Pottery in Archaeology (Iron Age)

Ritaroberts's Blog

My previous two posts about ” Pottery in Archaeology ” covered the Neolithic period and the Bronze Age period In this post I will talk about the Iron Age Pottery found on various archaeologcal sites in Britain.

Please remember as previously stated that these posts are intended for the beginner interested in archaeology and wishing to study ancient pottery.

Introduction

Archaeologists have found pottery sherds at almost all regions of Iron Age settlements around Britain and at this time pots were handmade from local clay and fired in bonfire kilns,or a shallow pit. The clay would have been mixed with ‘temper’ such as quartz sand, pellets, crushed burnt flint or fired clay (grog),even organic material like grasses. This helped to reduce shrinking and cracking of the pots when drying. The colour of the pot could be controlled by varying the amount of oxygen in the firing.People made different types of pots or decorated them in their own particular style in…

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Write Me, Let Me Know You’re Ok

SENTENTIAE ANTIQUAE

P.Oxy.14.1666, From Pausanias to Heraclides, 3^rd Century CE

“Brother, please write me about your family’s safety, since I heard that there was a plague in your part of Antinoopolis. So don’t forget to write me so that I can be happier about you. Say hello to my mother, the master of the house, my sister and our children, who will be kept safe. Pausanias greets you. I pray that the whole household stays well.”

παρακαλῶ οὖ[ν], ἄδελφε, γράψαι μοι περὶ τῆς ὑμῶν σω[τ]ηρίας, ἐπεὶ ἤκουσα ἐν τῇ Ἀντινόου ὅτι παρ᾿ ὑμεῖν λοιμὸς [ἐγ]ένετο. μὴ οὖν ἀμελήσῃς, ἵνα κἀγὼ περὶ ὑμῶν εὐθυμότερον διάξω. ἀσπάζου πολλὰ τὴν κυρίαν μου μητέρα καὶ [τὴν ἀδελ-]φήν μου καὶ τὰ ἀβάσκαντα ἡμῶν παιδ[ία. ἀσπά]ζεται ὑμᾶς Παυσανίας. ἐρρῶσθαί [σ]ε [εὔχ(ομαι)] πανο[ικ]εί.

Here’s a link to the papyrus

Bust of Antinoüs-Osiris from Hadrian’s Villa at Tivoli. Louvre collection.

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Nordic Nut Bread

low carb for life

When I first discovered this recipe for Nordic Nut Bread, I was curious how a pile of nuts and some eggs could create a bread, there wasn’t even a need for baking powder.

It is actually a nut and seed bread but the good thing about this recipe is that the ingredients can be varied according to taste. My first attempt has been a complete success and I have to say it is the tastiest bread alternative I have tried since ditching ‘real’ bread three years ago. It is delicious with sardines, pate or cheese or just butter and can be sliced really thinly without crumbling or falling apart.

So, if you like the texture of a Rye bread with just really healthy ingredients, this is a winner.

Ingredients
Flax Seed (Milled)
Poppy Seeds
Chia Seeds
Walnuts
Dried Cranberries
Pumpkin Seeds
Almonds
Brazil Nuts
Hazelnuts
Pecan Nuts
4 Eggs
2…

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An Under-Appreciated Fish That Deserves More Attention

low carb for life

Sardines are a great source of omega-3 fatty acids, they’re caught in the wild, and they’re still surprisingly cheap.

Just 100 grams of canned sardines provide 2 grams omega-3’s, the fatty acids EPA and DHA which have been found to lower triglycerides. They also have the lowest levels of mercury of any fish and more likely to be sustainably caught.

It doesn’t stop there, other than fortified products, there are few other food sources of Vitamin D. They are also an excellent source of vitamin B12 which promotes cardiovascular health since it is said to keep levels of homocysteine in balance, homocysteine can damage artery walls, with elevated levels being a risk factor for atherosclerosis.

With concern over the health of the seas, people are turning to sardines as they feed solely on plankton, and therefore do not concentrate heavy metals, such as mercury, and contaminants as do some other…

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There Are Diseases Hidden In Ice And They Are Waking Up

low carb for life

In light of the recent unfolding global crisis I found myself wondering why now? A recent presentation by Dr Eric Berg  discussed how the Spanish Flu pandemic at the very end of the First World War may have been so severe because of the poor state of health of the population at that time following four years of fighting in grueling conditions and a limited supply of staple foods. This led me to research the effects of global warming on bacteria and viruses. 

Normally, I would take any online social media-style click bait with a pinch of salt but this article I discovered was on the BBC Earth website from 2017 that posed the question…
“What would happen if we were suddenly exposed to deadly bacteria and viruses that have been absent for thousands of years, or that we have never met before?”

http://www.bbc.com/earth/story/20170504-there-are-diseases-hidden-in-ice-and-they-are-waking-up

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Spring-Almost-and this bakers thoughts turn to Wild yeast!

Ancientfoods

Topic-Bread and wild yeast

It is most often called sourdough and most of the time I call it that too( it somehow seems simpler even if it’s too often associated with San Francisco) but what’s bubbling and starting foam in my laundry room right now is a much older strain of wild yeast, one that comes directly  from the Giza Plateau in Egypt. I’m putting a link for Sourdough International on my blog roll for any of you who are interested in trying a different strain of wild yeast for your bread. It’s where I bought mine, except the Oregon strains. Ed Wood’s books are a must too!

This is the third batch of Giza Sourdough I’ve started since 2004 along with a French, San Francisco and two native strains from my home state or Oregon. With the small space I have to keep cultures I have to start over from time to time but the fascination of watching…

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