Historic Artifacts Flashcards
What are artifacts, and what do they do? (3)
- known broadly as ‘material culture’
- anything made or modified by conscious human action
- provide information about the past
What are the three basic types of ceramics?
- earthenware: fired at 650C
- stoneware: fired at 1200C
- porcelain: fired at 1200-1450C
What were the earliest forms of English household tableware? (2)
- slipware (1580-1795)
- tin-enameled ware (1600-1740)
What sort of tradeware ceramics were there? (3)
- Spanish olive jars, 1500-1850
- Chinese export porcelain, 1574-1830
- tin-enameled ware-majolica, 1400s-present
Describe the three types of German stoneware.
- Rhenish 1550-1700
- Westerwald 1650-1775
- North Italian Marbled Slipware 1610-1660
What are the four types of transitional wares (1740-1765)?
- white salt-glazed stoneware plates, 1740-1805
- whieldon wares, 1740-1780
- jackfield ware, 1740-1780
- english porcelain, 1745-present
What are the three types of creamware (1765-1770)?
- deep yellow creamware, ca. 1762-1780
- overglaze enameled hand-painted, ca. 1765-1810
- light yellow/cream-colored, ca. 1775-1820
What are the six types of pearlware (1770-1820)?
- undecorated, 1780-1820
- edge-decorated, 1780-1830
- annular, 1790-1820
- underglaze blue painted, 1720-1820
- underglaze polychrome, 1820-1840
- blue transfer-painted, 1795-1840
What are the eight types of whiteware (1820s-1900s)?
- finger-painted polychrome slip, 1820-1900
- flow blue, 1820-1900
- engine-turned, 1820-1900
- spongeware, 1830-1900
- ironstone, 1800-1840
- white granite ware
- white porcelaneous ware, 1820-present
- yellow ware, 1820-1900
What are the four types of glass found in archaeological settings?
- soda-lime glass
- lead glass
- vessel glass
- flat glass
Describe the composition of soda-lime glass. (3)
- 70% silica
- 15% soda
- 9% lime
Describe the properties of lead glass. (3)
- lead replaces calcium
- high refractive index
- aka ‘crystal’
What does vessel glass refer to, and what is it used for? (3)
- includes all glass containers
- food and household chemical bottles and jars, beverage bottles, and canning jars
- glass service wares such as drinking glasses and dishes
What is flat glass used for?
window panes
What can glass color indicate?
age or use
What sorts of colorless glass has been common from the 1870s? (3)
- lead glass
- ‘purplish’ hue, pre WWI
- ‘straw’ hue, 1915-1930
When was white milkglass common?
1870s-1950s
What glass colors can often be assigned an age? (4)
- aqua ca. 1750-1920s
- olive green, more common pre-1900
- purple ca. 1840s-1870s
- black, early 17th c.-1880s
What glass colors cannot usually be assigned an age? (3)
- green
- amber or brown
- cobalt blue
What are the characteristics of cobalt blue glass? (2)
- often associated with pharmaceuticals
- less common in general than previous glass colors discussed
What are the characteristics of hand-blown glass? (4)
- generally not symmetrical
- no mold seams, embossing, decorations
- no hard corners or sharp lines
- heel or base tends to be thickest
What are the characteristics of molded glass? (4)
- symmetrical
- mold seams always present, sometimes embossing or other decorations
- can have sharp lines or hard corners
- thickness may be unevenly distributed
What features are common in the base of a glass bottle? (2)
- ‘kick’ or ‘push-up’
- pontil scars
Name one disadvantage and one advantage of glass in archaeology.
- dating is not precise
- tons of resources for historic glass research
