Neolithic Bowl, Windmill Hill Style

Details

The history of human occupation of the British Isles has been a long and turbulent story that has seen waves of human activity flow in and then disappear again as weather conditions forced populations to flee.  This makes the discovery of some of the earliest known pottery ever to have been found in the British Isles all the more special.

Around 6000 years ago, we saw people begin to settle down in communities and farm the land for the first time in British history.  With the settling of these Neolithic communities comes the introduction of beautifully handcrafted ceramic vessels for cooking and storing precious crops and food supplies.

One of the areas where these Neolithic people really left their mark was at Windmill Hill, where a wealth of very early pottery has been found.  As one of the first places where this style of pottery was identified, this treasured pottery tradition was given the name Windmill Hill ware.

The site at Windmill Hill was a Causewayed Enclosure about one mile northwest of Avebury in Wiltshire; it has gifted us a bounty of fascination archelogy that demonstrates the artistry of our ancestors, including some stunning pottery sherds.  The generously proportioned pots of Windmill Hill represent a regional style within the western Neolithic pottery tradition; with their predominantly round bases, they are objects made to be handled and appreciated.

This replica is based on a sherd from the upper rim of a pot found at Windmill Hill; it has been carefully handcrafted using the typical tools of this period, which include pebbles and shaped antler tools. 

'Add To Cart' items are ready to send straight away. Please be aware that if bought alongside 'Pre-order' items, your order will be sent when all items are ready. 

'Pre-order' items are made to order, and we will dispatch them as soon as we have handcrafted them for you; this usually takes 90 days, but international orders can take a little longer.

Materials

Smoke fired Terracotta

Dimensions

Approx. 138 mm tall, 230 mm diameter, width with lugs 265 mm

Production

Entirely hand-built from clays similar in character to those used by the original potters, this vessel has been fired in a wood fire to emulate the surface colouration of the original.  It has been given a finish of beeswax, a material also identified in residue analysis of the originals.  Where hand tools are used, I create my own using stone, wood, shell, bone and antler based on original finds or information gained from marks on original artefacts.

Firing

As with all my Museum Quality Replicas, this pot has been made, as the original would have been,  entirely by hand from natural clay and using replicas of the types of tools that the Neolithic makers would have used.  In keeping with the original pot, the decoration has been applied using handmade bone and antler tools.  It has been fired to emulate the same techniques that the original potters would have employed; this process often results in variations of the surface colour and texture, as is common with the original Neolithic.  As each pot varies, you may not receive the exact bowl in the image, but you can be sure that due to the variations caused by the firing process, your pot will be a one-of-a-kind. 

Health and Safety

This is a Museum Quality Replica made using the tools and techniques that would have been used during the Neolithic era.  As this is an unglazed pot with a porous surface, it will absorb some of the flavours during the cooking process, which does add to the flavour of future dishes.  However, it does also mean that this pot does not meet modern Health and Safety standards, and therefore, we do not advise that it be used for cooking.  When Neolithic cooks cooked in these pots, they would rely on applying sufficient heat to the pot and contents to ensure that all bacteria were killed.  Heating to over 70°C for at least 10 minutes would have killed most disease-causing bacteria, and temperatures of 100°C would do even more.

Postage
All items are sent using a second-class postal service; if you wish to have an item sent first-class, please contact me for a quote.  Many Thanks