The production of pottery can be considered one of the most important steps an early civilization can take. In point of fact, early societies are often distinguished by their development of pottery, such as the Pre-pottery Neolithic A and B periods are. After the introduction of pottery into society, pottery is of the utmost importance to archaeology as it is very useful in dating and identifying sites. It is therefore of no surprise that the pottery of the Uruk period has been extensively studied. Of all the pottery items and shards found, one type of pottery has been discovered in such great quantities to merit special mention: the beveled-rim bowl. These bowls were clearly mass produced and, in fact, beveled-rim bowls, along with conical cups, have comprised up to eighty percent of all pottery found at some sites (Potts, 151). Even more intriguing is that the reason behind having these bowls is still very much unknown.
[...] Ancient culture study: The pottery of Ancient Mesopotamia The production of pottery can be considered one of the most important steps an early civilization can take. In point of fact, early societies are often distinguished by their development of pottery, such as the Pre- pottery Neolithic A and B periods are. After the introduction of pottery into society, pottery is of the utmost importance to archaeology as it is very useful in dating and identifying sites. It is therefore of no surprise that the pottery of the Uruk period has been extensively studied. [...]
[...] Thirdly, there must be some form of organization of production (Johnson, 130). Such a huge quantity of bowls implies that the manufacture of these bowls was organized and implies specialization of labor with people who only made pottery and these bowls. It is clear that these bowls could not have been homemade (Potts, 153). Fourthly and fifthly, the location of production must be near the place of distribution and there must be a standardization of size of the units (Johnson, 130). [...]
[...] The Rise of Civilization: From Farmers to Urban Society in the Ancient Near East. San Francisco, CA: W. H. Freeman and Company, 1978. [...]
[...] Eventually, other scholars viewed this hypothesis with suspicion and began presenting new theories. Aspects of this votive offering theory and elements of the Mesopotamian elite theory can be later seen again in the hypothesis of T. W. Beale. Thomas W. Beale sets forth the hypothesis that bowls were used to bring offerings and gifts of food to temples or administrative buildings during organized times and events (Beale, 305). Beale believes that the beveled- rim bowls are unique for four main reasons: they were made from molds while the pottery wheel was available, a huge number of them have been found, they are typically found around temples or administration buildings, and they are often found intact and in large clusters (Beale 305). [...]
[...] To limit the exposure to oxygen and, therefore, maximize the shelf life, beer was stored in large containers with long and narrow necks (Millard, 55). This proves to be important as the textual depiction of beer is a bottle with a long, narrow neck (Millard, 56). Interestingly, when the symbol NINDA is placed in the symbol of beer, the resulting symbol is translated to mean “beer bread”, giving support to the idea of NINDA meaning (Millard, 56). This in turn gives support to the theory of Millard's that the beveled-rim bowls were used as bread molds. H. [...]
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