Pots, People and Place: investigating the use of ceramics in Late Neolithic, Orkney

Grooved Ware (GW) ceramics are one of the key elements of the Late Neolithic in
Britain and Ireland (c.3200-2400 cal BCE), a period known for remarkable ceremonial
complexes. This research focuses on GW from the Ness of Brodgar, a monumental
settlement complex and gathering place in the Heart of Neolithic Orkney World
Heritage Site. The Ness has produced one of the largest GW pottery assemblages in
Britain, and provides an excellent opportunity to examine spatial and temporal
variability in ceramic function.
Organic Residue Analysis (ORA) is applied to reconstruct past vessel use, human
subsistence patterns and dietary practice. Past ORA studies on GW pottery revealed
a reliance on animal fats. However, those studies were based on limited numbers of
samples, making it difficult to identify diversity of use and the extent of change
through time. This thesis documents one of the largest investigations of pottery use
from a single archaeological site. It takes a multidisciplinary approach, combining
lipid biomarkers and compound specific isotope analysis, Bayesian mixture modelling
and scanning electron microscopy as well as pottery technology, to determine site
dynamics and chronological variation. The data is further integrated into the available
archaeozoological, archaeobotanical and chrono-cultural sequence as well as into
the wider context of other (Orcadian) GW sites with conducted ORA studies.
Overall, pottery at the Ness of Brodgar yielded exceptional lipid preservation, mainly
indicating the processing of dairy products, with an intensification in ruminant carcass
fats towards the end of the sequence. Contrasting results were obtained from
different approaches, mainly isotopes and biomarkers, pointing to different phases of
use over the life-history of individual vessels. This thesis shows how methods with
different levels of resolution combine to enhance knowledge of complex culinary
practices, and of site use, demonstrating the potential for fine resolution in future
organic residue studies.