Copper, Ceramics, and Cyprus

By
Ellen Bruner
Ellen Bruner, a Molecular and Cellular Biology major, began research into Cypriot iconography nearly four years ago in a Freshman seminar. Today, she is a Senior and Provost's Undergraduate Research Award recipient for her ongoing archaeological work with Dr. Emily Anderson, presenting the culmination of an independent study on the cultural collisions between copper and ceramics in Bronze Age Cyprus.

  • Slipped ceramic sherd, JHUAM A.1083-1

Copper, Ceramics, and Cyprus: A White Slip Ware I Bowl Sherd

Much of the literature on White Slip Ware (WSW) has examined the elevation of Cypriot ‘international’ relations through the lens of the island’s socioeconomic stake in the Amarna Age as copper-rich Alayisha, evidence regarding a parallel role for ceramics to copper has yet to be fully considered. The slip of WSW bowls contains materials obtained by copper-ore extraction, further entangling these two major exports. The Johns Hopkins Archaeological Museum’s bichrome WSW bowl sherd testifies to the importance and intricacy of this ceramic tradition.

The full presentation can be seen here:

… https://vimeo.com/65266937…