2009 Production of Mid-Late Neolithic “Serra d’Alto” ware in the Bradanic Trough (South Eastern Italy)

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VESSELS: INSIDE AND OUTSIDE
PROCEEDINGS OF THE CONFERENCE EMAC '07
9TH EUROPEAN MEETING ON ANCIENT CERAMICS
*
24-27 OCTOBER 2007, HUNGARIAN NATIONAL MUSEUM
BUDAPEST, HUNGARY
Edited by:
Katalin T. Biró
Veronika Szilágyi
Attila Kreiter

VESSELS: INSIDE AND OUTSIDE
Proceedings of the Conference EMAC '07
9th European Meeting on Ancient Ceramics
24-27 October 2007, Hungarian National Museum, Budapest, Hungary
INTERNATIONAL SCIENTIFIC COMMITTEE
S.Y. Waksman (Lyon, France)
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MUNTONI & AL. : PRODUCTION OF MID-LATE NEOLITHIC ’SERRA D’ALTO’ WARE IN THE BRADANIC TROUGH
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PRODUCTION OF MID-LATE NEOLITHIC ‘SERRA D’ALTO’ WARE IN
THE BRADANIC TROUGH (SOUTH EASTERN ITALY)
1I. M. Muntoni - 2G. Eramo - 2R. Laviano
1Facoltà di Scienze Umanistiche, Università di Roma ‘La Sapienza’; Italo.Muntoni@uniroma1.it
2Dipartimento Geomineralogico, Università degli Studi di Bari
giacomo.eramo@geomin.uniba.it, rocco.laviano@geomin.uniba.it
Abstract: This article explores the issue of circulation in different areas of southern Italy of Mid-Late Neolithic ‘Serra d’Alto’ pots,
rather than the production model of this ware. Petrographic, mineralogical and chemical analyses of 54 pottery samples from Serra
d’Alto and Trasano (Basilicata), and from Masseria Fragennaro (Apulia) have revealed that fine wares were produced using local
Plio-Pleistocene marly clays; while almost all the coarse wares were produced using eluvial or colluvial deposits in a carbonatic
area. These results confirm the hypothesis of widespread technological models of production in different areas. Serra d’Alto pottery
would therefore seem to be a significant technological shift from Early Neolithic pottery production.
Keywords: Mid-Late Neolithic, Bradanic Trough, Serra d’Alto ware, Argille Subappennine, mineralogical and chemical analyses
THE SCIENTIFIC PROBLEM
Mid-Late Neolithic ‘Serra d’Alto’ ware was widespread
in southern Italy during the fifth millennium cal. BC and
exhibited homogeneous formal and technical features.
This style was characterized by very fine yellow paste,
decorated with exquisite curvilinear–geometric patterns
in brown, and with finely modelled handles and lugs in
animal- and bow-forms.
From a chronological point of view, this facies
corresponds to the fifth millennium cal. BC and the
beginning of the fourth millennium cal. BC. This can be
seen from the ancient 14C dates from Masseria Candelaro
(Apulia), Santa Barbara (Apulia) and Stretto Partanna
(Sicily) to the late dates from Cala Scizzo (Apulia), Cala
Colombo (Apulia) and Skorba (Maltese Islands) (Skeates
1994).
Serra d’Alto’s wide distribution even in northern Italy
and its frequent occurrence in funerary/cultual contexts,
have led many scholars (Cassano 1993; Malone 2003) to
emphasize its exchange value. This ware would have
been a prestige good, probably manufactured in a number
of production sites in southern Italy and then widely
distributed through a large network of middle and long
distance exchange.
This work is part of a more extended archaeometric
project (Laviano & Muntoni 2006, in press), aiming to
verify the hypothesis of the circulation of finished
ceramic pots, rather than of production models in
different areas of southern Italy. The first efforts focused
on building up an extensive database of the
mineralogical, petrographic and chemical data of more
than one hundred pottery samples from many of the
excavated Neolithic villages in Apulia (Tavoliere and
Murge) where this pottery type is largely documented
(Geniola et al. 2005; Muntoni et al. 2006).
ARCHAEOLOGICAL CONTEXTS AND
MATERIALS
This paper presents a new set of 54 pottery samples from
three excavated Neolithic villages: Serra d’Alto
(Basilicata), Trasano (Basilicata) and Masseria
Fragennaro (Apulia). The sites, which were frequently
surrounded by impressive and semi-fortified ditches,
were excavated respectively by the Soprintendenza ai
Beni Archeologici della Basilicata (Lo Porto 1989), by
the Universities of Pisa and Toulouse (Radi & Grifoni
Cremonesi 1995) and by the Soprintendenza ai Beni
Archeologici della Puglia (Venturo 1995). In the three
Serra d’Alto villages (A, B and C) circular cavities were
frequently found inside the area delimited by the ditches,
and these have been interpreted as ‘hut bases’ or silos.
During this phase the excavated area at Trasano was used
for food storage structures: numerous bell-shaped silos,
with a narrow opening closed with a stone plug, have
been found: one of these was successfully used for
several inhumations.
The analysed sites are all situated on the western edge of
the Murge Plateau and in the Bradanic Trough (Fig. 1),
where Serra d’Alto ware was produced in large quantities
during the Neolithic period and where it was first
identified by the archaeologist Ridola (1924-1926). Two
different wares (Fig. 2) have been found in
archaeological contexts: brown painted fine ware pots
(n=40: SdA 1-14; TR1-3, 6-8, 10-12, 15-17; LFR1-8, 15-
18, 23-24) and black household pots (n=14; TR4-5, 9, 13-
14, 18-20; LFR9-14).

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Fig. 1 Geological sketch map of (a) the Bradanic Trough (modified after Sella et al. 1988) and (b) the Matera area
(modified after Beneduce et al. 2004) with location of sampled Mid Neolithic settlements: (1) Serra d’Alto; (2) Trasano;
(3) Masseria Fragennaro
The 14 pottery fragments from Serra d’Alto villages were
sampled from village A (SdA 1-10) excavated in 1931
(Fondo Contorti) and 1942 (Fondo Chico), and from
village C (SdA 11-14) excavated in 1925 (Fondo
Giacoia). The 20 pottery fragments from Trasano were
sampled from the bell-shaped silos 8 (TR1-5), 9 (TR6-9),
10 (TR10-14) and 11 (TR15-20), all excavated in 1991.
The 20 pottery fragments from Masseria Fragennaro were
sampled from the second (LFR1-18) and the third
(LFR23-24) archaeological levels of the ditch excavated
in 1994. Some Early to Mid Neolithic pottery samples
had previously been characterised by thin-section
analysis from Serra d’Alto village A (Mannoni 1988) and
Trasano (Angeli & Fabbri 2005).
THE GEOLOGICAL CONTEXT
The Murge Plateau (Fig. 1) is mainly made up of Calcare
di Bari (Valanginian – late Cenomanian) and Calcare di
Altamura (late Turonian – Maastrichtian) limestone
formations (Luperto Sinni 1996), with terra rossa
deposits present in the sequence. Terra rossa is formed of
silty–clayey continental sedimentary deposits, very poor
in carbonate, composed of dominant clay minerals (illite
and kaolinite) and Fe-oxides or hydroxides, with
subordinate quantities of quartz, feldspars, micas and rare
pyroxenes. SiO2, Al2O3 and Fe2O3 are the main oxides,
both in the clay fraction and in the whole specimen
(Dell’Anna 1967; Dell’Anna et al. 1973).
Fig. 2 Examples of analyzed pottery fragments from Masseria Fragennaro (Apulia): (a) brown painted fine ware

MUNTONI & AL. : PRODUCTION OF MID-LATE NEOLITHIC ’SERRA D’ALTO’ WARE IN THE BRADANIC TROUGH
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(LFR6); (b) household coarse ware (LFR10)
Fig. 3 Thin section photographs of different pottery fabrics (crossed polarized light; the length of frames is 4 mm): (a)
QC fabric (LFR17); (b) QCF fabric (TR17); (c) QV fabric (TR10); (d) FC fabric (TR7); (e) CS fabric (TR19); (f) CQF
fabric (LFR9)

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Table 1 Petrographic features of Serra d’Alto pottery, as observed in thin section. Key: Srnk = shrinkage porosity; Txt
= grain size distribution of non-plastic inclusions; D mode = prevalent grain size(s); unim = unimodal; bim = bimodal;
vfs = very fine sand; ms = medium sand; cs = coarse sand; Qm = monocrystalline quartz; Qp = polycrystalline quartz;
CcS = calcareous silt; sCal = spathic calcite; CRF = calcareous rock fragment; VRF = volcanic rock fragment; ARF =
argillaceous rock fragment; Fe agg = iron aggregate; Psl = iron pisolith; For = foraminifera; E = echinids; Cal2 =
secondary calcite; Org = secondary pores of original organic matter; Px = pyroxene; Kfs = potassium-feldspar; Pl =
plagioclase; Ch = chert.
Porosity Non-plastic inclusions
Samples Fabric Matrix % vol Srnk Txt D mode Qm Micas Lithics Fe agg Fossils Notes
LFR01 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For
LFR02 QC zoned 5 unim silt + + CcS + For
LFR03 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR04 QC zoned 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR05 QC 10 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR06 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR07 QC 10 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR08 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR15 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For
LFR16 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For
LFR17 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR18 QC zoned 10 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
LFR23 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For
LFR24 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For ARF, Cal2
SdA01 QC zoned 5 unim silt + + CcS ++ For Cal2
SdA02 QC zoned 10 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
SdA03 QC zoned 5 unim vfs + + CcS + For Cal2
SdA04 QC 10 unim vfs + + CcS For ARF, Cal2
SdA05 QC 10 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
SdA06 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS ++ For Cal2
SdA07 QC 5 unim vfs + + CcS + For Cal2
SdA08 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For
SdA09 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
SdA10 QC zoned 5 + unim vfs + + CcS + For
SdA11 QC 10 unim silt + + CcS + For, E Cal2
SdA14 QC 5 unim silt + + CcS ++ For Cal2
TR01 QC zoned 10 unim vfs + + CcS + For Cal2
TR02 QC zoned 5 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
TR03 QC zoned 10 unim silt + + CcS + For Cal2
TR06 QC zoned 5 unim silt + + CcS For Cal2
TR11 QC zoned 10 unim silt + + CcS For (tr) Cal2
TR12 QC 10 unim vfs + + CcS + For Cal2, Org
TR15 QC zoned 10 unim silt + + CcS For Cal2
TR16 QC 10 unim vfs + ++ CcS + For Cal2
TR08 QCF 15 unim silt + tr CcS ++
TR17 QCF zoned 10 unim vfs + tr CcS ++ For (tr), E Cal2, Org
TR10 QV zoned 10 unim silt + ++ CcS, VRF + Ch, Px, Cal2
TR07 FC 20 unim ms + CcS, CRF + For (+) Cal2
SdA12 FC zoned 10 unim silt + CcS For (+) ARF, Cal2
SdA13 FC 10 unim silt + CcS + For (+) Cal2
TR04 CS zoned 15 + bim silt+ms tr sCal Org
TR05 CS 5 bim silt+ms tr sCal For (tr)
TR09 CS zoned 5 bim silt+cs tr sCal
TR13 CS zoned 5 bim vfs+cs tr sCal For Cal2
TR14 CS zoned 15 + bim vfs+cs tr sCal
TR18 CS zoned 5 bim vfs+ms tr sCal For (tr)
TR19 CS 5 bim vfs+ms tr sCal For (tr)
TR20 CS zoned 5 bim vfs+cs tr sCal
LFR11 CS 10 + unim ms tr tr sCal + Ch (tr)
LFR09 CQF zoned 10 + unim ms + tr sCal, VFR Psl For (tr) ARF, Kfs (tr), Pl (tr)
LFR10 CQF zoned 10 + unim ms + tr sCal Psl Ch (tr), Qp (tr)
LFR12 CQF zoned 10 + unim ms + sCal Psl Px (tr), Kfs (tr)
LFR13 CQF zoned 10 + unim ms + sCal Psl Kfs (tr), Qp (tr)
LFR14 CQF zoned 10 + unim ms + sCal Psl

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Table 2 Chemical composition (by XRF) of brown-painted fine ware pottery samples: major and minor elements and
L.O.I. (wt %). m = mean; σ = standard deviation
Samples Fabric SiO2TiO2Al2O3Fe2O3MnO MgO CaO Na2OK
2OP
2O5L.O.I.
LFR01 QC 49.19 0.74 12.14 5.01 0.09 2.55 16.61 0.69 2.05 0.48 10.45
LFR02 QC 52.66 0.79 13.47 5.90 0.11 2.97 12.96 0.60 2.15 0.58 7.81
LFR03 QC 52.39 0.70 12.41 5.78 0.11 2.45 17.20 0.73 2.13 0.35 5.75
LFR04 QC 49.23 0.73 12.34 5.29 0.11 2.74 16.18 0.63 2.10 0.38 10.27
LFR05 QC 49.56 0.74 12.72 5.43 0.10 3.31 15.33 0.58 1.97 0.36 9.90
LFR06 QC 49.88 0.76 12.86 5.61 0.11 3.17 15.45 0.58 1.98 0.27 9.33
LFR07 QC 48.69 0.73 12.69 5.41 0.10 3.38 15.49 0.56 1.83 0.30 10.82
LFR08 QC 49.50 0.76 12.95 5.44 0.10 3.21 15.39 0.62 2.12 0.26 9.65
LFR15 QC 49.02 0.74 12.95 5.56 0.09 2.93 17.95 0.82 2.06 0.24 7.64
LFR16 QC 50.75 0.78 13.23 5.52 0.10 2.78 16.90 0.69 2.32 0.47 6.46
LFR17 QC 50.84 0.75 12.81 5.31 0.09 2.91 16.71 0.73 2.21 0.35 7.29
LFR18 QC 51.41 0.76 12.95 5.41 0.09 3.02 17.49 0.84 2.14 0.37 5.52
LFR23 QC 49.96 0.77 12.95 5.85 0.11 2.80 16.42 0.60 2.33 0.27 7.94
LFR24 QC 50.41 0.76 13.17 5.52 0.10 3.17 15.51 0.66 2.22 0.26 8.22
SdA01 QC 48.91 0.75 12.83 5.97 0.09 2.78 16.59 0.68 2.41 0.21 8.78
SdA02 QC 43.42 0.62 10.57 5.28 0.08 3.32 19.59 0.63 1.92 0.26 14.31
SdA03 QC 41.62 0.55 9.51 4.58 0.08 3.19 21.24 0.53 1.44 0.21 17.05
SdA04 QC 47.46 0.60 10.38 5.17 0.05 1.83 19.65 0.69 2.01 0.21 11.95
SdA05 QC 51.64 0.73 12.78 5.17 0.09 2.95 15.47 0.74 1.89 0.24 8.30
SdA06 QC 43.62 0.65 10.67 5.31 0.09 3.10 22.43 0.54 1.56 0.28 11.75
SdA07 QC 54.30 0.74 13.28 6.00 0.10 2.04 13.80 0.81 2.21 0.27 6.45
SdA08 QC 47.77 0.67 11.44 5.32 0.11 1.79 19.26 0.67 2.02 0.34 10.61
SdA09 QC 47.48 0.70 11.70 5.92 0.11 3.07 16.96 0.73 2.18 0.34 10.81
SdA10 QC 48.16 0.59 10.71 4.82 0.09 1.41 20.54 0.66 2.06 0.26 10.70
SdA13 QC 36.53 0.58 9.47 4.94 0.07 2.22 31.01 0.74 0.94 0.28 13.22
SdA14 QC 40.08 0.63 10.51 5.27 0.08 3.19 26.09 0.66 1.76 0.32 11.41
TR01 QC 36.31 0.50 8.86 4.08 0.09 2.08 26.28 0.50 1.53 0.27 19.50
TR02 QC 49.98 0.74 13.00 5.54 0.09 2.71 15.71 0.60 2.33 0.27 9.03
TR03 QC 50.04 0.75 12.84 5.52 0.09 2.46 15.46 0.63 2.40 0.28 9.53
TR06 QC 42.68 0.82 13.58 7.07 0.11 2.67 17.33 0.32 1.32 0.26 13.84
TR11 QC 50.62 0.87 14.60 6.63 0.13 2.46 13.46 0.56 2.07 0.42 8.18
TR12 QC 36.71 0.58 9.82 4.57 0.09 2.13 24.82 0.36 1.23 0.24 19.45
TR15 QC 42.69 0.67 11.22 5.74 0.09 2.46 22.96 0.49 1.94 0.27 11.47
TR16 QC 48.23 0.68 11.66 5.79 0.10 3.04 17.50 0.77 2.23 0.26 9.74
m47.40 0.70 12.03 5.46 0.10 2.71 18.29 0.64 1.97 0.31 10.39
σ
4.75 0.08 1.39 0.55 0.01 0.49 4.06 0.12 0.35 0.08 3.39
TR08 QCF 50.62 0.89 14.82 6.42 0.10 2.66 12.73 0.62 2.05 0.20 8.89
TR17 QCF 48.08 0.73 12.58 5.86 0.09 2.86 16.46 0.62 2.17 0.25 10.30
m49.35 0.81 13.70 6.14 0.10 2.76 14.60 0.62 2.11 0.23 9.60
σ
1.80 0.11 1.58 0.40 0.01 0.14 2.64 0.00 0.08 0.04 1.00
TR10 QV 48.75 0.80 13.90 6.67 0.12 3.19 14.14 0.67 2.32 0.41 9.03
TR07 FC 31.28 0.43 7.66 3.78 0.07 1.05 31.39 0.32 0.65 0.26 23.11
SdA11 FC 46.66 0.70 11.93 5.71 0.10 2.94 20.38 0.90 2.10 0.23 8.35
SdA12 FC 41.35 0.68 11.18 5.81 0.08 2.66 27.51 0.91 1.14 0.29 8.39
m39.76 0.60 10.26 5.10 0.08 2.22 26.43 0.71 1.30 0.26 13.28
σ
7.81 0.15 2.28 1.14 0.02 1.02 5.58 0.34 0.74 0.03 8.51

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Table 3 Chemical composition (by XRF) of black household pottery samples: major and minor elements and L.O.I. (wt
%). m = mean; σ = standard deviation
Samples Fabric SiO2TiO2Al2O3Fe2O3MnO MgO CaO Na2OK
2OP
2O5L.O.I.
TR04 CS 22.96 0.40 7.01 3.16 0.05 1.20 34.93 0.19 0.93 0.13 29.04
TR05 CS 33.35 0.51 8.98 3.71 0.06 1.63 27.15 0.32 1.20 0.14 22.95
TR09 CS 37.01 0.54 9.74 3.94 0.07 1.88 25.12 0.48 1.37 0.23 19.62
TR13 CS 19.73 0.31 5.34 2.50 0.05 0.93 38.99 0.21 0.63 0.19 31.12
TR14 CS 20.26 0.40 6.85 2.78 0.04 1.01 37.04 0.19 0.82 0.11 30.50
TR18 CS 21.47 0.32 6.01 2.41 0.05 1.14 37.65 0.23 0.71 0.10 29.91
TR19 CS 28.89 0.43 7.65 3.25 0.06 1.32 31.08 0.30 1.23 0.27 25.52
TR20 CS 33.18 0.54 9.47 4.27 0.06 1.57 27.00 0.29 1.24 0.15 22.23
LFR11 CS 20.11 0.39 6.71 2.97 0.06 1.19 38.03 0.15 0.79 0.24 29.36
m26.33 0.43 7.53 3.22 0.06 1.32 33.00 0.26 0.99 0.17 26.69
σ
6.81 0.09 1.55 0.64 0.01 0.31 5.46 0.10 0.27 0.06 4.22
LFR09 CQF 39.33 0.54 10.35 4.64 0.21 1.38 22.74 0.34 1.37 0.22 18.88
LFR10 CQF 35.01 0.50 9.15 4.33 0.20 1.04 26.94 0.31 1.23 0.17 21.12
LFR12 CQF 34.40 0.47 8.75 4.22 0.19 0.86 27.34 0.29 1.13 0.27 22.08
LFR13 CQF 34.83 0.50 8.98 4.32 0.18 0.89 27.79 0.30 1.16 0.28 20.77
LFR14 CQF 34.66 0.50 9.01 4.39 0.21 0.98 27.86 0.30 1.25 0.20 20.64
m35.65 0.50 9.25 4.38 0.20 1.03 26.53 0.31 1.23 0.23 20.70
σ
2.07 0.02 0.63 0.16 0.01 0.21 2.15 0.02 0.09 0.05 1.16
Along the western edge of the Murge Plateau, where the
archaeological sites are located, marine Plio-Pleistocene
clays of the Bradanic cycle, also known as Argille
Subappennine, extensively crop out (Dell’Anna &
Laviano 1991, Tropeano et al. 2003, Beneduce et al.
2004). The depth of the outcrops varies from a few
meters to 350 m. The clays consist of silty clay or clayey
silt, with little sand, and have very similar mineralogical
compositions (clay minerals, carbonates, quartz and
feldspars). The clay minerals are a mixture of 2M illite,
Mg-bearing smectite, Fe-bearing chlorite, kaolinite and
randomly interstratified illite/smectite. Due to their
mainly calcareous composition (up to 17 wt% CaO) they
can be classified as marly clays. Clay fractions (<2μm)
have a lower CaO content than the whole specimens,
whereas the Al2O3 and Fe2O3 concentrations are higher
(Dell’Anna & Laviano 1991).
ANALYTICAL METHODS
Mineralogical studies were carried out by X-ray powder
diffraction analysis (PXRD) using a Philips
diffractometer (PW 1710) with Ni-filtered CuKα
radiation, and employing NaF as the internal standard.
These studies have been completed with petrological
observation of thin sections using a polarized light
microscope. Major elements determination was
performed by X-ray fluorescence (XRF), using a Philips
PW 1480/10 spectrometer (Cr anode for major and minor
elements), following analytical techniques outlined by
Franzini et al. (1972, 1975) and Leoni & Saitta (1976).
Loss on ignition (LOI) was determined by heating the
samples at 1,000°C for 12 hours.
RESULTS AND DISCUSSION
The samples from Masseria Fragennaro are more
homogeneous than those from Trasano and Serra d’Alto
from a petrographic point of view. Five petrographic
groups and one sub-group with different composition and
grain-size distribution can be distinguished (Table 1).
The majority of fine ware pottery samples from the three
sites belong to the QC group (n = 34) and show a fairly
fat clay matrix (Fig. 3a), with some muscovite crystals
(∼100 μm) still detectable. The clayey calcareous matrix
is mostly reddish-yellow; only a few samples show
greyish-brown core zoning. Non-plastic inclusions are
homogeneous fine-grained (≤125 μm) monocrystalline
quartz, calcareous clasts and carbonate fossils (mainly
benthonic Foraminifera). Clasts of potassium-feldspar
and ferruginous aggregates are also present. Primary
porosity and drying shrinkage are generally low, and they
are sometimes filled with secondary calcite crystals.
Two samples from Trasano form the QCF sub-group and
they have been distinguished from the rest of the QC
group by a lesser amount of muscovite and Foraminifera
and a greater amount of ferruginous aggregates (Fig. 3b).
One sample from Trasano (QV group) has been
distinguished by a greater amount of muscovite crystals,
the absence of calcareous clasts and carbonate fossils, and

MUNTONI & AL. : PRODUCTION OF MID-LATE NEOLITHIC ’SERRA D’ALTO’ WARE IN THE BRADANIC TROUGH
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Fig. 4 The bivariate plot MgO/CaO vs. Fe2O3to
t
/Al2O3
show a similar MgO/CaO ratio for the fine ware and bulk
Argille Subappennine from the Bradanic Trough (data
from Laviano & Muntoni 2007, tab. 14). The coarse ware
is characterized by a low MgO/CaO ratio which accounts
for different raw materials (see text).
the presence of small amounts of chert, augitic pyroxene
and rare volcanic rock fragments (Fig. 3c). Three samples
from Trasano and Serra d’Alto (FC group) contain a
larger quantity of fossil inclusions and no muscovite
crystals (Fig. 3d).
Coarse ware from Masseria Fragennaro and Trasano was
tempered with spathic calcite clasts. The clayey
calcareous groundmass is mostly medium dark brown
and some samples are zoned. Two petrographic groups
have been identified. All coarse ware samples from
Trasano and one sample from Masseria Fragennaro (CS
group; n = 9) contain angular spathic calcite clasts,
comprising 10-60 vol.% of the total (Fig. 3e). In thin
section these fragments are readily distinguished by their
large size (≥ 250 μm up to 1.2-2.8 mm). The other coarse
samples from Masseria Fragennaro (CQF group; n = 5)
contain the same angular spathic calcite clasts (Fig. 3f),
but clastic particles comprise 35-40 vol.% of the total and
appear in only one size population (≥ 250 μm up to 1.2-
1.6 mm). Non-plastic inclusions also include low
quantities of polycrystalline quartz, chert, rounded Fe-
pisoliths of lateritic origin, plagioclase and potassium-
feldspar. The differences observed in thin section
between these two groups point to a common paste
processing which must have occurred in different places
with different raw materials. As observed under the
microscope, the calcite temper was not significantly
affected by firing and appeared unaltered. This
characteristic was favoured by the coarse size of calcite
clasts and the prevalent reducing conditions during firing,
as attested by the carbonaceous matter still present in the
ceramic body. The presence of shrinkage in the matrix
accounted for low sintering, as well as the loss of water
and organic matter. As opposed to what is observed in
the fine ware, the matrix of the coarse ware is not very
Fig. 5 Most of the compositional points of the analyzed
fine ware plotted in the ternary phase diagram CaO-
Al2O3-SiO2 (after Osborn & Muan 1960) fall in the Wo-
SiO2-An Alkemade triangle, but only the QC samples
from Masseria Fragennaro are centered on the ternary
eutectic (symbols as in Kretz 1983)
calcareous and this points to two different clayey raw
materials for the two wares.
Chemical analyses (XRF) evidenced that SiO2, Al2O3 and
CaO were the main oxides, with some variations with
regards to the percentage of CaO, Na2O, K2O and MgO
(Tables 2-3). The bivariate plot MgO/CaO vs.
Fe2O3tot/Al2O3 (Fig. 4) show a low correlation between
the two oxide ratios and more dispersed fine ware
compositions. As a whole, the fine ware from Trasano
and Serra d’Alto has a lower or equal MgO/CaO ratio
than those from Masseria Fragennaro and a relatively
higher Fe2O3tot/Al2O3 ratio as well. This may be related to
their geographical position: the former are positioned on
the western side of the Viglione Graben (Fig. 1), the
latter is located on its eastern side. Although the overall
petrographic, mineralogical and chemical compositions
of the analyzed fine ware is comparable with that of the
Argille Subappennine clays reported in literature
(Dell’Anna & Laviano 1991; Laviano & Muntoni 2007),
the differences may account for different exploitation
sites within the same geological basin. Furthermore, any
elutriation of Argille Subappennine would still give a
marly clay, but it would increase the MgO/CaO ratio
(Fig. 5). Thus, it can be supposed that no elutriation was
practiced in clay processing for the fine ware. With
regards to the coarse ware, the low MgO/CaO ratio
agrees with the supposed speleothemic origin of spathic
calcite temper (Tucker 2001), while the Fe2O3tot/Al2O3
ratio discriminates the iron pisolith-bearing samples (the
CQF group) from the rest (the CS group). The occurrence
of carbonaceous matter in the ceramic body points to
the original presence of organic matter in the terra rossa

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60
Table 4 Mineralogical composition (by PXRD) of brown-
painted fine ware pottery samples. C.M.: clay minerals;
Ms: muscovite; Qtz: quartz; Feld: K-feldspar +
plagioclase; Cal: calcite; Px: pyroxene; Gh: gehlenite
(symbols as in Kretz 1983); number of X is in relation to
the mineralogical phase abundance; tr: traces.
Samples Fabric Ms Qtz Feld Cal Px Gh
LFR01 QC x xxxxx xxx xxx x x
LFR02 QC xxxx xxx x x x
LFR03 QC xxxx xxx xx xx xx
LFR04 QC tr xxxx xxx xx xx xx
LFR05 QC tr xxxx xxx xxx xx xx
LFR06 QC tr xxxx xxx xxx xx xx
LFR07 QC tr xxxx xxx xxx xx xx
LFR08 QC tr xxxx xxx xx xx xx
LFR15 QC tr xxxx xxx xx xxx xx
LFR16 QC tr xxxx xxx xx xx xx
LFR17 QC xxxx xxx xx x xx
LFR18 QC xxx xxxx x xxxx x
LFR23 QC tr xxxx xx xxx xx x
LFR24 QC tr xxxx xxx xx x x
SdA01 QC tr xxx xx xx x xx
SdA02 QC tr xxxx xx xxx
SdA03 QC tr xxx xx xx x xx
SdA04 QC tr xxxx xx xxx tr x
SdA05 QC tr xxxx xxx xx x xx
SdA06 QC xxxx xx xxx x xx
SdA07 QC xxxx xxx tr xx xx
SdA08 QC tr xxxx xx xx x xx
SdA09 QC tr xxxx xxx xxx x xx
SdA10 QC tr xxxx xx xxx x xx
SdA13 QC tr xxxx xx xxx x xxx
SdA14 QC xxx x xxx x xx
TR01 QC xxxx xx xxxx x x
TR02 QC tr xxxxx xx xxxx tr xx
TR03 QC tr xxxx xxx xxx tr xx
TR06 QC tr xxxx xxx xxx xx tr
TR11 QC tr xxxx xxx x xx
TR12 QC tr xxx xx xxxx
TR15 QC tr xxxx xx xx xx xx
TR16 QC tr xxxx xx xx xx xx
TR08 QCF xxxx xxx x xx x
TR17 QCF tr xxxx xxx xxx tr xx
TR10 QV tr xxxx xxx x xx tr
TR07 FC xxx x xxxx xx
SdA11 FC tr xxxx xx xx xx xx
SdA12 FC xx x xx x xxx
deposits, which is supposed to be the clayey raw material
for this pottery class.
Mineralogical analyses (PXRD) revealed the predominant
presence of quartz and feldspars, with small quantities of
muscovite, and a variable amount of calcite. The
occurrence of new phases, such as diopsidic pyroxene
and gehlenite, was also observed in all fine ware samples
(Table 4). The samples from Masseria Fragennaro show,
as a whole, a lower content of calcite and a higher content
of feldspars than those from Serra d’Alto and Trasano,
while diopsidic pyroxenes are less abundant in the
samples from Serra d’Alto than in the rest of the QC
group. The degree of sintering and the complete oxidation
of the ceramic body points to kiln firing at temperatures
Table 5 Mineralogical composition (by PXRD) of black
household pottery samples. C.M.: clay minerals; Ms:
muscovite; Qtz: quartz; Feld: K-feldspar + plagioclase;
Cal: calcite (symbols as in Kretz 1983); number of ‘X’ is
in relation to the mineralogical phase abundance; tr:
traces.
Samples Fabric C.M Ms Qtz Feld Cal
TR04 CS tr tr xx tr xxxxx
TR05 CS x tr xxx x xxxx
TR09 CS xx x xxx xx xxxx
TR13 CS tr xx tr xxxxx
TR14 CS tr tr xx tr xxxxx
TR18 CS tr tr xx tr xxxxx
TR19 CS tr x xxx x xxxxx
TR20 CS x x xxx x xxxxx
LFR11 CS x tr xx tr xxxxx
LFR09 CQF x x xxx x xxxxx
LFR10 CQF tr tr xxx x xxxxx
LFR12 CQF tr tr xxx x xxxxx
LFR13 CQF tr xxx x xxxxx
LFR14 CQF tr tr xxx xx xxxxx
in the range of 800-1,000°C in an oxidizing atmosphere,
as previously proposed in Geniola et al. (2005) and
Muntoni et al. (2006). However, the samples from
Masseria Fragennaro (the QC group) seem to be more
sinterized than the rest of the fine ware. This may be
explained by their very homogeneous composition,
compared to the rest of the fine wares, which falls on the
ternary eutectic in the silica-anorthite-wollastonite
Alkemade triangle (Osborn & Muan 1960).
Microstructural features and low birefringence of the
matrix confirm the high degree of sintering.
On the contrary, coarse ware did not show new formed
phases, such as gehlenite and pyroxenes, due to low Ca
activity during firing (Table 5). Microstructural evidence
of medium-low sintering is given by frequent shrinkage
porosity and unaltered spathic calcite. The carbonaceous
matter still present in the ceramic body and the overall
dark matrix indicates a controlled reducing atmosphere
during firing. A range of firing temperature between 700
and 900°C in a kiln is estimated.
SERRA D’ALTO WARE: LOCAL PRODUCTION
AND MODEL CIRCULATION
Fine ware was produced using marly clays, which are
compatible with Plio-Pleistocene Argille Subappennine.
These clays were then used for the production of Serra
d’Alto ware, without significant elutriation, as inferred
from the very fine texture and chemical composition of
both the ceramic body and the Argille Subappennine
clays.
Coarse ware was produced using eluvial or colluvial
deposits of residual terra rossa in a carbonatic geological
basin, tempered with mineral spathic calcite of
speleothemic origin.

MUNTONI & AL. : PRODUCTION OF MID-LATE NEOLITHIC ’SERRA D’ALTO’ WARE IN THE BRADANIC TROUGH
61
Karstic cave and doline are typical forms in the
calcareous Murge landscape and they were frequently
used in the Mid-Late Neolithic period for ritual and/or
funerary activity. Burials and ritual activities (faunal
remains of wild animals, stone enclosures, wall-paintings,
human figurines, red-painted pebbles) are the major
sources of cult evidence (Whitehouse 1992).
The deliberate use of different raw materials and paste
processes according to the vessel function observed in
Serra d’Alto ware, as well as the compositional differences
within the same pottery class (i.e. fine or coarse ware)
suggests a polycentric production based on a common
technological background. The hypothesis of circulation of
finished ceramic pots was not validated while a widespread
technological model probably occurred in different areas of
southern Italy (Muntoni & Laviano in press).
Serra d’Alto pottery would appear to be a significant
technological shift in comparison to Early Neolithic
ceramic productions, as suggested by the selection and
supply of specific raw materials, the improvement in
forming and finishing techniques, and the relevant
technological shifts in firing technology.
All data point to a more complex social mode of
production that might evolve from a ‘domestic mode of
production’ to an ‘incipient-specialization stage’,
according to the models of Rice (1981) and Van der
Leeuw (1984).
ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
This research was supported by COFIN 2005 (prot.
2005043957_003). Many thanks are due to prof. Jean
Guilaine of the Collège de France, dott.ssa Anna Maria
Patrone of the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici
della Basilicata, prof.ssa Giovanna Radi of the University
of Pisa and dott.ssa Donata Venturo of the
Soprintendenza per i Beni Archeologici della Puglia, who
kindly provided the pottery samples.
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