Thesis--Wisconsin. / Includes bibliographical references (leaves 213-215).

Thesis (M.A.)--Zhongguo wen hua xue yuan. / "Han tao da shi nian biao": p.[161]-[164]. Includes bibliographical references (p. 157-160).

Inaug.-Diss.-Tübingen. / Vita. Includes bibliographical references.

Thesis (M. A.)--Zhongguo wen hua xue yuan. / "Han tao da shi nian biao": p.[161]-[164]. Includes bibliographical references (p. 157-160).

Thesis (M.A.)--University of Missouri-Columbia, 2005. / The entire dissertation/thesis text is included in the research.pdf file; the official abstract appears in the short.pdf file (which also appears in the research.pdf); a non-technical general description, or public abstract, appears in the public.pdf file. Title from title screen of research.pdf file viewed on (May 26, 2006) Includes bibliographical references.

No description available.

The aim of the Master’s Degree: Ceramic Technology was to produce an innovative body of ceramic work, personal in concept, with reference to South African indigenous ceramics. The main objectives focused on investigating and developing handbuilt forms, a variety of surface decoration techniques and firing methods derived from and inspired by our diverse cultural heritage. Various clay bodies were also developed to construct an innovative range of hand-built and slip cast ceramic products/artefacts, mainly vessels. The investigation included the development of an improved clay body for hand-built pots suitable for alternative firing methods incorporating a variety of surface techniques. The research undertaken for the M-Tech celebrates and expatiates technological data on the techniques and traditional approaches of handbuilt ceramics especially as practised by rural potters in designated areas chosen by the researcher. Relationships developed through visits during these investigations established comfortable working relationships, making the exchange of information possible. As a result, the knowledge and skills gained by the researcher has placed her in a position to enable her to address the needs of the rural community when required, creating opportunities for cross-cultural exchange. Parallel to this investigation was a study directed at developing appropriate ceramic surfaces based on European lace. Various techniques of embossing, incising, sprigging, impressing and glazing were explored to simulate European lace. The idea was to combine the design and construction of hand-built rural crafts in the development of a series of pit-fired ceramic pots. This resulted in a true integration of European and African traditions in the design and development of a body of uniquely South African products. / E. Hön R. Wessels

"The idea and fact of containment have been the primary significance of pottery from the beginning, and pots of all ages and peoples, even when their ostensible function was ceremonial or symbolical, have expressed by their generous swelling volumes, the potential or holding things of vital importance to man food, liquid or the furnishings of the grave." The utilitarian value of a pot is inseparable from its aesthetic quality. "There can be no fullness of complete realization or utility without beauty, refinement and charm, for the simple reason that their absence must in the long run be intolerable to both maker and consumer... The continued production of utilities without delight in making and using is bound to produce only boredom and to end in sterility." Modern pottery, whether industrial or that of the artist potter, has each in its different way tended to separate the aesthetic and the utilitarian. This is one symptom of the cultural decline of our Western tradition since the Eighteenth Century. The making of pots has persisted from earliest times to the present day through our ever changing world. Circumstances have at times obscured the essential truths of this art.

This study investigates how systems of pottery production change in relation to increasing cultural complexity. A revised version of the important model outlined by Rice (1981) is presented and tested with ceramic data from the Longshan Period of northern China-. At the end of the period, at least one state evolved in the Huanghe (Yellow River) valley region. The model describes social factors that may cause ceramic change in chiefdoms. It describes three alternative strategies of producers: diversification, simplification, and conservatism. Consumer demand for labor-intensive vessels used in displays of status may also cause changes in production. After Rice (1981), the model predicts that variety of ceramic categories should increase and that vessels should become increasingly standardized. Further, there should be a change in mode of production as sociopolitical complexity increases. The model is tested with ceramic data from three sites in Henan (Hougang, Baiying, Meishan) and one in Shandong (Lujiakou). During a period of six months in 1987, I examined reconstructed vessels from these sites in museums and archaeological work stations located in Henan and Shandong provinces. The following analyses are described: analysis of shape classes defined in site reports (Chapter 4), diversity of shape classes, dimensional standardization, within-class standardization, and assessment of labor-intensive vessels per phase (Chapter 5). In addition, evidence for pottery production at sites and techniques of pottery production are discussed (Chapter 6). Two chapters examine published data on differentiation with respect to nonceramic goods at sites as well. Since sample size is small for each analysis, the conclusions made here should be regarded as hypotheses that can guide future research. In brief, the model is partially supported. A pattern of diversification results in some phases and regions. However, there is no indication of increasing standardization or change in mode of production. Ceramic production in west-central Henan as exemplified by the site of Meishan may have been impacted by a developing bronze industry. / Arts, Faculty of / Anthropology, Department of / Graduate

A thesis submitted to the Faculty of Science, University of the Witwatersrand, Johannesburg, in fulfilment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy. 22 March 2017. / The notion that ceramic styles mark ethnic and linguistic groups is problematic. The notion perceives cultures as geographically discrete with distinct material and cultural traits. Research in the 1960s has demonstrated that social boundaries are a product of interaction and not isolation. Ethnoarchaeological research in the 1970s and 1980s adopted information exchange and social interaction models to understand stylistic boundaries. These studies show that material culture style does not always mark ethnic or linguistic boundaries and may not be prominent if there is no competition for resources. Depending on a number of factors, style variations in material culture may mark the style of an individual, a community of practice or social identity. Other factors are also relevant; the matter is complex. To investigate this complexity, an ethnoarchaeological study was launched to study the products of 41 contemporary potters affiliated with different social, political and linguistic groups in south-eastern Botswana. This study demonstrates that variations in different parts of the process of manufacturing ceramics can mark different kinds of social boundaries. Clay sourcing strategies in south-eastern Botswana today show that the choice in the selection of potting clay is principally dictated by distance to the source. In contrast, in the forming and shaping of pots, boundaries are influenced more by teacher-learner networks than ethnic group and geographic location. Decoration styles also show strong association to learning networks. Geographic location is more influential in determining techniques of firing pots. Here, ―community of practice‖ and mobility of potters present significant stylistic and technological boundaries. The chaîne opératoire of living pottery traditions may assist in the interpretation of pottery in the Iron Age of southern Africa, however, the connection between the past and present is complex. / LG2018