Chemical and Technological Analysis of the Most Ancient Ceramics from Northern Asia: The Kayukovo Archaeological Culture (7th - 6th Century BCE)

Yuliya Petrova* and Oleg Kardash

Focusing on the Kayukovo settlements in the middle Ob River basin, this study employs an integrated methodology (FT-IR spectroscopy, SEM, and XRF) to analyse the production of the earliest ceramics recovered from across northern Asia. The primary objective is to determine whether early pottery technology emerged independently in Western Siberia or resulted from cultural diffusion from East Asian centres. The analysis of eight ceramic fragments reveals a fully developed production process whereby local clays were intentionally tempered with organic materials (indicated by high phosphorus content) and fired in an oxidising atmosphere at temperatures up to ~800°C. A comparative technological assessment with contemporaneous East Asian ceramics from the Amur region and Southeast Asia (Li people, Hainan) identifies a shared knowledge of medium-temperature firing. However, the distinct phosphate-rich organic tempering recipe of Kayukovo ceramics represents a unique technological tradition. Consequently, this analysis provides crucial evidence to trace and substantiate conclusions regarding the emergence of pottery technology among the populations of Northern Asia in the 7th - 6th Century BCE. The results suggest a complex scenario of technological development, where the general concept of pottery-making might have been widespread, but specific implementation – exemplified by the Kayukovo tradition – involved localised innovation and adaptation of ceramic recipes to available resources.