Journal
ARCHAEOMETRY
Volume 42, Issue -, Pages 2-20Publisher
WILEY-BLACKWELL
DOI: 10.1111/j.1475-4754.2000.tb00863.x
Keywords
anthropology; ethnoarchaeology; materials science; ceramics; kilns; technological choices; chaine operatoire
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Recently several anthropological and sociological studies have interpreted technologies as cultural choices that are determined as much by local perceptions and the social context as any material constraints or purely functional criteria. Using the example of ceramic technology we consider how materials science studies can contribute to and benefit from this understanding of technology as a social construct. Although we acknowledge some potential difficulties, it is our contention that both materials scientists and archaeologists have gained much and have much to gain by cooperating together to study ancient technologies, and that the concept of 'technological choices' can facilitate a wider consideration of the factors shaping technological developments.
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