Conference Time...

It's late, and I've just come back from having dinner with husband, step-daughter and step-granddaughter.  I have a cold, so I'm feeling a bit horrid.  And I'm a wee bit tipsy...

I spent today attending Day One of the Ceramic Views of Scotland and northern England conference, organised by the Department of Archaeology at the University of Glasgow.

There are conferences, and there are conferences.  Some are better than others, undoubtedly.  And so far, this has been a good one.  Oddly enough, we've been force-fed ceramics all day.  And I must admit - I'm glad The Boss didn't make it, because the content's right up my street. 

It started off with a paper on 'Croggan Ware', a crude pottery form which has survived virtually unchanged in the Western Isles from the prehistoric period to the nineteenth century.  The 19th century teasets (including teapots, sugar bowls, cups) made in Croggan pottery fabric were particularly weird....  Then it was a quick succession of papers on heavy ceramics (i.e. bricks and tiles), and various post-medieval and medieval pottery problems and advances. 

Naturally, there were glitches.  One established figure in Roman ceramic studies missed his slot.  As a result, we had an extended teabreak, and the absconding lecturer had his paper added on to the following session.  So we didn't escape until 6.10!!!  By then, my brain had gone into meltdown.  This was a real shame, because the last paper was a fascinating introduction to a breakthrough ceramic dating technique called 'Rehydroxylation (RHX)' dating, which allows fired ceramics to be dated according to the amount of mass gained through water absorption since firing.  Initial dating attempts have been promising, which means this is potentially ground breaking stuff from the University of Manchester...

Tomorrow will be dominated by prehistoric pottery studies.  I'm shattered, and a bit ill, but I'm looking forward to it nonetheless.  And I've had a wonderful time catching up with old friends, including my substitute Ph.D  supervisor, who took over when Supervisor #1 left for pastures new.  I haven't spoken to Supervisor #2 for four years, and while Supervisor #1 didn't even bother to pass the time of day with me when we last spoke, Supervisor #2 and myself had great fun reminiscing.  Evidently, I was her first graduate student!!

Moving through so many contracts and leaving so many workplaces over the years has been hard at times, but when you got to events like this, it makes the unstable lifestyle worth it.  It means you've got a whole load of old acquaintances to catch up with. 

Well, I'd better go now.  Hopefully it will back to normality tomorrow.  I still owe you a few posts on the Dorians, but in the meantime, here's some Cretain ceramics...

 

To the left, according to my guide catalogue, is a polychrome funerary pithos of the early archaic period.  And yes, it kind of beats the Croggan ware hands down...

Ah well...

Conference Time...

It's late, and I've just come back from having dinner with husband, step-daughter and step-granddaughter.  I have a cold, so I'm feeling a bit horrid.  And I'm a wee bit tipsy...

I spent today attending Day One of the Ceramic Views of Scotland and northern England conference, organised by the Department of Archaeology at the University of Glasgow.

There are conferences, and there are conferences.  Some are better than others, undoubtedly.  And so far, this has been a good one.  Oddly enough, we've been force-fed ceramics all day.  And I must admit - I'm glad The Boss didn't make it, because the content's right up my street. 

It started off with a paper on 'Croggan Ware', a crude pottery form which has survived virtually unchanged in the Western Isles from the prehistoric period to the nineteenth century.  The 19th century teasets (including teapots, sugar bowls, cups) made in Croggan pottery fabric were particularly weird....  Then it was a quick succession of papers on heavy ceramics (i.e. bricks and tiles), and various post-medieval and medieval pottery problems and advances. 

Naturally, there were glitches.  One established figure in Roman ceramic studies missed his slot.  As a result, we had an extended teabreak, and the absconding lecturer had his paper added on to the following session.  So we didn't escape until 6.10!!!  By then, my brain had gone into meltdown.  This was a real shame, because the last paper was a fascinating introduction to a breakthrough ceramic dating technique called 'Rehydroxylation (RHX)' dating, which allows fired ceramics to be dated according to the amount of mass gained through water absorption since firing.  Initial dating attempts have been promising, which means this is potentially ground breaking stuff from the University of Manchester...

Tomorrow will be dominated by prehistoric pottery studies.  I'm shattered, and a bit ill, but I'm looking forward to it nonetheless.  And I've had a wonderful time catching up with old friends, including my substitute Ph.D  supervisor, who took over when Supervisor #1 left for pastures new.  I haven't spoken to Supervisor #2 for four years, and while Supervisor #1 didn't even bother to pass the time of day with me when we last spoke, Supervisor #2 and myself had great fun reminiscing.  Evidently, I was her first graduate student!!

Moving through so many contracts and leaving so many workplaces over the years has been hard at times, but when you got to events like this, it makes the unstable lifestyle worth it.  It means you've got a whole load of old acquaintances to catch up with. 

Well, I'd better go now.  Hopefully it will back to normality tomorrow.  I still owe you a few posts on the Dorians, but in the meantime, here's some Cretain ceramics...

 

To the left, according to my guide catalogue, is a polychrome funerary pithos of the early archaic period.  And yes, it kind of beats the Croggan ware hands down...

Ah well...