Ashmolean Museum of Art and Archaeology		The Collections:
	PotWeb:	Ceramics online @ the Ashmolean Museum	•	Early Europe & Near East
			•	Classical to Medieval
			•	Europe from 1500
			•	Oriental & Islamic

The ABC of pottery in archaeology

Where does it come from?
In the composition of its clay, pottery carries a fingerprint of the geological outcrops of the area where the clay was dug, and petrologists can help seek that source. Locally available filler was added to some clays and this may also help to `source' the vessels. By these means, pottery found in Oxford has been traced to sources all over Europe.	Small rounded earthenware jar, made at the Brill/Boarstall production centre in Buckinghamshire

Why is pottery useful?

The ABC of ...

How was it made?

© Copyright University of Oxford, Ashmolean Museum, 2000 The Ashmolean Museum retains the copyright of all materials used here and in its Museum Web pages. last updated: jcm/27-jun-2000