The Rattles from Tell El-Farcha

Abstract

Vessel rattles were one of the first sound-producing tools made from clay. Throughout history, they were developed in many ancient cultures, convergently in many places around the world. To obtain a complete picture of the sounds produced by clay rattles, the short-time Fourier transform analysis is used. On top of that, to determine the full spectrum of their acoustical possibilities, numerical reconstruction of sound is done. The results provide us an opportunity to explore the soundscape of the past.