Ms. Morton's work got me thinking about the strong association between ceramics and textiles that began tens of thousands of years ago. I believe that both technologies together represent the boundary between the domestic realm and the wild realm, or the earthly realm and the otherworldly realm. I believe this argument is substantiated by the presence of entoptic motifs on the objects as well as the use of these objects in both sacred and mundane circumstances.
The practice of impressing pottery with textiles appears to have begun very early in the lives of these technologies. What is the link?
- Similar emergence dates
- Sacred associations/boundaries
- Use of entoptic motifs in both technologies
- Associated with the advent of agriculture/sedentism
- Women's work?
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| Hemp cord-marked Amphora from Yangshao, 4800 B.C. |
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| Eastern North American Indian Textile Impressed Pottery. |
Similar emergence dates
It seems as though textiles and ceramics (at least figurines; vessels may have come later) may have emerged somewhat contemporaneously (within a few thousand years, during the Upper Paleolithic period).The earliest evidence of both pottery and textiles occurs at the same site: Dolni Vestonice, in the form of knotted hemp net impressions on clay venus figurines, during the Upper Paleolithic. These figurines were almost certainly used in ceremonial contexts, reflecting the sacred importance of both ceramics and textile production.
- Dolni Vestonice and Pavlov, in the Czech Republic both contained impressions on clay of knotted nets. These date from 32 to 29 thousand years ago.
- Ohalo II in Israel contained unidentified plant fibers, likely used for textiles dating to 21 thousand years ago.
- Ceramic objects like the Gravettian culture Venus of Dolní Věstonice figurine discovered in the Czech Republic date back to 29,000–25,000 BC.
- Pottery vessels discovered in Jiangxi, China date back to 20,000 BP.
- Early Neolithic pottery has also been found in:
- Jomon Japan (10,500 BC),
- the Russian Far East (14,000 BC),
- Sub-Saharan Africa and
- South America.
The Upper Paleo is known as a time of cognitive/artistic/technological florescence. The Upper Paleolithic is when all those amazing cave paintings began to be made, ochre began to be used in ceremonial contexts, formal burials become more common, and tool technologies began to really diversify.
The earliest textiles are thought to have been made with hemp fiber. The illustration below depicts the distribution of archaeological sites yielding evidence of hemp use. Pay particular attention to the distribution of hemp textile or cord-impressed ceramics.
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| Hemp Site Distribution From Fleming and Clarke 1998 |
Sacred associations/boundaries
Many presume that the Upper Paleolithic was a time when a cosmology consisting of multiple tiers of existence began to emerge in the human consciousness. Many (myself included) believe that this cosmology arose as a result of the human propensity for altered states of consciousness (ASC; please see this post for a more thorough explanation). The multi-tiered cosmos typically includes the earthly realm (the living), the world of the spirits (ancestors or deities), and sometimes an underworld. A shaman could access all the worlds, and regularly traveled between them in order to talk with the ancestors/spirits and intervene on behalf of the living community or simply to guide the deceased to the otherworld. S/he controlled access to those realms because it was a dangerous journey that required knowledge and talent. A living person wouldn't want to get stuck in the otherworld!These journeys required props and tools. Textiles and pottery were and still are frequently used in these contexts.
Entoptic Imagery on both technologies
A number of very specific artistic motifs were produced in association with ASC and the intercosmic journey. These are known as ENTOPTIC motifs. See this post for a more thorough explanation of entoptic imagery. I've written several posts on the use of entoptics in textiles and what I think they mean. Please visit this page for a list of posts.I believe that the presence of entoptic motifs on artworks indicates an association with the tiered cosmos. These items are often used in ceremonial contexts (see above referenced posts for a discussion of textiles in sacred contexts). Certain motifs have specific associations. For example, spirals often represent the vortex or tunnel between the worlds.
Many scholars have commented on the similar/identical symbolism used on pottery and textiles. Without delving into the pottery motifs, I'm going to take a shortcut and just surmise that the images have similar associations on pottery as they do on textiles. See? Because I say so. That's some scholarship right there. I suppose I could find some references...
Elizabeth Wayland Barber discusses this association in her book, Prehistoric Textiles.
Rug Kazbah has an excellent article on early ceramics and textiles.
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| Cucuteni Venus Figurine with Entoptic Imagery (4800 to 3000 years ago). |
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| Ceramic Pot with Entoptic Motifs, Majiayao culture (ca.2300-2000 BC) |
Associated with the advent of agriculture/sedentism
It has been traditionally accepted that ceramic technologies, particularly for producing vessels (as opposed to figurines), arose during the Neolithic Period as a result of sedentary lifestyles associated with agriculture. However, recent evidence at a Jomon site in Japan suggests that the ceramics there were being used in conjunction with wild foods associated with a hunter/gatherer lifestyle (O. Craig et al. Earliest evidence for the use of pottery. Nature. Doi: 10.1038/nature12109. [Go to])There is no doubt, however, that both technologies caught fire in sedentary communities all over the world during the Neolithic. Both technologies were instrumental to the transition from hunter/gatherer to agriculturalist, because they supported an overarching ideological transition.
The ideology that supports a hunter/gatherer lifestyle centers on the notion that humans are integral components of an all-encompassing and generally egalitarian landscape. An agricultural lifestyle necessitates an ideology in which humans are dominant over the landscape. Humans control and manage a landscape rather than simply inhabit one. An ideological boundary needed to be erected between wild and domestic, and it needs to be legitimized in the minds of the people. They need to have strong reasons for a complete transformation of their perspective of their place in the world (from sibling/child to master). This legitimization is reflected in and facilitated by the emerging technologies.
Textile and ceramic technologies are perfect for this. They are mundane in the sense that they are practical household items that are used every day. They are also sacred in that they are used in ceremonial contexts, especially those involving a transition from one realm to the other (births, weddings, deaths). Pottery is a common grave-good and is still associated with the dead; Neolithic people in Britain (and North American Indians, and probably lots more people all over the world) smashed pots in funerary contexts, indicating that a boundary was breaking; etc. Textiles have been used as shrouds, funeral banners, and coffin covers. This is underscored by the use of entoptic/sacred motifs on the fabrics and finished pottery. These motifs refer to inter-realm travel. Please see this post for a full explanation.
In addition, both technologies transform a naturally occurring material (clay, plant fibers) into a completely different material through human mediation. This transformation from "raw" to "finished" supports the human role as manager of nature.
These objects are symbols of home and experienced as safe and comforting. They are also associated with the transformation from life to death (as reflected by their use in funereal contexts) and from wild to domestic (based on the means of production and acquisition of raw materials), and comprise the barrier between these realms (Please see this post about curtains for a better explanation). In this way, they facilitated a dramatic ideological transition, enabling a worldwide shift in subsistence strategies.
domestic/wild
living/dead
earth/heaven
inside/outside
womb/world
I'm concluding that ceramics and textiles serve a similar, if not identical, purpose in the practical as well as the ideological worlds. It is little wonder that the two technologies were joined so frequently, all over the world, and throughout time.
Dana and Earthborne Art:
Dana lives in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada just east of the small town of Sonora. She creates her work in her back yard where she watches "birds, squirrels, deer and other various wildlife stroll by while I'm working."Her studio is in the zone between the domestic and the wild!
From her About Page:
I specialize in a line of ceramic art pottery called, "My Grandma's Linens".
It all started when I needed favors for our wedding. After rummaging through a box of old linens that my grandmothers had made, I created little dishes by taking impressions of them. They were a huge hit!
Most of my spare time is now spent scouring flea markets, yardsales etc., in search of old textiles. I like the idea of preserving them in clay while breathing new life into an old art form.With this work, Dana continues the ancient tradition of textile-impressed ceramics.
Next up: An interview with Dana!
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