From Clay to Pots: Pottery Production and Workplaces in Syria during the EB III-IV

The archaeological evidence related to working areas and ateliers in Syria and south-eastern Anatolia especially during the second half of the 3rd millennium BC testify to a wide range of installations together with slags and by-products of firing activities, showing the presence of specialized areas for pottery production. The high degree of pottery standardization witnesses to the intensification and the adoption of faster processes of manufacture during the period of marked urban growth in the region. The system of production was probably diversified, involving both household production and centralized control by the public authority. Data collected from recent excavations in North Inner Syria and in the Euphrates Valley are analyzed in order to reconstruct the different steps of the working and firing processes, shedding light on this key sector of ancient craft production and technology.