Manufactured individually, performed communally: Variability vs. Consistency in the shaping strategies of neolithic female figurine production

Abstract

Ceramic figurines in Neolithic research have mostly been studied from the perspective of their possible symbolic or religious value in the past. However, we perceive that such insight cannot be achieved through direct analysis; these phenomena are subjective and did not leave any trace on the archaeological record. We lack sufficient knowledge on past societies necessary to make claims in this regard. Therefore, the goal of this research is to understand the manufacturing process in terms of the production complexity and the consistency / variability in their shaping strategies. We seek to discover the existing rules of their shaping, their final appearance and other particularities, and whether they were produced by many separate individuals or multiply produced by one or few persons. This data is based on objective grounds and allows us to understand the role of the figurines in the society in terms of their individual or communal performance, i.e. practical or symbolic handling or use. Our results are based on analysing the largest known figurine collection from the eastern part of Central Europe, which comprises 375 figurines and their fragments from the Lengyel culture (4800–4200 BCE) settlement site Těšetice-Kyjovice–Sutny (Czech Republic). We analysed how they were shaped using high-resolution 3D and micro-CT.