Catalogue of Għar Dalam and Skorba phase pottery sherds selected for archaeometric analysis

Abstract

This catalogue was compiled as part of the MaltaPot project at the University of Malta. This project aims to understand better the nature of the materials used in Neolithic Malta, mainly dating to the Għar Dalam, Skorba (Early Neolithic), and Zebbuġ (Late Neolithic) phases. This catalogue presents sherds from the Għar Dalam and Skorba phases, photographs, microphotographs, and descriptions of sherds and their archaeological contexts. This catalogue was prepared thanks to the information from the National Museum of Archaeology (NMA), Malta, and the FRAGSUS project.

The project used multiple techniques to characterise the pottery sherds, such as microscopy, polarised light microscope, X-Ray Fluorescence or X-Ray Diffraction. Although the results of these analyses await publication, this catalogue presents the sherds which were analysed using these destructive techniques to provide comparative material whilst safeguarding information about the characteristics of these sherds which have been partially destroyed.

Data collection was carried out between 2018-2020 and 2023. This catalogue was compiled in 2023.

This document is a PDF document; to access the original photographs and data, please email the authors.