Sifting Through: The Characteristics and Significance of Ceramic Strainer-Vessels in the Chalcolithic Period of the Southern Levant

A strainer is an autonomous utensil (sieve or colander) or an integral part (filter) of a utensil designed to separate mixtures based on grain size. In the southern Levant, strainer vessels made of clay are known since the Early Chalcolithic period, albeit few in number. The onset of the Late Chalco...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Bulletin of ASOR
Authors: van den Brink, Edwin Cornelis Martinus (Author) ; Chasan, Rivka (Author) ; Rosenberg, Danny (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: The University of Chicago Press 2021
In: Bulletin of ASOR
Year: 2021, Volume: 386, Pages: 177-207
Further subjects:B alcoholic beverage
B strainer
B colander
B olive oil
B Late Chalcolithic
B sieve
B Milk
B Southern Levant
Online Access: Volltext (lizenzpflichtig)
Description
Summary:A strainer is an autonomous utensil (sieve or colander) or an integral part (filter) of a utensil designed to separate mixtures based on grain size. In the southern Levant, strainer vessels made of clay are known since the Early Chalcolithic period, albeit few in number. The onset of the Late Chalcolithic period reflects a significant increase in the numbers and distribution of these particular vessels even though their numbers per site remain relatively low. This paper surveys foremost Late Chalcolithic strainer vessels from the southern Levant, discussing their morphology, significance and possible role as straining and sifting devices for liquids (e.g., olive or other oils, herbal or botanical mixtures, and alcoholic beverages) and solid substances (e.g., fats and flour). While results from our ongoing organic residue analysis concerning this and other types of Late Chalcolithic vessels are yet to come, we can already suggest that these vessels entail a variety of tasks and that they were used in a number of different contexts based on the variability of strainer vessel types and the strainer morphology.
ISSN:2161-8062
Contains:Enthalten in: American Schools of Oriental Research, Bulletin of ASOR
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1086/715578