Our second series of ‘Making Must Farm’ is back! Over the next 5 episodes, we’ll be taking a closer look at the pottery assemblage that was recovered from the late Bronze Age settlement from Whittlesey, near Peterborough.
1. The Pottery Assemblage and It's Coarseware Bowls
The Must Farm pottery assemblage is a nationally significant group of Late Bronze Age ceramics. Often, Prehistoric assemblages from the late Bronze Age only contain one or two pieces of intact pottery, known by archaeologists as sherds. In comparison, The Must Farm assemblage is largely made up of complete and semi-complete vessels.
Dr. Chris Wakefield shares some insights from the specialist report about the significance of the pottery assemblage from Must Farm, with a focus on the coarseware bowls that were found at the site. Chris is joined by prehistoric pottery expert Graham Taylor (Potted History) who guides us through the process of making a coarseware bowl and shares what this assemblage can tell us about the people who made the pots, how they were making them and how they were being used.
2. A Fineware Bowl
The Late Bronze Age pottery assemblage from Must Farm contained a group of pots that were in everyday use 3,000 years ago. Living assemblages are incredibly rare in the archaeological record and among this assemblage archaeologists discovered an unusual amount of fineware pottery.
In episode 2, Dr. Chris Wakefield (CAU), shares details from the specialist report about the incredible collection of fineware bowls that were found at the settlement. Chris is joined by prehistoric pottery expert Graham Taylor (Potted History) who guides us through the process of making a fineware bowl and shares his insights as a potter into what these bowls can tell us about the skill of these prehistoric potters and why they would have chosen to invest the extra time these bowls take to make.
3. A Coarseware Jar
38 jars were found in the Must Farm assemblage, most of which were courseware vessels used for everyday transportation, storage, food preparation and as cooking vessels.
In this episode, Dr. Chris Wakefield (CAU), discusses the ‘living’ and ‘dead’ assemblages that were found at Must Farm and how the evidence from the two can give us a better insight into how people in the Late Bronze Age used and viewed these vessels. Chris is joined by prehistoric pottery expert Graham Taylor (Potted History) who guides us through the process of making a coarseware jar and explores why some pots were discarded when others show evidence of repair.
4. A Pinch Pot
Two round-bottomed pinch pots with tapered rims were uncovered, still intact after 3,000 years during the excavations of the Late Bronze Age settlement of Must Farm. Although included in the cup category, it seems unlikely that these vessels functioned in the same way as the other cups in the assemblage. So why were these vessels made and what were they being used for?
In episode 4, Dr. Chris Wakefield (CAU) discusses why pottery is such a valuable tool for archaeologists and what processes are involved in the post-excavation process to put the pieces back together again. Chris is joined by prehistoric pottery expert Graham Taylor (Potted History) who demonstrates the creation of two tiny pinch pots and shares his insights as to what these pots may have been used for and the logistics involved in firing the range of vessel sizes that were recovered from the settlement.
A POPPY-HEADED CUP
Out of the 128 vessels that were found at Must Farm, Pot 41 (the poppy headed cup) is one of the most extraordinary vessels assemblage, both in terms of form and decoration.
In this episode, Dr. Chris Wakefield (CAU) looks at how the fire affected the pots that were recovered from the Late Bronze Age settlement and how this has affected the post-excavation analysis of these artefacts. Watch prehistoric pottery expert Graham Taylor (Potted History) make a replica of the poppy headed cup and discuss how it may have been made 3,000 years ago.
You can now read more about the incredible site of Must Farm in the Open Access volumes, published by the McDonald Institute of Archaeological Research :
Must Farm pile-dwelling settlement: Volume 1. Landscape, architecture and occupation: https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.106697
Must Farm pile-dwelling settlement: Volume 2. Specialist reports: https://doi.org/10.17863/CAM.106698
Potted History creates incredible museum quality replica pots from prehistory through to post mediaeval periods. Take a look at their website or follow them on Youtube and social media for more great pottery content! www.potted-history.co.uk
Filmed and Produced by Emma Jones/AncientCraft
With special thanks to Cambridge Archaeological Unit, McDonald Institute of Archaeological Research, University of Cambridge, Historic England and Forterra, for funding this series of educational videos.