The power of technology in the Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean : the case of the painted plaster / Ann Brysbaert.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Brysbaert, Ann.

Series:

Monographs in Mediterranean archaeology (Equinox Pub.) ; v. 12.

Monographs in Mediterranean archaeology

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Bronze age--Mediterranean Region.

Bronze age.

Industries, Prehistoric--Mediterranean Region.

Industries, Prehistoric.

Painting, Prehistoric--Mediterranean Region.

Painting, Prehistoric.

Plastering--Mediterranean Region--History.

Plastering.

History.

Mediterranean Region--Antiquities.

Mediterranean Region.

Antiquities.

Physical Description:

xiv, 258 pages, 12 unnumbered pages of plates : illustrations (some color), maps ; 26 cm.

Place of Publication:

London ; Oakville, CT : Equinox Pub., 2008.

Summary:

In the past, Bronze Age painted plaster in the Aegean and the Eastern Mediterranean has been studied from a range of different but isolated viewpoints. One of the current questions about this material is its direction of transfer. This volume brings technological, iconographic and other approaches closer together by completing certain gaps in the literature on technology, and by investigating how and why technological transfer has developed and what broader impact this had on the wider social dynamics of the late Middle Bronze Age and Late Bronze Age in the eastern Mediterranean.

This study approaches the topic of painted plaster by a multidisciplinary methodology. Moreover, when human actors and their interactions are placed in the centre of the scene, it demonstrates the human forces through which transfer was enabled and how multiple social identities and the inter-relationships of these actors with each other and their material world were expressed through their craft production and organization.

Studying painted plaster in the Aegean cannot be considered separate from similar traditions in Egypt and in the Near East, and so the data from the sixteen sites investigated here has been contextualized within a wider framework of Bronze Age interconnections both in time and space.

This study makes clear that it is not possible to deduce a one-way directional transfer of this painting tradition. By integrating both technology and iconography with its hybrid character, a clear 'technological style' was defined in the predominant al fresco work found on these specific sites. The author suggests that the technological transfer most likely moved from west to east. This has important implications in the broader politico-economic and social dynamics of the eastern Mediterranean during the Late Bronze Age. Since this art/craft was very much elite-owned, it shows how the smaller states, such as the regions of the Aegean, were capable of staying within the large trade and exchange network that comprised the large powers of the East and Egypt. The painted plaster reflects a very visible presence in the archaeological record and, because it cannot be transported without its artisans, it suggests specific interactions of royal courts in the East with the Aegean peoples. The painted plaster as an immovable feature required at least the temporary presence of a team of painters and plaserers. This factor forms an argument in support of travelling artisans who, in turn, shed light onto broader aspects of contact, trade and exchange mechanisms during the late Middle Bronze Age and Late Bronze Age.

Contents:

1 (Prologue): A Tale of 'Frescoes' 1

Introduction 1

Analytical, Technological and Conservation Studies 7

Social Aspects as the Interface between Technology, Iconography and Style 11

2 The Power of Technology, Knowledge and Social Agency 15

Introduction 15

Painted Plaster Definitions 16

Technology Definitions 17

Who were the Artisans? 23

Social Identities and Social Organization of Artisans 27

Technology within an Elite Context 34

Human Action at the Epicentre of Technology: a Labyrinth of Relationships 41

3 Technological Style and the Power of Technology and Knowledge 45

Introduction 45

Iconography, Technology and Style 45

Technological Style 48

4 Archaeometric Approaches to Technologies and Materials 52

Introduction 52

Instrumental Analysis and Sampling Strategies 53

The Methodology of Experimentation and Replication 63

Conclusions 76

5 Painted Plaster in the Aegean and Eastern Mediterranean 77

Introduction 77

Cross-Cultural Contacts and Crafts in East Mediterranean Societies 77

The Role of Painted Plaster in East Mediterranean Societies 84

The Archaeological Context and the Importance of the Material per Site 86

Discussion of Painted Plaster and its Date within its Context on Site 107

6 Analyzed to Bits: Technological and Iconographic Transfer 111

Introduction 111

Macroscopic Study Results 112

Microscopic Study Results 121

Mineralogical Identification of Plaster and Pigments by Means of XRD 128

The Blue Pigment Issue 134

Non-Destructive Approaches 1: Instrumental Analyses 139

Non-Destructive Approaches 2: Experimental Replication 140

7 Considering Material Culture and Social Identities 147

Introduction 147

Technology and Social Agency: Archaeological Context 148

Social Agency and Technology: Social Context 165

Conclusions 185

8 Technology and Social Agency of Painted Plaster 186

Introduction 186

Technological Transfer in Support of Iconographic Transfer? 187

Agency in Painted Plaster Production in the Late Bronze Age eastern Mediterranean 188

Technology and Trade in an eastern Mediterranean Bronze Age Context 189

Where to Go from Here? 195.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references (pages [199]-242) and index.

ISBN:

9781845534332

1845534336

OCLC:

229750287