Appendix 1 - Suggested Recording Systems for Pottery from Archaeological Sites

Summary

Introduction

The following recording scheme for pottery is based to a great extent on the systems devised for the Department of Urban Archaeology of the Museum of London in the mid-1970s (Orton 1979). This in turn draws heavily on earlier work in Britain (at Winchester and Gloucester for instance) and abroad (e.g. Carthage: Peacock 1977).

Today, most archaeologists will wish to implement these structures as a relational database, or perhaps as a series of spreadsheets. Nevertheless, we present them here in a paper format, in order to provide a general basis which can be adapted readily into any chosen digital format. We do not wish to prejudge individual choices of implementation and software, which are likely to form part of a larger site-recording system, and may in any case change over the lifespan of this book.

RECORDING FORMS AND CARDS

Sample recording forms for the quantification of pottery (Fig. A.1), and cards for the description of fabrics (Fig. A.2) are reproduced here – the relationship between them, and a record card for holding reproductions of drawings, is shown in Fig. A.3.

DESCRIPTIVE KEYWORDS FOR FABRIC DESCRIPTIONS

The pottery-fabric descriptions used in reports and on fabric record cards are based on visual and tactile examinations of the surfaces and fresh breaks, both in the hand and using binocular microscope at ×20 or ×30 magnification.