3 results
6 - The excavation of the area of the Secano in the Alhambra: Trench 2
- Edited by Alberto García Porras, Universidad de Granada, Chloë Duckworth, Newcastle University, David J. Govantes-Edwards, Newcastle University and Universidad de Córdoba, Spain
-
- Book:
- The Royal Workshops of the Alhambra
- Published by:
- Boydell & Brewer
- Published online:
- 20 December 2023
- Print publication:
- 25 February 2022, pp 85-96
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Trench 2 is situated in an area of the Secano that has been paid little archaeological attention to date, immediately N of the southern wall. In fact, when the monumental value of the Alhambra was realized in the 19th century, large quantities of soil and archaeological layers were bulldozed away in a series of terraces in order to leave the wall visible for the visitors. Further uncontrolled archaeological works were undertaken in the mid-1970s, which added to the losses in the archaeological sequence. As a result, large tracts of this area were stripped of soil almost to bedrock levels. The trench aimed to analyse the relationship between a kiln and its nearby archaeological features. The kiln, which is the latest feature in the trench, dating perhaps to the 17th or even the 18th century, presents various traces of reconstruction, repair, and reuse, and is therefore a good illustration of the continuity of industrial activity in the Secano over time. In addition to this, the results of handheld portable X-ray Fluorescence (pXRF) analysis carried out within the kiln prior to and during excavation has identified elements that point to various industrial activities (from ceramic glazing to lime-burning), which suggests that industrial activity was not only continuous but also versatile, and that industrial facilities were used for a range of different purposes. Moreover, the fact that the kiln cut into earlier periods – with a medieval domestic feature and a levelling terrace filled chiefly with Nasrid pottery followed by a series of seemingly early modern features – indicates that industrial activities continued being practised in the Secano long after the closure of the Nasrid workshops, as also suggested by the written evidence.
Keywords: pyrotechnologies; workshops; kiln; pottery; reuse.
Introduction
In the first excavation season (2016), Trench 2 was planned as a 20m rectangular area, but in 2017 its limits were subsequently expanded to the NW and the E in order to explore in more detail the relationships and characteristics of a number of archaeological features identified during the excavation of the original layout of the trench. As a result, the final size of the trench was approximately 32m. The trench was located to the S of Calle Real de la Alhambra, in the terraced area to the N of the S wall (see Fig. B).
2 - A holistic and reflexive methodology for the archaeological investigation of pyrotechnological activity in the Alhambra
- Edited by Alberto García Porras, Universidad de Granada, Chloë Duckworth, Newcastle University, David J. Govantes-Edwards, Newcastle University and Universidad de Córdoba, Spain
-
- Book:
- The Royal Workshops of the Alhambra
- Published by:
- Boydell & Brewer
- Published online:
- 20 December 2023
- Print publication:
- 25 February 2022, pp 17-26
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Not only are pyrotechnological activities technically complex affairs but, crucially, they cannot be divided into discrete and hermetic compartments (metallurgy, ceramics, glassmaking), being characterized instead by multiple lines of cross-interaction which, from an archaeological perspective, rarely result in a tidy picture. As such, the examination of pyrotechnological practices, especially in an archaeological context as complex as the Secano, requires a wide array of research techniques to be deployed. This chapter presents an overview of the different methodologies used by the Royal Workshops of the Alhambra Project for the investigation of the industrial areas of the Secano, including several survey methods (magnetometry, magnetic susceptibility, ground-penetrating radar, and in situ chemical analysis of soil), excavation, archival research and chemical and petrographic ceramic analysis. Importantly, rather than simply listing these techniques, the chapter will combine their results to present an integrated picture of technological practice within a very specific social and political setting.
Keywords: Archaeological theory and method; research reflexivity; pyrotechnologies; early modern Spain; post-Nasrid Granada.
A Brief Theoretical Introduction
There are likely to be as many archaeological perspectives on technology as there are archaeologists, but this is not to say that there are no recognizable trends in the way archaeology has approached the issue of technology. One, perhaps the most common, especially among archaeologists who are largely involved in rescue projects, is seemingly atheoretical. Elements of material culture that can be argued to have a more or less close relation to technology are carefully described and inserted into wider narratives without much consideration being given to their points of connection with other aspects of society such as ideology or identity. In fact, there is nothing atheoretical about this position, even if the theoretical basis on which it sits is not made explicit (and is sometimes not even acknowledged as such by the archaeologists responsible for it). Theory is not necessarily an argument full of complicated words with philosophical overtones. The assumptions we have, the way we order reality in our heads, is our theoretical position, the framework within which we place and organize the data provided by our senses.
It is necessary to dispel the idea that if we do not openly or consciously embrace the theoretical premises of recognizable theoretical schools (such as processual archaeology or evolutionist archaeology), we are presenting a completely objective description of the archaeological record that can be regarded safely away from the adulteration of theoretical constructs.
4 - Geophysical and geochemical exploration of the industrial areas in the Alhambra
- Edited by Alberto García Porras, Universidad de Granada, Chloë Duckworth, Newcastle University, David J. Govantes-Edwards, Newcastle University and Universidad de Córdoba, Spain
-
- Book:
- The Royal Workshops of the Alhambra
- Published by:
- Boydell & Brewer
- Published online:
- 20 December 2023
- Print publication:
- 25 February 2022, pp 49-72
-
- Chapter
- Export citation
-
Summary
Traditional approaches to geophysical prospection tend to limit the usefulness of this set of techniques to the identification and outlining of archaeological sites prior to excavation. However, recent developments have highlighted the advantages of more in-depth, multi-scale, and reflexive perspectives which enable not only the identification of archaeological sites but also their characterization. This paper presents the geophysical (magnetometry, magnetic susceptibility, resistivity, GPR, etc.) and geochemical (handheld portable X-ray Fluorescence – pXRF) methods deployed in the area of the Secano in the Alhambra for the investigation of pyrotechnological industrial facilities including pottery kilns and glass/glaze furnaces. The selection of techniques employed was tailored not only to confront the peculiar geological and archaeological conditions prevailing in the site but also to collect meaningful information about these facilities even before the commencement of excavation. Importantly, the process was not understood simply as preliminary to excavation, but also continued during the excavation of the trenches. Handheld pXRF and topsoil magnetic susceptibility were used throughout as ways of keeping the excavators informed about the nature of the fills they were removing from within the furnace structures, as it was rightly suspected that these contained substantial traces of some of the chemical compounds used in the glazing of pottery (copper, lead, manganese). This was framed as a reflexive strategy that could, in contrast with analysis results obtained in the laboratory post-excavation, help to direct excavation strategies.
Keywords: Late medieval and early modern Alhambra; archaeological survey; multi-scalar survey; reflexivity.
Introduction and Theoretical Background
Prospection is a key part of archaeological practice. A wide variety of geophysical techniques have long been part of the standard toolkit of archaeologists, with an increasing emphasis in the past few years on the use of multi-instrument approaches. In general, these techniques are used to identify sites – that is, to determine their absence/presence or to draw their general outlines – prior to excavation. The next step of methodological development involves exploring to what extent these techniques can go further in helping us to not only identify archaeological sites but also characterize them. The application of, and experimentation with, techniques creates data that can be used in concert with that obtained by excavation to enhance interpretation.