potsherd
Broken pottery piece
A potsherd is a fragment of broken pottery, especially one found at an archaeological site.
Potsherds help archaeologists date excavation layers and identify ancient cultures through distinctive styles of decoration and manufacture.
The dig yielded hundreds of potsherds from the Bronze Age.
Broken fragment of something brittle
- excavationAct of unearthing
- digUnearth by shoveling
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
- contextCircumstances shaping meaning
typology · artifact · site · trowel · layer · settlement · midden · tell
Moldable earth for ceramics
- terracottaFired reddish-brown ceramic
- stonewareDense ceramic fired hot
- porcelainTranslucent fired clay
- kilnOven for hardening clay
firing · glaze · slip · temper · coil · wheel-thrown · bisque · rim
shard
Broken fragment of something brittle
- excavationAct of unearthing
- digUnearth by shoveling
- stratigraphyStudy of rock layers
context · typology · artifact · site · trowel · layer · settlement · midden · tell · feature
clay
Moldable earth for ceramics
- terracottaFired reddish-brown ceramic
- stonewareDense ceramic fired hot
- porcelainTranslucent fired clay
kiln · firing · glaze · slip · temper · coil · wheel-thrown · bisque · rim · base
fragment
Incomplete portion of whole
eroded · fractured · incomplete · partial · edge · break · piece · remnant · damaged · worn
antiquity
Great age, ancient era
- relicPreserved ancient object
- prehistoricBefore documented civilization
- neolithicFinal Stone Age period
classical · medieval · ancestral · civilization · ruins · heritage · historic · timeworn · bygone
- ancient potteryamphora, amphorae, Greek vase, krater, sherds
- potsherdsshard, waster
- potterythrowing, ceramic vase, terracotta, ceramic bowl, jar
- inscriptionsinscription, epitaph, ancient inscriptions, stone inscriptions, gravestone