Stone-walled Ovens
- Folder Type:
- Archaeological Feature
- Primary Title:
- Stone-walled Ovens
- Summary Description:
- During the expansion of Operation 3 in 1994 and 1995, a number of features using stones were recorded. The archaeologists originally thought that they would turn out to be graves with simple field stone architecture. But on excavation, no evidence for in situ burials was found in or around these features. Most had been disturbed by looters, in some cases almost completely. In two cases, however (F. 15 and F.23), the features were intact allowing excavation and sectioning in order to determine how they were constructed and what they were used for. Twelve of these features (F.9, F.14,F.15, F.18, F.19, F.22, F.23, F.42, F.47, F.48, F.49 and F.51.formed an approximate circle (13 m x 12 m). Each feature is ovaloid averaging 3m in length and 2-2.5 m in width. After the pits were dug out by the village’s inhabitants they were lined with a compact reddish clay on the bottom and partly up the walls. The clay at the bottom was as much as 0.5 m thick. Angular field stones were then carefully embedded in the walls leaving a circular open space in the middle. The two best-preserved features (F. 15 and F.23) have one sector thicker-walled than the other. The circle of stone-lined features enclosed two other circular features, which on excavation were discovered to have been emptied by looters. Local informants believe that the looters found metal artifacts in these features. Therefore we entertain the possibility that these features were burials. The circular space in the middle of the stone-lined features contained a mixed fill of ash, burnt clay, potsherds and other broken artifacts, and large quantities of charcoal – presumably debris resulting from the use of these features as ovens. At the bottom of the better preserved “ovens” a porous whitish substance was found, which has not been examined chemically. Seven radiocarbon dates have been acquired, two from the soft fills inside the ovens (F. 15, F.19), and five from the compact fills: 1370 ± 80 BP (F. 15, compact red clay); 1380 ± 80 BP (F. 15, soft fill); 1450 ± 80 BP (F. 19, compact red clay); 1440 ± 80 BP (F. 19, soft fill), 1330 ± 110 (F. 23, compact red clay), 1330 ± 80 BP (F.42, compact red clay), and 1560 ± 80 (F. 49, compact red clay. These dates suggest, firstly, that the “ovens” were used soon after they were built, and 2) that the likely date of manufacture was between 500 and 620 CE. This evaluation is consistent with the fact that all the pottery found in the soft fill and in the red clay base of Features 15 and 23 belongs to categories that pre-date the Conte four-polychrome style that was manufactured after 700 CE across Gran Coclé. Most of the painted sherds were attributed to the Cubitá style as defined by Sanchez (1995).
- Entity Type: Feature Type
| PID | Type | Title | Metadata | URL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| si_118628 | Operation 3. Details and distribution of rock-lined ovens. |
| Download | |
| si_118938 | Operation 3. Disposition of rock-lined ovens. |
| Download |