Browsing by Subject "Ceramics"
Now showing 1 - 9 of 9
Results Per Page
Sort Options
Item Ceramic thin-section analysis and Early Postclassic to Middle Postclassic discontinuity at Colha, Belize(2012-08) Reid, Elizabeth Katherine; Valdez, Fred, Jr., 1953-Petrographic and Type:variety analyses of Colha ceramics are used to investigate changes in ceramic production technology and organization during the Early and Middle Postclassic. Postclassic sherds from Colha are grouped by petrofabric, surface treatment, and modes. This dissertation focuses on the petrofabric analysis of the ceramic sherds. The groupings are then compared to locally available raw materials. Changes in technological homogeneity, production specialization, and origin will be examined and related to the general economy of Postclassic Colha.Item The ceramic typology of Bagunte(2015-05) de Marigny, Elizabeth Morgan; Wade, Maria de Fátima, 1948-; Taylor, RabunIn its broadest sense this Master Thesis focuses on a question of far-reaching implications for economic anthropology and social archaeology: How does colonization affect patterns of indigenous production before and after imperial expansion, through the actions and agency of both local producers and colonizers? More specifically, this thesis will ask how the Roman Empire promoted or hindered local production of ceramics in northwestern Portugal after Roman expansion into Iberia. In its narrowest sense this thesis will develop an open-ended ceramic typology based on the ceramic materials from the Civitatis of Bagunte, a fortified hillfort settlement located on the northwestern coast of Portugal. This typology will use comparative materials from other hillfort settlements sites (castros) in northwestern Portugal to identify differences in form and function at different sites and possible patterns of exchange.Item Chocholá ceramics and the polities of northwestern Yucatán(2010-05) Werness, Maline Diane; Stuart, David, 1965-Maya artists working in the northern Yucatán Peninsula c. 700-800 CE began creating a new ceramic style. Deeply carved and exhibiting complex iconography and hieroglyphic inscriptions, Chocholá ceramics have long been recognized as among the most beautiful items produced by ancient Maya craftsmen. Indeed, the Chocholá style can be associated with a number of firsts in Maya studies: the first published explorations, the first major art historical investigations of ceramics, the first attempts at ceramic seriation and the first translations of the dedicatory formula all include images of Chocholá pots. Many examples lack provenience, however, due to extensive looting and the corpus has been relegated to a shadowy corner of the Maya world as a result. With the aid of new archaeological information and advances in iconographic and epigraphic studies, I develop an interdisciplinary rubric for classifying Chocholá pieces. Additionally, I analyze vessel imagery and texts, thus deciphering ostensible meanings as well as identifying the kinds of messages elites were trying to project through ownership and exchange. As with other high-status commodities, these ceramics functioned as prestige items and facilitated regional alliances through gifting and feasting. An analysis of temporal setting illuminates the aesthetic innovation and traditionalism Chocholá patrons manipulated in order to legitimize their own standing in such contexts. My work results in a more refined picture of extended northern socio-political interaction and interconnection. I show that one extremely powerful site—Oxkintok, in the hilly Puuc region of Yucatán—produced such vessels and disseminated them south, west and northeast. In dialogue with Oxkintok's expanding sphere of political influence, stylistic variations also developed in these outlying regions. Ultimately, I use the confluence of data to reconstruct a more concrete system of intra-regional connection and interchange.Item Defining the Red Background style: the production of object and identity in an ancient Maya court(2014-05) Lopez-Finn, Elliot Michelle; Stuart, David, 1965-; Guernsey, Julia, 1964-As one of many other distinct painting styles that appeared on ceramics throughout the Guatemalan Lowlands of the Late Classic Period (AD 600-900), the Red Background vases represented the economic reach of the owner into local and foreign courtly culture. Supernatural processions, playful hieroglyphic texts, and the distinctive red background circulated on vases, plates, and bowls in order to perform prestige and the elite identity in public feasts. The diverse narrative content of these vessels reveals the importance of mytho-historic origin stories and supernatural identities to the prevailing political order, while the unique hieroglyphic texts link the style and its imagery to the royal court of Pa’ Chan. However, the lack of context for most of these vases thwarts a straightforward understanding of their role in Maya society as objects from a specific geographic place with archaeological provenience. Despite this inability to embed the Red Background vases within a robust archaeological framework, the production and circulation of a visually distinct style by a named community still indicates that the creators of these objects wished to communicate a unique artistic identity through an intersection of formal qualities. Refocusing the question of agency through the lens of the final product reveals that these works acted as part of a larger campaign to create the typical courtly trappings of master artisan production and public social feasting with representatives of other powerful polities. This Master’s Thesis aims to examine the current corpus of almost sixty vases in order to describe how the Red Background style manifests. In addition, my study explores the tendency of many polychrome styles to link a specific royal court with the artistic product through hieroglyphic emblems. I conclude that the unique Pa’ Chan emblem takes this extroverted statement of belonging to a higher level, providing an emic classification of the vase where the text comprises a social category of art that performs identity through its distinct visuals.Item Development and Characterization of Novel Alumina Based Ceramic Matrix Composites for Energy Efficient Sliding Applications(2012-10-19) Paluri, Rajeshwari S. LakshmiFriction, wear, and lubrication have direct influence on performance, reliability, and service life of mechanical systems with moving components. The useful life of these systems and their efficiency can be improved by improving the surface properties/ performance at sliding interfaces. Further, the usage of materials for sliding systems is limited in extreme environments, such as high temperature, and space, etc., due to their limited surface properties. This thesis focuses on the development of a new class of composites with superior surface properties, i.e., low friction and high wear resistance for extreme environmental conditions. Alumina, a well understood material for its tribological performance, is a merit choice for applications where high wear resistance is required, such as pump bearings, seal rings, valve seats, piston components, gears, cutting tool inserts and artificial joints. We propose to develop a novel alumina based ceramic composite to enhance its surface and tribological properties using a powder compaction technique. The newly developed composites will be characterized by X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared spectroscope (FTIR), Optical microscope, Environmental Scanning Electron Microscope (E-SEM), Goniometer and Surface profilometer. In-situ formation of high temperature stable phases, effect of sintering temperature, and percentage of reinforcement on phase formation will be studied. Investigation of effect of sintering temperature and percentage of reinforcement on density, porosity, and grain size will be conducted. The composites will be characterized for their tribological properties (friction and wear). The mechanisms for modified friction and wear will be proposed. The process parameters and compositions will be optimized. XRD results confirmed the formation of Al18B4O33, and AlB2 and FTIR confirmed the presence of B2O3. Increase in sintering temperature and wt % of boron affected the porosity, grain size, and hardness of the composites. The coefficient of friction was lower for the composites compared to pure alumina ceramic. The coefficient of friction decreased with increase in sintering temperature. The wear mechanism was found to be micro-fracture using ESEM and SEM studies.Item Finite element evaluation of thermal stresses during the solidification of a glass pour(Texas Tech University, 1997-08) Li, JianminThe purpose of this thesis is to determine the temperature history, thermal stress history, and the susceptibility to fracture of glass (borosilicate) as it is poured (in a liquid state) into a canister and allowed to cool into a solid state. The general purpose finite element code ABAQUS was utilized to simulate the glass pour problem. The thermomechanical problem was solved using an axisymmetric geometry and with proper boundary conditions. Three specific problems were addressed: (1) determination of temperature history in the glass pour as it was being poured into a stainless steel canister; (2) determination of the thermal stress history in the glass as it solidifies and cools to room temperature; and (3) assessment of potential for fracture in the solidified glass as a result of the induced thermal stresses. Phase change effects were not considered in the model. In determining the temperature history of the glass pour, heat loss due to natural convection and radiation from various surfaces were considered. Once the canister was full, the temperature history was recorded. The recorded temperature history was then used to determine the thermal stress history in the glass pour. Based on the determined thermal stress history, the principal stresses were calculated and compared with the yield strength of glass to determine the potential for crack formation. When determining the thermal stress history in glass, two different sets of boundary conditions were used. The first boundary condition assumes that glass remains in contact vdth the canister wall as it cools down. The second boundary condition allows the glass to separate from the canister wall as it contracts. The fracture analysis results showed that both cases have potential for crack formation. However, the second set of boundary conditions (the set that allows the glass to separate from the canister wall) seems to simulate more realistically the possibility and location of the cracks that may form.Item A household perspective : ceramics from a domestic structure at Kichpanha, Belize(2010-05) Root-Garey, Emily Donna; Rodriguez-Alegría, Enrique R.; Valdez, FredResearch at Kichpanha, Belize, has primarily focused on the Late Preclassic, elite contexts, and the regional economic and political roles of the site. This study is an initial step in expanding qualitative research at Kichpanha across the Classic period and into the smaller scale of domestic contexts, analyzing ceramics recovered in association with a Late Classic mound structure and Late Preclassic lithic workshop. Drawing on literature in household archaeology and pre-Columbian Maya commoners, I focus on structure function and social status of occupants. Additionally, I examine how the ceramics fit into the established chronology at Kichpanha, and address the spatiotemporal relationship between the mound structure and lithic workshop.Item Palatial soundscapes : music in Maya court societies(2014-05) Duke, Bethany Kay; Stuart, David, 1965-Music is a powerful force. It highlights social hierarchies and relationships. It is a means by which the ordinary everyday can be transformed into the sacred. It has the ability to change our daily routine. How though, was music used, and in what ways did it function in the courtly society of the ancient Maya? In Classic Maya iconography we frequently find scenes of dance performance, ritual, or palace scenes depicted with musicians. Rarely however, are musicians the central focus of the action taking place. Were Maya musicians simply a background ‘soundtrack’ to the primary action unfolding or were they an integral part of Maya courtly life?This thesis conducts an iconographical analysis of the representations of music, musical instruments, and musicians among the Maya along with the consideration of archaeological evidence. The evidence considered comes primarily from the iconography of musicians and musical instruments depicted on several painted ceramic vessels but also takes into consideration iconography found in the murals of Bonampak and the paintings at Naj Tunich Cave, as well as archaeological evidence that appears in the form of preserved instruments at sites such as Pacbitun and the Copan Valley. For the ancient Maya, music was segmented. This is seen in the types of instruments and their groupings as portrayed in Maya iconography. These groupings denote differing categories of musical forms and functions which pertain to particular settings, such as interior palace settings as compared to exterior public settings.In exploring these images, many characteristics common to the depiction of musicians in interior palace settings become apparent that are not see in depictions of musicians in exterior public settings. First, the musicians are depicted kneeling, seated, or standing still. Second, they are located furthest from the most prominent figure. Third, acoustics do not affect instrument choice. Fourth, the form of attire varies more greatly in interior settings than in exterior settings. Finally, the order of instruments remains as standard as those in exterior settings. These scenes provide further evidence of instrument specialization and musical segmentation in Maya music and emphasize the significance music held in Ancient Maya Culture.Item The bronze age shipwreck at Sheytan Deresi(2009-05-15) Catsambis, AlexisDuring the fall of 1973, the newly formed (American) Institute of Nautical Archaeology conducted its first systematic underwater survey of the southwestern coast of Turkey with the goal of locating the first shipwreck to be subsequently excavated by the Institute. Of the 18 wreck sites identified during the survey, a site off Sheytan Deresi (Devil?s Creek) proved to be the one that attracted George Bass, director of the survey, as most meriting further study. During the excavation that followed in September and October 1975, the site produced a number of complete and fragmentary ceramic vessels that formed the main artifact assemblage. Although the ceramic vessels brought to light at Sheytan Deresi have been studied by George Bass, Roxani Margariti and others since the 1975 excavation, locating precise parallels for the assemblage proved a difficult task and resulted in a less than full understanding of the site. The following thesis represents a renewed effort to answer a number of questions still surrounding the Sheytan Deresi site. In addition to expanding the extensive search for parallels undertaken by Bass and Margariti, recent research has involved a number of scientific analyses, including petrographic analysis of the ceramic assemblage, luminescence dating of ceramic fragments, and elemental examination of the fabric through neutron activation analysis and energy dispersive spectroscopy. The use of three-dimensional modeling has been adopted for the purposes of site interpretation. Although the impact of this more holistic approach cannot be entirely foreseen at this time, a number of interesting hypotheses regarding the site can now be suggested. It appears that the ceramic assemblage, which is now conclusively of a single origin, may be of a specialized maritime nature, and likely belongs to the Middle Bronze Age, reminiscent of, but entirely similar to, regional types of Anatolian and Cretan vessels. These tentative conclusions, as well as an examination of the site itself, suggest that the (Minoanizing) ceramic assemblage of Sheytan Deresi stood witness to a fairly small Middle Bronze Age coastal trading vessel that capsized rounding a dangerous cape, not far from its point of origin. We are still not in a position to fully comprehend the wrecking event that took place at Sheytan Deresi, but we are now firmly on course towards reaching that objective.