Disappearing Pottery Traditions? The Influence of Socio-economic Factors on Technical Innovations in Senegal and The Gambia

Abstract

Nowadays, ceramic productions in sub-Saharan Africa are often described as “declining” or “in danger,” due for example to a growing concurrence of modern containers (metallic, plastic) during the twentieth century or changing lifestyles. However, very few researchers question the mechanisms of such processes of decline or abandonment, thus preventing an understanding of related cultural dynamics. This article, based on recent ethnographic surveys conducted in the central regions of Senegal and The Gambia, seeks to interrogate this topic. Our research highlights the presence of two technical traditions separated by the Gambia River. The one located on its north bank and shared by Wolof and Mandinka potters is characterized by the grog temper, usually obtained from discarded pots, but this technical procedure was enriched by two alternative ones during the last decades. We demonstrate these cases of technical innovations can be directly correlated to an increasing number of active potters in this area during the second half of the twentieth century, encouraged by the recent creation of weekly markets and a growing need for money. This apparent growth of pottery activity, however concentrated in a few villages, must be put into parallel with two major trends: the massive adoption of non-ceramic containers, most often imported, and a significant narrowing of pottery functional range. Processes of decline and abandonment of pottery production and consumption thus relate to multiple factors and paces of change. We finally suggest that specific material patterns (diversity of grogs, narrowed functional range) may provide good indicators to identify such cultural dynamics in archaeological contexts.