White Ware
Encyclopedia
White Ware or "Vaisselle Blanche" is the first precursor to clay
pottery
developed in the Levant that appeared in the 9th millennium BC
, during the pre-pottery (aceramic) neolithic
period.
This crumbly form of proto-pottery was manufactured by pulverizing limestone
, then heating it to a temperature in excess of 1000 °C. This reduced it to lime from which could be mixed with ashes, straw or gravel and made into a white or grey lime plaster
. The plaster was initially so soft that it could be moulded, before hardening through air drying into a rigid cement. The plaster was formed into vessels by coiling to serve some of the functions of later clay
pottery. White Ware vessels tended to be rather large and coarse, often found in the dwelling rooms where they were made indicating their use for stationary storage of dry goods. Designs included a range of large and heavy rectangular tubs, circular vessels and smaller bowls, cups and jars. Imprints of basketry on the exterior of some vessels suggest that some were shaped into large basket shapes. It is likely these larger vessels were mainly used for dry goods storage. Some of the White Ware vessels found were decorated with incisions and thick stripes of red ochre. Other uses of this material included plastering of skulls and as a floor or wall covering. Some lime plaster floors were also painted red, and a few were found with designs imprinted on them.
White Ware was commonly found in PPNB archaeological sites in Syria such as Tell Aswad
, Tell Abu Hureyra
, Bouqras
and El Kowm. Similar sherd
s were excaveated at Ain Ghazal in northern Jordan
. White pozzolanic ware from Tell Ramad
and Ras Shamra is considered to be a local imitation of these limestone vessels. It was also evident in the earliest neolithic periods of Byblos
, Hashbai
, Labweh
, Tell Jisr
and Tell Neba'a Faour in the Beqaa Valley
, Lebanon
. It has been noted that this type of pottery was more prevalent and dated earlier in the Beqaa than at Byblos. A mixed form was found at Byblos
where the clay was coated in a limestone slip, in both plain and shell combed finishes. The similarities of White Ware and overlapping time periods with later clay firing methods have suggested that Dark Faced Burnished Ware
, the first real pottery, came as a development from this limestone prototype
.
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
pottery
Pottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
developed in the Levant that appeared in the 9th millennium BC
9th millennium BC
The 9th millennium BC marks the beginning of the Neolithic period.Agriculture spread throughout the Fertile Crescent and use of pottery became more widespread. Larger settlements like Jericho arose along salt and flint trade routes. Northern Eurasia was resettled as the glaciers of the last glacial...
, during the pre-pottery (aceramic) neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
period.
This crumbly form of proto-pottery was manufactured by pulverizing limestone
Limestone
Limestone is a sedimentary rock composed largely of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of calcium carbonate . Many limestones are composed from skeletal fragments of marine organisms such as coral or foraminifera....
, then heating it to a temperature in excess of 1000 °C. This reduced it to lime from which could be mixed with ashes, straw or gravel and made into a white or grey lime plaster
Lime plaster
Lime plaster is type of plaster composed of hydrated lime, sand and water. Lime plaster is similar to Lime mortar, the main difference is the based on use rather than composition. Traditional lime plaster contains also horse hair to reinforce plaster....
. The plaster was initially so soft that it could be moulded, before hardening through air drying into a rigid cement. The plaster was formed into vessels by coiling to serve some of the functions of later clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
pottery. White Ware vessels tended to be rather large and coarse, often found in the dwelling rooms where they were made indicating their use for stationary storage of dry goods. Designs included a range of large and heavy rectangular tubs, circular vessels and smaller bowls, cups and jars. Imprints of basketry on the exterior of some vessels suggest that some were shaped into large basket shapes. It is likely these larger vessels were mainly used for dry goods storage. Some of the White Ware vessels found were decorated with incisions and thick stripes of red ochre. Other uses of this material included plastering of skulls and as a floor or wall covering. Some lime plaster floors were also painted red, and a few were found with designs imprinted on them.
White Ware was commonly found in PPNB archaeological sites in Syria such as Tell Aswad
Tell Aswad
Tell Aswad , Su-uk-su, Shuksa or Tell Sukas is a large prehistoric, Neolithic Tell, about in size, located around from Damascus in Syria, on a tributary of the Balikh River at the eastern end of the village of Jdeidet el Khass.-Excavation:...
, Tell Abu Hureyra
Tell Abu Hureyra
Tell Abu Hureyra is an archaeological site located in the Euphrates valley in modern Syria. The remains of the villages within the tell come from over 4,000 years of habitation, spanning the Epipaleolithic and Neolithic periods. Ancient Abu Hureyra was occupied between 11,000 and 7,500 years ago...
, Bouqras
Bouqras
Bouqras is a large, oval shaped, prehistoric, Neolithic Tell, about in size, located around from Deir ez-Zor in Syria.-Excavation:The tell was discovered in 1960 by Dutch Geomorphologist, Willem van Liere. It was excavated between 1960 and 1965 by Henri de Contenson and van Liere and later...
and El Kowm. Similar sherd
Sherd
In archaeology, a sherd is commonly a historic or prehistoric fragment of pottery, although the term is occasionally used to refer to fragments of stone and glass vessels as well....
s were excaveated at Ain Ghazal in northern Jordan
Jordan
Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing...
. White pozzolanic ware from Tell Ramad
Tell Ramad
Tell Ramad is a prehistoric, Neolithic tell at the foot of Mount Hermon, about southwest of Damascus in Syria. The tell was the site of a small village of , which was first settled in the late eighth millennium....
and Ras Shamra is considered to be a local imitation of these limestone vessels. It was also evident in the earliest neolithic periods of Byblos
Byblos
Byblos is the Greek name of the Phoenician city Gebal . It is a Mediterranean city in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of present-day Lebanon under the current Arabic name of Jubayl and was also referred to as Gibelet during the Crusades...
, Hashbai
Hashbai
Hashbai or Tell Hashbai is an archaeological site on the west of the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon.The area is watered by the Mount Lebanon reservoirs and sits besite the Wadi Hashbai, close to the Ain Hashbai springs...
, Labweh
Labweh
Labweh , Laboue, Labwe or Al-Labweh is a village at an altitude of on a foothill of the Anti-Lebanon mountains in the Baalbek District of Lebanon.-History:...
, Tell Jisr
Tell Jisr
Tell Jisr, Tell el-Jisr or Tell ej-Jisr is a hill and archaeological site northwest of Joub Jannine in the Beqaa Valley in Lebanon....
and Tell Neba'a Faour in the Beqaa Valley
Beqaa Valley
The Beqaa Valley is a fertile valley in east Lebanon. For the Romans, the Beqaa Valley was a major agricultural source, and today it remains Lebanon’s most important farming region...
, Lebanon
Lebanon
Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...
. It has been noted that this type of pottery was more prevalent and dated earlier in the Beqaa than at Byblos. A mixed form was found at Byblos
Byblos
Byblos is the Greek name of the Phoenician city Gebal . It is a Mediterranean city in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of present-day Lebanon under the current Arabic name of Jubayl and was also referred to as Gibelet during the Crusades...
where the clay was coated in a limestone slip, in both plain and shell combed finishes. The similarities of White Ware and overlapping time periods with later clay firing methods have suggested that Dark Faced Burnished Ware
Dark faced burnished ware
Dark Faced Burnished Ware or DFBW is the earliest form of pottery developed in the western world.It was produced after the earliest examples from the indepenent phenomenon of the Jomon culture in Japan and is predominantly found at archaeological sites in Lebanon, Israel and southwest Syria...
, the first real pottery, came as a development from this limestone prototype
Prototype
A prototype is an early sample or model built to test a concept or process or to act as a thing to be replicated or learned from.The word prototype derives from the Greek πρωτότυπον , "primitive form", neutral of πρωτότυπος , "original, primitive", from πρῶτος , "first" and τύπος ,...
.