Summary

Food vessel from the cemetery at Barns Farm, Dalgety Bay, Fife

Accession Number

X.EQ 918

Other references

None

Original description

[MOS List, II.5.1, Death: object list by case, JAS 3.2.98. Case no.: V08 - Identity: part of community]. [One of] Grave goods from cemetery at Barns Farm: - from Grave 2: - Food Vessel. Trevor Cowie notes, 20 February 2014: Food vessel (FRN 194; NMAS EQ 918; fig 20) in a thick (14 mm), hard, red-brown fabric with large stony inclusions up to 6 mm long. The pot is 160 mm high with an exterior rim diameter of 148 mm, and a base diameter of 80 mm. It is a tall, substantial pot with a flaring body, high shoulder, concave neck and a slightly everted rim which is gently bevelled internally. The rim bevel is decorated with 10 panels of nine curved impressions (each impression c 6 mm long) arranged in rows of three. Although similar to thumbnail impressions, they were probably executed with a curved bone fragment. The surface of the clay in the areas between the panels and on some parts of the body retains signs of having been wet-hand-finished. On the outer angle of the rim is a row of diagonal cuts up to 10 mm long and 5 mm apart. On the neck, shoulder and body are c 20 slightly inclined rows of deep impressions, with straight upper edges and curved lower ones. They resemble horizontal fingernail decoration of 'cuneiform' type (cf Clarke 1970: 569) and were executed with a tool with a curved, chisel end. The average length of these impressions is 10 mm, but on some areas, particularly parts of the neck and shoulder, they are less deep and have been run together to produce a form of stab and drag motif. The base is undecorated. For further discussion see Watkins 1982

Associated person/people (e.g. excavator/former collection)

None

Discovery / field collection

Date of discovery

Not recorded

Method (e.g. excavation)

Not recorded

Place (i.e. location of discovery)

Barns Farm, Dalgety Bay, Fife, Scotland, Northern Europe

Grid reference

Not recorded

Acquisition

Acquisition date

Not recorded

Acquisition source (i.e. name of donor)

Not recorded

Acquisition source role (e.g. donor)

Not recorded

Image