oxygen conditions and exhibit minimal use of temper. The combustion features displayed elevated temperatures and demonstrated a preference for wood as fuel. Finally, the pottery and other clay-based heated items studied here were produced through pyrotechnological techniques similar to those seen in other Pottery Neolithic traditions, although the latter are characterized by lower firing temperatures (500–700 ºC) than PPNC mudbricks, and the use of calcareous pastes. A diachronic comparison with coastal Pottery Neolithic sites has facilitated the association of pyrotechnological changes with broader social and subsistence shifts occurring during the Neolithic. These studies introduce innovative methods and approaches to underwater archaeology that have not yet been systematically applied to other submerged sites in marine environments.