The Chora of Croton 1: The Neolithic Settlement at Capo Alfiere

Catalog of Ceramic, Lithic, and Other Finds

209 Catalog of Ceramic, Lithic, and Other Finds Because of the special circumstances of this publication , this catalog was compiled in a somewhat unconventional way. Ordinarily, finds are illustrated following a systematic review of a collection, in which pieces to illustrate are selected either according to a set rule—such as including all pieces that are decorated or indicative of vessel form—or according to the excavator ’s sense of the typical finds and the important range of variation among them. Neither was possible in this case. Although the finds had been cogently discussed and illustrated in Morter’s PhD dissertation and an extensive range of finds had been drawn and/or photographed, the collection as a whole had never been the subject of complete illustration. While there is a sizable corpus of drawings and photographs available from Capo Alfiere, we cannot know with certainly how far this body of documentation reflects what Morter’s ultimate assessment of the important aspects of the finds from the site would have been. Given this situation, we decided to compile all the available drawings and photographs of Capo Alfiere finds from the site archives, and selected from this a series of illustrations that displayed with moderate comprehensiveness (as far as we can tell) the site’s typical finds, exceptional finds, and range of variation. It should be noted that the finds have been ordered and annotated from archive pictures, without the ability to check them against the original finds. Inevitably, the resulting catalog has a few lacunae: for example, there are not as many depictions as one might desire of lithics, daub, and polished stone other than the cache of axes. Similarly, it was not always possible to obtain measurements on the pieces illustrated, but estimates of rim diameters and bases have been included, along with any dimensions written on drawings, in lab records , or in field documentation. For comparative purposes , most drawings are at a scale of 1:3 and photos at 1:2; for intricately detailed or very large pieces, the scale was adjusted accordingly. The finds are divided first by material and then by strata; the ceramics are further sorted by vessel part and style. One note on the style categorizations: In Morter’s original decorative categories for pottery (see Chapter 7), “Stentinello decoration” connoted elaborate geometric designs, and “punctate” connoted simpler designs made from less elaborately arranged impressions . These correspond closely to the distinction other analysts have often observed between Stentinello Wares and Impressed Wares, and we have accordingly equated them with these terms. Morter’s other categories , such as “rocker,” “painted,” and “undecorated,” are straightforward. It should be noted, however, that certain ambiguities remain, mostly in how individual pieces are categorized—for instance, one common design at Capo Alfiere used finger markings, normally a feature of Impressed Ware, within a Stentinello geometric syntax typical of Stentinello wares. In the end, such ambiguities suggest not that our typological categories should be defined in some other way but that Neolithic potters simply did not work in rigidly applied typological categories. John Robb Deena Berg Introduction 210 Catalog of Ceramic, Lithic, and Other Finds CA 0225-02 (Stratum Ia, Context 025) Impressed rim and body Stratum Ia Ceramics: Rims 1:3 Description: Bowl, upper body with array of finger markings. Est. rim dia. 28.0. CA 0972 (Stratum Ia, Context 110) Impressed rim 1:3 Description: Bowl, body with array of short arrow-shaped impressions. Est. rim dia. 24.8 cm. CA 0975-02 (Stratum Ia, Context 110) Impressed rim Description: Bowl, body with array of slanting lines. Est. rim dia. 30.2 cm. CA 0337 (Stratum Ia, Context 041) Stentinello rim Description: Bowl, rim with row of diamonds. Est. rim dia. 14.3 cm. 1:3 CA 0373 (Stratum Ia, Context 045) Stentinello rim Description: Bowl, rim with band of scalloped vertical hatching below. Est. rim dia. 16.3 cm. 1:3 1:3 1:2 211 Catalog of Ceramic, Lithic, and Other Finds CA 1160 (Stratum Ia, Context 137) Stentinello rim 1:3 CA 0826-01 (Stratum Ia, Context 105) Stentinello rim Description: Line of rounded diamonds at rim, band of zigzags below. Description: Jar, wavy lines at rim, inset diamonds below. Est. rim dia. 14.7 cm. CA 0826-03 (Stratum Ia, Context 105) Stentinello rim Description: Parallel lines below rim. CA 0973-02 (Stratum Ia, Context 110) Stentinello rim Description: Band of crosshatching at rim...