A Study on Potteries excavated from Xiongnu tombs in Mongolia
Xiongnu, which had established an empire on the steppes in the 2nd century B.C.E, collapsed around the 1st century C.E, and left a great number of archaeological sites and artifacts. Excava...
A Study on Potteries excavated from Xiongnu tombs in Mongolia
Xiongnu, which had established an empire on the steppes in the 2nd century B.C.E, collapsed around the 1st century C.E, and left a great number of archaeological sites and artifacts. Excavational investigations of Xiongnu sites started in the late?]19th century, and many research results have complied over the years. Although scholars did partly touch on potteries, most of the researches have been focused on burials and settlement sites. In this context, it is no exaggeration to say that potteries have been largely disregarded due to other elaborate objects. Therefore, this thesis aims to focus on potteries that have not received much attention in Xiongnu archaeology.
Potteries can be important archaeological research objects because relatively a greater number of them are found compared to other types of objects. That gold, silver, bronze objects, as well as other weapons, had been traded among tribes may account for common features of these objects that are confirmed over a widespread area. Due to fragileness, however, potteries were locally produced for local use. Hence they display production techniques and features that are peculiar to individual tribes. The purpose of this thesis is to examine and organize the basic information on production techniques of Xiongnu potteries, and point out temporal and spatical changes through a classification of types.
Approximately 4000 Xiongnu burials have been discovered so far, and about 400 of them have been excavated, yielding a great number of potteries. Nonetheless, some of the excavated potteries have not been officially reported, and records of some, though reported, are not accessible. Therefore, Xiongnu pottery in its entirety cannot be treated here.
This thesis analyzes 89 potteries from 38 tombs of 16 Xiongnu archaeological sites. The area of these sites once belonged to Northern Xiongnu territory when Xiongnu was divided into north and south. From the 38 burials, more than 89 potteries were discovered, but having excluded severely fragmented ones, only those, the original form of which can be restored, have been selected as objects of analysis.
Xiongno potteries can be largely divided into jar?]type and deep?]bowl?]type. Among the 89 objects, 43 are jar?]types including long?]bodied, long?]necked, and large size ones, 40 are deep?]bowl types and the remaining 6 are effigy vessels.
Jar?]types, and deep?]bowl types have been classified based on a shape analysis, and their typal association has been examined. Potteries, also, have been sorted according to their burial types, and the relationship between pottery shapes and burial types has been scrutinized.
Until present, no specific study on Xiongnu pottery has been introduced to Korea, hence not much information was available for research. Nevertheless, it is hoped that this thesis contributes to future studies on Xiongnu potteries as a starting point. Since this thesis uses potteries, the complete form of which can be figured out, when more information compiles, some of the contents will have to be revised.