Ceramics and the Early Swahili: Deconstructing the Early Tana Tradition |
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Authors: | Jeffrey Fleisher Stephanie Wynne-Jones |
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Institution: | (1) Department of Anthropology MS20, Rice University, P. O. Box 1892, Houston, TX 77251, USA;(2) Department of Archaeology, University of York, King’s Manor, York, YO1 7EP, UK |
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Abstract: | Archaeological understandings of the Iron Age societies that developed on the East African coast and its hinterland have been
transformed by exploration of locally produced ceramics. During the late first millennium, c. AD 600–900, sites across eastern
Africa are characterized by ceramics known as early Tana Tradition or Triangular-Incised Ware, containing necked jars with
incised decoration and a series of other jar and bowl forms in varying quantities. The recognition of this pan-regional tradition
of pottery, known from an ever-growing number of sites, has been crucial in the reorientation of Swahili research to recognize
the indigenous roots of the cosmopolitan coastal culture. This paper reports on the results of a ceramics project that has
revisited excavated collections from a series of key ETT/TIW sites, analyzing sherds according to a single system and allowing
true cross-site comparison for the first time. The results show regional diversity, in both form and decoration, particularly
in the relative importance of the necked jar types that have come to stand for the early Tana Tradition more generally. While
previous studies have hinted at regional diversity, such conclusions have been subsumed in discussion by the evident similarities
between assemblages. Comparative results are here discussed against the background of previous research at the sites, and
a series of conclusions about overlapping spheres of commonality are presented. Rather than critiquing previous work that
has recognized this ceramic type, we seek to understand the remarkable distribution better by exploring its context and content. |
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