AGATHOCLES · A.G.A.T.H.O.C.L.E.S. The ‘Archaeology of Gesture’: Apprenticeship, Tools, Hands, Organization, Collaborations, Learning Experience and Social Network Analysis

A.G.A.T.H.O.C.L.E.S. The ‘Archaeology of Gesture’: Apprenticeship, Tools, Hands, Organization, Collaborations, Learning Experience and Social Network Analysis

A.G.A.T.H.O.C.L.E.S. aimed to investigate ancient production technology related to the Greek red-figure vase production through in-depth analyses on the ancient hidden artisanal gestures such as fingerprints, way of applying miltos (a sort of red engobe) on the vase, the sequence of the different coatings, marks left by the different brushes. New diagnostic techniques allow us to observe from a micro and a mid-scale point of view the thickness of black gloss and how it was applied on the vase surface, as well as the overpainting and the preliminary sketches. The focus on the manufacturing-process is crucial as to understand the ‘transmission-flow’ and its direction from an unusual point of view: that of the invisible clues related to the “migration” of the artisanal knowledge and skills, and not only from the displacement of artefacts themselves. For all of these purposes the computational imaging techniques (Portable digital microscope, RTI, Photogrammetry) are crucial to in-depth study the real ‘sequence of gestures’ of the vase-painters involved within a specific workshop. In particular, it seems very likely that the Western (=Magna Graecia and Sicily) red-figure vase production system have had a strong interregional mobility of vase-painters that usually moved to a new existing local workshop for a temporary ‘work agreement’. This is the reason why the combination of modern diagnostic analyses on technology with the application of some tools coming from the Digital Humanities is fundamental. The Social Network Analysis (=SNA) applied on an archaeological case-study – that of the local red-figure pottery production in Magna Graecia and Sicily – allowed to develop a new sociogram that maps artisanal relationships within the South Italian red-figure workshops, providing an innovative panoramic view never seen before for this artisanal production. Starting from the “vertices” sheet, we will be able to clearly identify the most central nodes, and also specify what their prominence consists of; whether it is prestige, activity, brokerage capacity, or a combination thereof. Thus, both from a micro and a macro scale perspective, the project is increasingly able to redefine the ancient social and production dynamics of the Greek artisans operating in Sicily and Southern Italy in the fifth and fourth century BCE.

Текст от CORDIS, на английски · Данни: CORDIS, © Европейски съюз