Features of the Technology of Ceramics of the Atlym Culture (Based on the Materials of Settlements of Barsova Gora)
Authors: Selin D. V. , Chemyakin Yu. P. 
Published: May 2023

Purpose. Barsova Gora is a unique archaeological and landscape site located in the Tyumen Region (West Siberia) of the Russian Federation. A technical and technological analysis of ceramics of the Atlym culture from Barsova Gora I/40 (13 vessels), Barsova Gora I/22a (7 vessels) and Barsova Gora IV/4 (9 vessels) settlements was carried out.

Results. It was found that for the pottery manufacture potters of the Atlym culture mainly selected ferruginous clays, varying in the degree of sandiness and the presence of natural inclusions of shells and vegetation fragments. At all sites, potters exploited several clay plots. Recipes and assortment of molding masses vary considerably from settlement to settlement. The most stable technology is typical for ceramics from the site Barsova Gora I/22a for which only one recipe (clay + chamotte) has been fixed. It testifies to homogeneity of pottery traditions that existed on this site. A similar trend is demonstrated by ceramics of the site Barsova Gora I/40, where uncalibrated chamotte was used as the main impurity. The pottery technology of these two sites is very similar, and, apparently, these settlements constituted one group of the Atlym population with similar skills. It is possible that representatives of this group could have participated in the genesis of the Krasnoozerskaya culture of the Ishim River basin, as they recorded significant similarities in the adaptive and constructive skills of pottery making. The opposite situation can be observed at the site of Barsova Gora IV/4, where six single and multi-component compositions have been identified, which indicates a mixture of pottery skills and techniques. Several different groups of potters may have lived at this site, using different assortments of impurities to compose the molding masses. Probably, the Barsova Gora IV/4 site was left by another group of the Atlym population with different pottery skills, which differ from the skills of the “Atlym” from Barsova Gora I/22a and I/40 settlements. It can be assumed that the Atlym population of Barsova Gora IV/4 came to Barsova Gora from other territories, possibly from the Lower Priirtysh.

Conclusion. The pottery technology of the sites Barsova Gora I/40 and I/22a has no direct analogues in the previously studied complexes of the Atlym culture in Western Siberia. For the vessels manufacturing technology of the Atlym culture in the territories of the Lower Irtysh River basin, Baraba and the Lower Ob River basin, the dominance of reipes with chamotte is not characteristic. At the same time, the use of chamotte as the main mineral additive and organic solutions is typical for ceramics of the later Krasnoozerskaya culture, which may be based on the Atlym culture. Vessel manufacturing techniques are also similar. Ceramics of the Atlym culture from the Barsova Gora IV/4 site demonstrates the greatest technological similarity with the pottery from The Lower Irtysh River basin. Potters of these territories used a similar range of mineral additives. The surfaces of the vessels were smoothed with a hard, smooth tool. The difference is manifested in the vessels design.