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Introduction
The “Special Ceramics Roster” is nested within a system of “Special Rosters” for specific categories of material found on the excavation (see Grammar, under Volume 1, The System, Chapter 1.8, “Special Rosters“).The ceramics roster includes all categories of ceramic analysis used over the years in the Urkesh/Tell Mozan excavations.
As always, with the increasingly more detailed knowledge of the ceramics the system changed. For instance in the early years we did not measure the percentage of the particular rim preserved. Also the details of the wares and their inclusions as they varied through time was accumulated only gradually with the excavation of the time periods present at the site. This can especially be seen in the description of the Middle Assyrian wares and shapes of which we have found stratified evidence only in the 2009 and 2010 field seasons. Since this Middle Assyrian ceramic evidence is minimal, we do not have as good a description for it as compared with the Mittani ceramics, with a much larger sample.
All sherds, are analyzed according to the characteristics listed here but, for the historical reasons noted above, not all have been fully analyzed by all the categories listed even if they did exhibit those characteristics.
Most of the sherds displayed in the drawings have the shape code noted; this occurs both in the Horizon Catalogs as well as in the ceramic drawings by context, that is the ceramic drawings by important features; this code is found at the top of the drawing. Many of the sherds drawn have also the ware noted, below the drawing, along with the context and sherd number, which are always present. While in the earlier years of the excavation not every sherd had a discrete number, the sherds in the present edition of the UGR all do have a separate number assigned to them (see History 1 and History 2).
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Codes
| ZcaA | details of Time Assignment |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 3. STRATIGRAPHY/Time sequencing |
| ZcaA1 | typological horizon – This differs from the stratigraphic horizon (I5 of "Main Roster" [see Grammar, under Volume 1, The System, Chapter 1.6, "Main Roster"]), in that it identifies a vessel or sherd on the basis of its typological characteristics, regardless of its emplacement. Thus a painted Khabur sherd would be assigned to the K horizon even if it is found in a later context. |
| ZcaA10 | ceramic vessels and sherds within feature (under feature) |
| ZcaW | details of Ware |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 4. TYPOLOGY/Morphology |
| ZcaW0 | main ware |
| ZcaW1 | main temper |
| ZcaW2 | other temper |
| ZcaW3 | surface treatment, exterior |
| ZcaW4 | surface treatment, interior |
| ZcaW5 | type of inclusions |
| ZcaW6 | frequency of inclusions |
| ZcaW7 | firing |
| ZcaW8 | fracture |
| ZcaW9 | detail of ware (subfamily) |
| ZcaS | details of Shape |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 4. TYPOLOGY/Morphology |
| NOTE: When a basic shape can be recognized, then it is qualified by the three additional roster categories of family/sub-family/type, e.g., a bowl may be deep (family), sharply carinated (sub-family), type as identified by a standardized drawing (7). – Rim, base or handle are generally identified without reference to the preceding categories, although in principle that is possible. |
| ZcaS1 | family |
| ZcaS2 | sub-type |
| ZcaS3 | type |
| ZcaS4 | rim/base/handle |
| ZcaS9 | forming technique |
| ZcaD | details of Decoration |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 4. TYPOLOGY/Morphology |
| ZcaD1 | technique |
| ZcaD2 | type |
| ZcaC | details of Color |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 4. TYPOLOGY/Morphology |
| ZcaC1 | color, interior (name) |
| ZcaC2 | color, interior (Munsell number) |
| ZcaC3 | color, exterior (name) |
| ZcaC4 | color, exterior (Munsell number) |
| ZcaC5 | color, temper (name) |
| ZcaC6 | color, temper (Munsell number) |
| ZcaC7 | painted color background A (i.e. body?) |
| ZcaC8 | painted color background B |
| ZcaC9 | painted color foreground A (i.e., decoration?) |
| ZcaC10 | painted color foreground B |
| ZcaM | details of Measurements |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 4. TYPOLOGY/Measurements |
| ZcaM1 | percentage of rim – This category defines how large a sherd is vis-à-vis the total circumference of the vessel rim. |
| ZcaF | details of Function |
| Cf. section of the "Main Roster": 4. TYPOLOGY/Function |
| ZcaF1 | primary function |
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