Description
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This book reports on the prehistoric ceramics of Northeast Thailand, comparing data from excavations at Ban Na Di in the Sakon Nakhon Basin, with previously excavated ceramics from the Khorat Plateau, the Petchabun Highlands and the Central Plains region. It aims to provide an extensive corpus of the region’s pottery, to provide temporal and geographical context for the Sakon Nakhon Basin assemblage. The cultural, socioeconomic, and technological factors contributing to pottery production are considered, providing insight into the origins of the manufacturing techniques adopted during the Northeastern cultural sequence. Rather than focusing on style and design characteristics, petrographic techniques are introduced identifying key technological and mineralogical information. Two distinct ceramic traditions are identified at Ban Na Di, each displaying differences in raw materials, production techniques and style. Local variation is discussed in the context of exchange networks, and the arrival of itinerant metallurgists and immigrant potters, suggesting an expanded picture of trade and exchange stretching south of the Khorat Plateau.