Qal'at Ja'bar Pottery: A Study of a Syrian Fortified Site of the Late 11th-14th Centuries

by Cristina Tonghini

This volume provides a new means of interpreting and reconstructing the history of an important fortified site of the middle Euphrates valley, Qalat Jabar, and clarifies its connection with the neighboring regions. A detailed classification of the pottery finds from the late eleventh to the
fourteenth centuries provides a chronological framework for the major changes in ceramic production - a valuable model which can be used for other sites.

440 pages, Hardcover

First published July 8, 1999

Reviews

[Horus · Rating 3 out of 5]

This large text is a Phd thesis of the author’s research and digs at Qal’at Ja’bar. There are good discussions of time and pottery styles, differences/similarities and confusion with Raqqa work, as well as descriptions of clay bodies and glazes. There are many cross-section drawings, grouped by ware type and glazes. Some of these include some surface decoration sketches, but there is no section just illustrating found examples. There are a number of photos, but disappointingly, many are of the site and not the finds, and none are in colour. I know colour is expensive for such printings, but at the very least there could be online links included to be able to view the glaze colours in colour. Turquoise, as a for instance, does not translate via description, the same way for everyone. This text is for archeology students, those interested in recovery work in the area, or those keen on historical recreation of such finds.