Medieval ceramic assemblage from the Settlement of Kastek (Jetisu, Kazakhstan): Technological-typological and chemical–mineralogical analysis
Dubyagina Y. Akymbek Y.
30 September 2025Margulan Institute of Archaeology
Kazakhstan Archeology
2025#2025Issue 3263 - 276 pp.
The article presents a comprehensive technological–typological and chemical–mineralogical analysis of ceramics from the Kastek settlement (Jetisu, Kazakhstan), dated to the 8th–13th centuries AD. The study employs methods of macroscopic typology, X-ray fluorescence (XRF), and X-ray diffraction (XRD) analysis to reconstruct the composition of forming pastes, firing conditions, and the presumed functions of the artifacts. The material is systematized into four functional categories: kitchenware (cauldrons, pots), tableware (jugs, bowls), large storage vessels (khums), and ritual items (incense burners, vessels with zoomorphic decoration). Multivariate analysis (principal component analysis and clustering) allows the identification of compositional groups correlating with functional types, although there is considerable overlap in mineral composition between them. While some storage vessels show higher CaO values, its distribution varies across different categories of artifacts; based on the available sample, no statistically significant correlation between increased carbonate content and storage function can be identified. The interpretation of calcite is complicated by the lack of microstructural and microprobe data: this mineral may occur both as an original component of the paste and as a product of later redepositional processes. Ritual and zoomorphic forms do not exhibit any chemical or mineralogical distinctions from utilitarian ceramics; their distinctive features lie in their morphology and decoration.
calcite , firing temperature , Kastek settlement , Kazakhstan , mediaeval pottery , quartz , temper , XRD , XRF
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Margulan Institute of Archaeology, Almaty, Kazakhstan
Margulan Institute of Archaeology
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