エジプト・ナカダ期の土器製作技術

土器粘土の分析ならびに生産形態の変容に関する一考察

抄録

Mineralogical and experimental examinations were carried out on the clays that it was thought could have been used during the Naqada I period or earlier. The investigations showed some features as follows: 1) the clays used during the Naqada I period were the so-called Nile Silt, 2) potters of that time exploited two types of clay, which were possibly fired by different methods, and 3) the firing of the pottery made from the fine clay was probably conducted in a firing structure. These results suggest that the techniques of making pottery had been fully sophisticated by the end of the Naqada I period.
Certain changes occurred in ceramic production during the Naqada II period. Some pottery types typical of that time began to be manufactured from Marl Clay, while the Naqada I pottery had been made only from Nile Silt. The parallel ridges on the rim of some Naqada II pottery suggest the introduction of the turning device. The disappearance of black spots may indicate that the updraught kiln was also introduced to the Naqada culture. The use of the similar calcareous clay, the turning device and the updraught kiln in the Syro-Palestinian region predated the introduction of these into Egypt. This fact suggests that the new information on ceramic production came from Syro-Palestine.
The new mode of pottery production appears in the clay preparation, in the shaping process and in the firing method. Such an overall change suggests the influx of foreign potters into Egypt rather than learning through the superficial imitation. Furthermore, is it likely that only potters came to Egypt? It should be concluded that á large group of people migrated from Syro-Palestine and that this stimulation was a major factor in making the Naqada Culture mature enough to expand into Lower Egypt.