An Experimental Study of Norton and Thule Cooking Pot Performance

• Main Author: Butler, Caelie Marshall
• Format: Text
• Language: English
• Published: PDXScholar 2022
• Subjects: Ceramics > Arctic regions; Ceramics > Thermal conductivity; Experimental archaeology; Arctic regions > Antiquities; Eskimos > Alaska > Antiquities; Ceramic Materials; Other History of Art; Architecture; and Archaeology; Arctic; eskimo*; inuit; Iyatayet; Alaska
• Online Access: https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/open_access_etds/6238; https://doi.org/10.15760/etd.8098; https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/context/open_access_etds/article/7320/viewcontent/Butler_psu_0180E_13078.pdf; https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/context/open_access_etds/article/7320/filename/0/type/additional/viewcontent/Nukleet_and_Iyatayet_Database.csv; https://pdxscholar.library.pdx.edu/context/open_access_etds/article/7320/filename/1/type/additional/viewcontent/Ceramic_Analysis_Procedures_Anderson.pdf

Ceramic technology was adopted by hunter-gatherers of the Paleo-Inuit Norton tradition in the Western Arctic between 2800 and 2500 years B.P., corresponding with an increase in the use of aquatic resources. Pottery production and use continued until approximately 1,500 BP, and resumed during the Neo-Inuit Birnirk and Thule periods, approximately 1,350 years BP. The technical characteristics of Norton and Thule ceramics suggest they performed differently when used for cooking, with Norton ceramics best suited for cooking using direct or suspended heat, and Thule ceramics best suited for indirect heat. Prior experimental archaeological research has focused on Thule ceramics, with limited investigation into the characteristics and performance of Norton ceramics. In this thesis, Butler asked how technological choices influenced the performance of ceramics for food processing, and how people in the Arctic cooked with ceramic vessels in the past. Butler addressed these questions through ceramics analysis and experimental archaeology. A sample of Norton and Thule ceramics from occupation contexts from two Northern Alaskan sites, Iyatayet (NOB-0002) and Nukleet (NOB-0001), was analyzed and the resulting data compared with existing ceramic data from other sites in Alaska to identify temporal and regional variation in ceramic characteristics. The results of this analysis provided metric data on which experimental replications are based. For Phase 1, tiles with different temper types and surface treatments linked to ceramic cooking performance were created and tested. For Phase 2, Norton and Thule vessels were replicated and used them to bring water to a boil using each of the three heating methods in order to answer questions of use by comparing heating performance of the two pottery traditions. Analysis of Norton and Thule ceramic assemblages revealed significant temporal and regional patterns in the shape and composition of vessels, particularly in temper type and decoration. Phase 1 identified differences in strength ...