Hyperfine Interactions 150: 165–186, 2003.

165
© 2003 Kluwer Academic Publishers. Printed in the Netherlands.

Pottery from a Chimú Workshop Studied by

Mössbauer Spectroscopy

H. TSCHAUNER1 and U. WAGNER2

1 Department of Anthropology, Harvard University, Cambridge, MA 02138, USA
2 Physik-Department E15, Technische Universität München, 85747 Garching, Germany

Abstract. Ceramic finds from a pottery workshop in the Lambayeque valley were studied by neu-
tron activation analysis, Mössbauer spectroscopy and X-ray diffraction in an attempt to assess an
advanced division of labour on the North Coast of Peru during the Chimú period (AD 1350–1460).
The study suggests that the material was predominantly fired in a reducing environment with partial
reoxidation at the end of the firing cycles, although firing in an oxidising atmosphere has taken place
occasionally. The observed variation of firing conditions is characteristic for the use of pit kilns. The
results of the archaeometric studies confirm the stylistic studies and show that pottery was no status
symbol and far less important as a carrier of Chimú style than metal artefacts.

Key words: Chimú ceramics, craft specialisation, Peruvian North Coast, Mössbauer spectroscopy,
neutron activation analysis, local clay, firing techniques.

1. Archaeological context

Ethnohistoric sources about the Peruvian North Coast describe a socioeconomic

organisation that, in contrast to the rest of the Central Andean area, was based on an
advanced division of labour and exchange between guild-like specialist groups [1].
Archaeological research on late Prehispanic craft specialisation has been heavily
biased toward production facilities for sumptuary items at the Chimú capital of
Chan Chan [2] and therefore has been unable to confirm or refute the limited and
ambiguous historical record. A regional-scale project in the Lambayeque Valley
was designed to test the hypothesis of an advanced divison of labour on the North
Coast during the Chimú (ca. AD 1350–1460) and preceding periods [3]. As a case
study of the production of simple consumer items, one of us (H.T.) excavated a
Chimú pottery workshop (site number S166c [3]), discovered by a regional survey
on the Pampa de Burros near the neck of the Lambayeque Valley. This case study
was to answer three main questions: (i) whether and to what extent production
was specialised and how it was internally organised; (ii) whether production was
under government or elite control or independent; and (iii) as a prerequisite for
an understanding of pottery distribution, what technological and stylistic features
characterise the output of this production centre.
166 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

A particularly powerful tool for characterising the output of a known produc-

tion centre is its technological style – the sum of technical choices made in the
production process, concerning raw materials, energy sources, tools, and schedul-
ing [4, 5]. Recent research has found that technological styles are less subject to
conscious manipulation for conveying social information and therefore map social
groupings more closely than iconological styles [6–9]. They are also relatively
stable because they embody technical knowledge acquired through long-term expe-
rience and handed down from generation to generation, knowledge that is not easily
changed without serious implications for the success of the craft and is constrained
by environmental factors such as the availability of appropriate raw materials.
The operational sequence that defines a technological style includes elements that
in principle are directly observable, such as shaping and decorative techniques,
and others that can only be reconstructed through instrumental analyses, such as
choices of raw material, paste preparation, and firing techniques [10]. Moreover,
assuming that ancient craftspeople chose from among available technologies those
that best suited their needs, a reconstruction of the technologies employed at a pro-
duction site enables us to comprehend the artisans’ choices and infer their priorities
in organizing the production process. These priorities, in turn, provide important
clues to the socioeconomic organisation of the society in which the craftspeople
operated. Shaping and decorative techniques practised at the Pampa de Burros
workshop S166c were reconstructed from the toolkit and large amounts of de facto
wasters found at the site, i.e., from matrices, moulds, paddle stamps and polishing
stones as well as failed products discarded at the production locale [3]. Neutron
activation analysis and Mössbauer spectroscopy, as well as thin section microscopy
and X-ray diffraction, were employed to characterise raw material choices and
firing techniques of the Pampa de Burros potters.

2. Description of material and methods of investigation

Figure 1 shows the plan of the Pampa de Burros workshop site and Figure 2 a
section through one of its pit kilns. Several similar kilns were located in patios
inside the workshop building. Other rooms were used for shaping and decorating
vessels. Samples for instrumental analyses were drawn from the principal vessel
classes produced at the workshop, as determined by quantitative analysis of the
toolkit and de facto refuse, as well as statistical comparison of pottery assemblages
from the workshop and Lambayeque Valley consumer settlements [3]. Samples
from the Cerro Salinas centre and from the Leche Valley were also included in
the neutron activation analysis. In keeping with the strengths and limitations of the
vertical half-moulding technology practised at S166c [11], only small vessels were
produced, including jars, plates or bowls, neckless ollas, and stirrup-spout bottles.
In addition to specimens of these categories, samples from the toolkit itself were
included because tools have the closest possible association with the production
process and are least likely to have been subjected to accidental refirings. Based
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 167

Figure 1. Plan of the Pampa de Burros Chimú pottery workshop site, S166c. Each of the excavated
rooms or patios (8–11, 17) except Rm 13 contained at least one pit kiln and associated ash lenses,
which probably served to pre-heat vessels prior to firing. Rm 17 was a principal vessel-shaping area,
where a large number of discarded moulds and paddle stamps were found. The largest kiln, located
in a U-shaped area on the west side of the building, at some point was abandoned as a kiln and
subsequently served as a specialised dump for the whole workshop. Embedded in the floor of Rm 8
were a number of charred hardwood algarrobo logs, half-consumed fuel from one of the pit kilns.
Line a–a
in Rm 8 denotes the location of the kiln cross-section illustrated in Figure 2.

on these criteria, 222 samples were chosen, 48 from the workshop site, 139 from
Chimú-period consumer settlements in the study area, and 35 clay samples (coarse
and fine fractions) from 17 locations all across the Lambayeque Valley.

2.1. NEUTRON ACTIVATION ANALYSIS

All specimens selected were analysed by neutron activation analysis [12]. Concen-
trations of 3 major and 18 trace elements were determined. With few exceptions,
168 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Figure 2. Cross-section through the pit kiln in the northwest corner of Rm 8, Pampa de Burros
pottery workshop. For location, see Figure 1.

Figure 3. Principal component analysis of 3 major and 18 trace element concentrations determined
by neutron activation analysis in 222 pottery and clay samples. S are sherds from Salinas, W sherds
from the workshop site (S166c). Core members (S∗ and W∗ ) are represented by filled, peripheral
members by open symbols. UN (“unassigned”) designates samples that could not be assigned to
either of the two groups.

cluster analysis using the weighted average-linkage method and principal compo-
nent analysis of the element concentrations yield the same groups. The results of
the principal component analysis are shown in Figure 3.
Subsequently, the clusters served as initial reference groups for classifications
by Mahalanobis distance, systematically modified by case-wise removal of sam-
ples and repeated recalculation of distances (leave-one-out classification or “U-
method”) [13]. Both procedures produced two spatially meaningful groups, one
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 169

associated with the Pampa de Burros workshop (labelled W* for the core and W
for more loosely affiliated members) and the other with the Chimú administrative
centre of Cerro Salinas (labelled S* and S) at the northern apex of the study area,
outside the Lambayeque Valley proper. The element concentrations of the Salinas
group are related to those of pottery and raw-material samples from the Leche
Valley, in which the Salinas site is located. The samples from the Pampa de Burros
workshop form a tight cluster within a cloud of samples from the Lambayeque Val-
ley. However, the differences in element concentrations are too small to distinguish
Pampa de Burros pottery from other material from the Lambayeque Valley.
The composition of a clay sample (34/3 in the Garching database) collected
from a gravel pit dug into the natural substratum some 500 m west of S166c
closely matched that of the workshop pottery and tools. Cross-cultural research
shows that traditional potters tend to procure bulky raw materials from a limited
catchment around their workshop [14]. Thus, this clay bank is a likely candidate
for the raw material source that the ancient Pampa de Burros potters exploited.
Therefore, clay 34/3 was chosen as the reference material for controlled laboratory
firings. Henceforth, it will be referred to as the “model clay”. It was chosen as the
reference material for the controlled laboratory firing experiments.

2.2. THIN - SECTION MICROSCOPY AND X - RAY DIFFRACTION

Thin-section microscopy [15] and X-ray diffraction [16] were used to supple-
ment the information obtained by neutron activation analysis and Mössbauer spec-
troscopy. Both methods yield information on the mineral content of the clay and
on the phase transitions occurring in the clay during firing. Their results will be
discussed in comparison with those of the Mössbauer studies. Characteristic thin
sections are illustrated in Figure 4.
Under the microscope the sherds show similar characteristics. The clay is in-
tensely tempered with an average of 20–30% of larger grains. The grain size of
the temper covers the whole range between 0.01 and 1 mm. Large inclusions of
fragments of various vulcanic, metamorphic and sedimentary rocks are common.
The smaller particles of the temper are quartz, intensely twinned plagioclases,
large brown biotites, small flakes of muscovite, strongly pleochroitic brown amphi-
boles, abundant epidote and the usual series of accessory minerals. As an exception
calcite, obviously fragments of shells, can be observed.

2.3. MÖSSBAUER SPECTROSCOPY

The physical and chemical processes taking place in clays during firing under vary-
ing conditions can be assessed by Mössbauer spectroscopy. If Mössbauer spectra
measured in ancient materials are compared with those of appropriate clay samples
fired under controlled conditions in the laboratory, conclusions can be drawn as to
the production techniques used in antiquity. Our standard procedure is described
170 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Figure 4. Characteristic thin sections of pottery from the Pampa de Burros workshop. First row: plate
mould (34/7, left) and olla (34/16, right), both of Mössbauer type 1. Second row: jar neck (34/97, left)
and mould-made plate (34/35, right), both of Mössbauer type 2. Third row: mould fragment (34/4,
left) and paddle-stamped jar body (34/39, right), both of Mössbauer type 3. Bottom row: mould-made
bottle (34/23, left) and mould fragment (34/25, right), both of Mössbauer type 4 (see Section 2.4).
Q, Q∗ = quartz and quartzite, P, P∗ = plagioclase and weathered plagioclase, Po = big pores, H =
hornblende (brown), E = epidoteaggregate, B = brown biotite, R∗ = rockaggregate. Scale = 1 mm.
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 171

in [17, 18]. The most characteristic Mössbauer parameters are (i) the quadrupole
splitting of the paramagnetic Fe3+ species (Q-Fe3+ ), which depends on the local
environment of the iron atoms; (ii) the isomer shifts (IS) of both Fe3+ and Fe2+ ,
which are proportional to the electron density at the iron nuclei and thus depend on
the valence state and bonding conditions of the iron; and (iii) the relative spectral
areas of the iron-containing phases.
The spectra were recorded and fitted following the procedure described in [17,
18]. Ancient ceramics often exhibit a visible structure of differently coloured lay-
ers, which arise, for example, when outer layers of a sherd were oxidised at the
end of the firing cycle [17, 18]. Most of the samples studied in this work do not
exhibit such a structure. Therefore only material from the cores was studied after
removal of a surface layer of about 1 mm thickness. Measurements of all samples
were taken at room temperature (RT); in a few cases spectra were also recorded at
liquid helium temperature (4.2 K). The Fe3+ quadrupole doublets were fitted with
one or two Lorentzian lines, depending on their structure. A Gaussian distribution
of quadrupole splittings was used whenever the Fe3+ quadrupole doublet was too
broad to be fitted with Lorentzian lines, occasionally together with an additional
doublet with an unusually large Fe3+ quadrupole splitting characteristic for specific
mineral components present in the clay matrix.

2.3.1. Study of local clay

Two lumps of clay found in the western kiln of the Pampa de Burros workshops
probably represent fragments of the kiln furniture. At first sight these lumps ap-
peared to be ideal specimens of local clay for laboratory firing experiments, but
Mössbauer studies showed that they had been already fired at low temperature
under slightly reducing conditions and could therefore not be used as reference
materials. Instead clay 34/3 from the vicinity of the kiln site served as reference
material. Neutron activation analysis revealed that this clay had practically the
same trace element composition as tools and de facto refuse from the Pampa de
Burros workshop. It was separated into a fine (grain size <2 µm) and a coarse
fraction (grain size >2 µm) by ultrasonic dispersion and sedimentation. Mössbauer
spectra of the unfractionated clay and the fine and the coarse fraction were recorded
at room temperature (RT), the temperature of liquid helium (4.2 K) and also after
heating the two fractions to 930◦ C in air for 24 h (Figure 5). To enrich the dark
brown component it was picked manually from the coarse fraction and studied by
XRD (Figure 6). The X-ray diffraction patterns (Figure 6) of the fine and coarse
fractions are different. Layer silicates, such as smectite, chlorite, mica and kaolinite
are dominant in the fine fraction. Epidote and grossular are enriched in the coarse
fraction. Epidote contains Fe3+ with a rather large quadrupole splitting of 1.6 to
2.0 mm/s [19, 20]. In grossular, iron is both trivalent and divalent. Fe3+ occupies
octahedral sites with an unimpressive quadrupole splitting of 0.5–0.6 mm/s, while
the quadrupole splitting and the the isomer shift of the Fe2+ are exceptionally large
with about 3.6 mm/s and 1.2 mm/s, respectively [21]. The Mössbauer patterns of
172 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Figure 5. Mössbauer spectra of the model clay 34/3 after different treatments. The left column shows
the spectra of the untreated clay measured at RT and at 4.2 K and the spectra measured after heating
the clay to 930◦ C in air for 48 h. In the middle and right columns, the same sequence of spectra
is shown for the fine and the coarse fraction of clay 34/3, obtained by ultrasonic dispersion and
subsequent separation by sedimentation.

epidote and grossular can be seen in the RT spectrum of the coarse fraction of clay
34/3 (Figure 5).
According to the RT Mössbauer spectrum, about 10% of the iron in clay 34/3 is
in the form of hematite. The spectral area of the magnetically split hematite pattern
does not increase at liquid helium temperature, indicating that the hematite in clay
34/3 has a particle size large enough to display no superparamagnetism at RT [17].
However, at 4.2 K a second magnetic component with an intensity of about 40% of
the total spectral area has developed at the expense of the paramagnetic Fe3+ dou-
blet. It exhibits a magnetic field of about 49 T characteristic of goethite and appears
in all three fractions. This goethite has transformed into hematite in the samples
heated to 930◦ C. Additionally some hematite has formed from iron liberated from
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 173

Figure 6. X-ray diffraction diagrams of the fine and coarse fraction of clay 34/3, measured with
Co Kα radiation. The peaks of epidote (E), grossular (G), plagioclase (P) and orthoclase (O) are
labelled in the diagram of the coarse fraction.

the clay minerals at this temperature. In the sample fired at 930◦ C, the amount of
hematite increases from 55% at RT to 65% at 4.2 K, showing that a small part
of the hematite is still superparamagnetic at RT after heating to 930◦ C. There are
no relevant differences in the Mössbauer patterns of the different fractions of the
model clay after heating the samples to 930◦ C, both epidote and grossular having
decomposed at this temperature. The presence or absence of these two minerals in
ceramics can serve as an indicator for the maximum firing temperature a specimen
underwent.

2.3.2. Firing of local clay in the laboratory

Firing in air: Laboratory model firing experiments were undertaken to study the
changes that occur when clay 34/3 is fired in air, i.e., under oxidising conditions
(process O) [16]. Untreated samples of the clay were heated in air for 48 h at tem-
peratures increasing from 50◦ C to 1150◦ C in steps of 50◦ C with fresh clay samples
for each temperature step. The spectra obtained at RT are summarised in Figure 7.
In Figure 8 the mean quadrupole splitting at RT, Q-Fe3+ , and the fractional area
of the non magnetic components, Anm , are plotted against the firing temperature.
174 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Figure 7. RT Mössbauer spectra observed after firing the model clay 34/3 in air under oxidising
conditions for 48 h at temperatures increasing in steps of 50◦ C up to 1150◦ C (procedure O). The
spectra are simulations using the parameters obtained from the measured spectra. The data points
have been omitted for clarity.

Figure 8. Quadrupole splitting of the Fe3+ species (Q-Fe3+ ) in clay 34/3 as a function of the firing
temperature for firing in air for 48 h at temperatures increasing from 50◦ C and 1100◦ C in steps of
50◦ C. The fractional areas of the Fe2+ doublet (A-Fe2+ ) and the area of the total non-magnetic
component Anm , are also plotted. The parameters are taken from the spectra shown in Figure 7.

In the temperature range up to 300◦ C, only surface water is lost which causes no
changes of the Mössbauer parameters. Between 300◦ C and 500◦ C, hydroxyl groups
are expelled from the octahedral layers of the clay lattice, which causes a strong
increase of Q-Fe3+ due to the drastic change of the symmetry around the iron
atoms that accompanies the process of dehydroxylation. Little change of Q-Fe3+
is seen in the temperature range between 500◦ C and 700◦ C, except for the minor
step in Q-Fe3+ around 600◦ C. This step can be attributed to the dehydroxylation
of chlorite. X-ray diffraction shows chlorite in 34/3 to be stable up to 600◦ C and
to have completely disappeared after heating to 700◦ C [22, 23]. In the Mössbauer
spectra, no further increase in Q-Fe3+ occurs above 650◦ C, where dehydroxylation
is complete. The subsequent decrease of Q-Fe3+ , first observed upon heating to
850◦ C, shows that the dehydroxylised clay matrix decomposes, setting free the
iron, which forms hematite, first in the form of small superparamagnetic parti-
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 175

Figure 9. RT Mössbauer spectra observed after firing the model clay 34/3 in air for 48 h at tem-
peratures increasing in steps of 50◦ C up to 1150◦ C after a reduction in charcoal at 800◦ C for
3 h (procedure RO). The spectra are simulations using the parameters obtained from the measured
spectra. The data points have been omitted for clarity.

Figure 10. Quadrupole splitting of the Fe3+ species (Q-Fe3+ ) in clay 34/3 upon firing in air for
48 h at temperatures between 50◦ C and 1100◦ C after reduction in a closed vessel with charcoal
for 3 h at 800◦ C (procedure RO). The quadrupole splitting Q-Fe3+ (filled circles) for samples
which have only been oxidised are shown for comparison. The fractional areas of the Fe3+ doublet
(A-Fe3+ ), of the Fe2+ doublet (A-Fe2+ ) and of the total area of the non-magnetic components
(Anm = A-Fe3+ + A-Fe2+ ) are also plotted. The parameters have been taken from the spectra
shown in Figure 9.

cles, which then start to agglomerate. The six-line hyperfine pattern of hematite
then appears in the RT Mössbauer spectra, causing the observed decrease of Anm
(Figure 8).

Firing in air after a preceding reduction: In a second test series, samples that had
first been reduced for 3 h at 800◦ C with charcoal in a closed vessel were subjected
to systematic reoxidation in air (process RO), following the same schedule as used
in the oxidation series (Figures 7 and 8). The results are summarised in Figures 9
and 10. Oxidation of Fe2+ in a reduced sample begins at about 200◦ C but is slug-
gish; the last traces of divalent iron have disappeared only on oxidation at 800◦ C,
176 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

whereas the oxidation of Fe2+ in untreated clay is already complete at 400◦ C (Fig-
ures 7 and 8). Hematite forms around 800◦ C during reoxidation of the previously
reduced material. Above 900◦ C no difference is observed between samples that
have only been subjected to heat treatment in air and those that had experienced
a preceding reduction (Figure 10). The quadrupole splitting of the Fe3+ species
formed during reoxidation (Q-Fe3+ ) reaches a maximum of 1.22 mm/s after 48 h
at 500◦ C and then decreases again (Figure 10) with increasing firing temperature
in the range between 600 and 800◦ C. The values of Q-Fe3+ are smaller than those
observed after direct oxidation (Figure 8). For instance, direct oxidation for 48 h
at 750◦ C results in a Q-Fe3+ value of 1.23 mm/s, while reoxidation for 48 h
yields only 1.00 mm/s (Figure 10). The respective values for 800◦ C are 1.22 mm/s
and 0.99 mm/s. The material thus remembers the preceding reduction treatment.
This memory effect allows one to distinguish between pottery that was fired in an
oxidising atmosphere only and pottery that underwent a reduction prior to being
oxidised at the end of the firing cycle, a procedure that seems to have occurred
frequently in the production of archaeological ceramics. The kiln may break open
by accident at the end of the firing, or may be opened on purpose, perhaps to obtain
a desired reddish colour of the pottery. Such a distinction is rather obvious for firing
temperatures between 700◦ C and 800◦ C, where mere oxidation results in Q-Fe3+
values above 1.22 mm/s, while oxidation after a reducing firing results in values
around 1.0 mm/s (Figure 10).

Firing in a reducing environment: In a third laboratory firing series, samples were

reduced with charcoal in a closed quartz vessel for 3 h at temperatures increasing
from 50◦ C to 1000◦ C in steps of 50◦ C (process R, Figures 11 and 12). In the tem-
perature region up to 450◦ C or 500◦ C, no difference between heating in air or with
charcoal are apparent, because the charcoal must first react with oxygen to become
a reducing agent. Reduction starts to take place around 500◦ C. After reduction at
800◦ C and 850◦ C no Fe3+ is observed any more. On reduction at 700◦ C a new
species appears in the spectra as a single line or a quadrupole doublet with a small
quadrupole splitting and an isomer shift of about 0.5 mm/s, parameters which are
compatible with wüstite [24]. At 900◦ C first traces of the formation of metallic
iron can be observed. At the same time, the fractional area of A-Fe2+ decreases
(Figure 12).

2.4. CHIMÚ POTTERY

Material from the cores of 30 Chimú sherds was studied by room-temperature

Mössbauer spectroscopy. Exterior and interior surface layers were removed, the
uniform material from the inner part of the sherd was powdered and used for mea-
surement. Based on their Mössbauer characteristics the spectra can be sorted into
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 177

Figure 11. RT Mössbauer spectra observed after reducing the model clay 34/3 for 3 h in a closed
vessel together with charcoal at temperatures increasing up to 950◦ C in steps of 50◦ C (procedure R).
The spectra are simulations using the parameters obtained from the measured spectra. The data points
have been omitted for clarity.

Figure 12. Change of quadrupole splitting of the Fe3+ species (Q-Fe3+ ) upon firing of the model
clay 34/3 for 3 h with charcoal in a closed vessel at temperatures between 50◦ C and 950◦ C (proce-
dure R). The fractional areas of the Fe3+ doublet (A-Fe3+ ) and of the Fe2+ doublet (A-Fe2+ ), the
fractional area of all non-magnetic components (Anm = A-Fe3+ + A-Fe2+ ) and the fractional areas
of wüstite and metallic iron formed at high temperatures are also plotted. The parameters have been
taken from the spectra shown in Figure 11.

4 significantly different types (Figure 13, left column). The Mössbauer parameters
of all sherds are summarised in Table I.
Types 1 and 2 contain most of the iron as species giving rise to Fe2+ and Fe3+
quadrupole doublets, but some of the iron is present as hematite showing a mag-
netic sextet. The distinction between type 1 and type 2 is based on the fractional
intensity of the Fe2+ quadrupole doublet, which dominates in type 1, while in type 2
the Fe3+ doublet has a higher intensity. Type 1 is the most frequently observed
178 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Figure 13. Four types of characteristic RT Mössbauer spectra of sherds from the Pampa de Burros
(left) and for comparison spectra of the model model clay 32/3 fired under different conditions (right).
Note that the velocity scales vary.

pattern, exhibited by 12 of the 30 studied sherds. The Fe3+ quadrupole splittings

of both type 1 and type 2 rarely exceeds 1.0 mm/s. The mean values are close to
0.9 mm/s for both types. These relatively small values for the quadrupole split-
tings suggest that the sherds were fired under reducing conditions and reoxidised
at the end of the firing cycle. This conclusion is valid if the sherds were fired at
temperatures above 700◦ C but not exceeding 850◦ C. In sherd 34/97, an additional
Fe3+ quadrupole doublet with a splitting of 2.04 mm/s and a fractional area of
13% indicates the presence of epidote [20]. Epidote was also identified by X-ray
diffraction as an associated mineral in clay 34/3 (Figure 6). A component with such
a big quadrupole splitting is present in a number of sherds (see Figures 14 and 15).
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 179

Only three of the studied samples are of type 3. Their Mössbauer spectra contain
almost equal amounts of paramagnetic (or superparamagnetic) Fe3+ components
and magnetically split hematite. Two of these samples contain small amounts of
Fe2+ species, probably resulting from associated minerals unaffected by firing in
air.
Type 4 is represented by 5 samples, all of which are strongly reduced. The
spectra show no Fe3+ . A broad single line with an isomer shift of 0.6 mm/s is
attributed to the presence of wüstite, although so far we have not been able to
identify wüstite by an independent method.

Table I. Mössbauer parameters and classification of the 30 Chimú specimens. GarNum is the number
of the sample in our Garching data base, Mos type is the type of Mössbauer spectrum (see text),
NAA group is the group to which the sample belongs according to NAA (see text). Q-Fe3+ is the
Fe3+ quadrupole splitting, A-Fe3+ , A-Fe2+ and Anm are fractional intensities of the Fe3+ and Fe2+
quadrupole doublets and of the magnetically split fraction, respectively

Ware GarNum Mos NAA Q-Fe3+ A-Fe3+ A-Fe2+ A-mag

type group+ mm/s % % %

Mould (S166c) 34/7 1 W 0.82 24.3 44.1 31.6

Plate (S166c) 34/13 1 W 0.80 31.6 51.2 17.2
Plate (S166c) 34/15 1 W 0.80 23.5 58.1 18.4
Olla (S166c) 34/16 1 W 0.85 33.9 46.2 19.9
Olla (S166c) 34/18 1 – 0.78 30.3 51.6 18.1
Bottle (S166c) 34/32 1 W 0.95 29.3 49.2 21.5
Paddle (S166c) 34/34 1 UN 1.16 28.6 41.3 30.1
Plate (S166c) 34/36 1 UN 0.80 22.3 51.7 26.0
Stirrup-spout b.(S166c) 34/37 1 UN 1.07 31.7 42.7 25.6
Jar (Salinas) 34/101 1 S 0.78 29.7 43.8 26.5
Plate (Saltur) 34/103 1 S 0.77 20.0 51.7 28.3
Small kiln 34/146 1 UN 1.07 30.0 46.6 23.4
No. of specimens: 12∗∗ 1 0.89 27.9 48.2 23.9
±0.14 ±4.3 ±4.9 ±4.9
Mould (S166c) 34/9 2 UN 1.04∗ 29.0 28.0 43.0
Sherd, neck of pot 34/19 2 W 0.99∗ 50.1 26.1 23.8
Plate (S166c) 34/35 2 W 0.94∗ 52.1 15.7 32.2
Canteen (S166c) 34/38 2 UN 0.86∗ 45.2 27.6 27.2
Jar (S166c) 34/40 2 UN 0.81∗ 58.0 – 42.0
Jar (S166c) 34/41 2 W 0.85∗ 57.4 6.7 35.9
Jar (Salinas) 34/97 2 UN 0.94∗ 67.2 16.3 16.5
Jar (Salinas) 34/100 2 S 0.75 47.8 36.6 15.6
No. of specimens: 8∗∗ 2 0.89 50.9 19.6 29.5
±0.20 ±11.2 ±12.2 ±10.6
180 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Table I. (Continued)

Ware GarNum Mos NAA Q-Fe3+ A-Fe3+ A-Fe2+ A-mag

type group+ mm/s % % %

Mould (S166c) 34/4 3 UN 1.00 48.2 – 51.8

Jar (S166c) 34/39 3 – 0.81 45.7 12.3 42.0
Plate (S166c) 34/93 3 – 0.96∗ 44.2 15.1 40.7
No. of specimens: 3∗∗ 3 0.90 46.0 9.1 44.8
Mould (S166c) 34/10 4 UN 1.03 22.6 68.0 9.4
Jar (S166c) 34/21 4 W 0.86 14.9 85.1 –
Body sherd (S166c) 34/23 4 UN 0.84 11.5 74.9 13.6
Mould (S166c) 34/25 4 W 1.11 13.3 66.4 20.3
Mould (S166c) 34/251 4 W 1.07 13.9 65.6 20.5
Bottle (S166c) 34/31 4 W 1.08 26.3 66.9 6.8
Plate (Salinas) 34/92 4 S – – 85.5 14.5
No. of specimens: 7∗∗ 4 1.00 14.6 73.2 12.2
±0.12 ±8.4 ±8.8 ±7.4
1 From different parts of the sherd.
∗ The value for the quadrupole splitting is the mean value of a Gaussian distribution of quadrupole
splittings.
∗∗ The Mössbauer parameters given here are the mean of the individual values of the sherds in the
group and their standard deviations.
+ The NAA groups are named as in Figure 3.

Figure 14. RT and 4.2 K Mössbauer spectra of a fragment of a jar from the big kiln before (top row)
and after (bottom row) refiring in air at 930◦ C for 24 h. Note that Fe2+ is still present after oxidising
at 930◦ C. The velocity scales of the 4.2 K spectra differ from those of the RT measurements.
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 181

Figure 15. RT Mössbauer spectra of three finds from the area of the big kiln at the Pampa de Burros
workshop and of one specimen from Salinas (34/97).

The RT and 4.2 K Mössbauer spectra of the jar fragment 34/41 (Mos type 2)
are presented in Figure 14. The RT spectrum shows 40% of a broadened Fe3+
doublet with a distribution of quadrupole splittings. About 20% of the spectral area
represents a rather well defined Fe3+ quadrupole doublet with a large quadrupole
splitting of 1.86 mm/s, 7.0% are a Fe2+ component and the rest is a phase with
a maximum magnetic hyperfine field of 51 T. At 4.2 K most of the Fe3+ exhibits
a magnetic hyperfine splitting with broad lines, a maximum field of 53 T and a
substantial contribution of ill-defined species with lower hyperfine fields. Little
change was observed in this material after heating to 930◦ C in air in the laboratory
(Figure 14). The small Fe2+ component is surprisingly stable and may belong to
one of the associated minerals. However, refiring in the laboratory results in a better
crystallisation of the hematite, and hence in a smaller linewidth of the sextet at
4.2 K and in an increase of the intensity of the component with the maximum
magnetic field. RT Mössbauer spectra of three sherds of different vessel classes
from the western kiln at the workshop and one sherd from the Salinas site (Fig-
ure 15) exhibit very similar type 2 Mössbauer patterns, suggesting that similar raw
materials and procedures were used in producing the pottery from both sites.
Figure 16 shows type 4 Mössbauer patterns of strongly reduced specimens,
along with two spectra of clay 34/3 fired in the laboratory in a reducing environ-
ment for comparison. The type 4 patterns are very similar to the spectrum of the
clay reduced at 800◦ C, showing that type 4 Mössbauer patterns are produced by
strongly reducing firing conditions. Figures 11 and 12 show that firing temperatures
of at least 700◦ C are needed to obtain the observed, nearly complete reduction.
Reoxidation even at temperatures as low as 500◦ C can reproduce spectra of type 1
(Figure 16 (bottom right), see also Figures 9 and 10).
182 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

Figure 16. RT Mössbauer spectra of 4 sherds from the western kiln at the Pampas de Burros work-
shop, containing a dominant amount of Fe2+ . Below for comparison two spectra of the model clay
34/3, reduced for 3 h at 800◦ C (bottom left) and reoxidised for 24 h at 500◦ C after a preceding 3 h
reduction at 800◦ C (bottom right) are shown.

3. Conclusions

Although no unfired clay was excavated at the Pampa de Burros workshop, clay
(34/3) collected from a nearby deposit turned out to be a suitable reference ma-
terial. It is likely that the Chimú potters exploited this or a nearby clay bank on
the Pampa de Burros. Simple procedures of fractionation proved useful in the
study of the model clay and allowed the identification of associated minerals in
the ceramics.
A series of laboratory firings of clay 34/3 under systematically varied condi-
tions is the key to understanding the firing procedures used by Chimú potters. The
Mössbauer spectra observed in Chimú ceramics can be matched with spectra of the
model clay fired in the laboratory (Figure 13). This comparison suggests that the
ancient material was predominantly fired in a reducing environment with partial
reoxidation at the end of the firing cycle.
Ceramics from the Pampa de Burros workshop and the other sites in the studied
area, including Salinas in the neighbouring Leche Valley, exhibit similar material
POTTERY FROM A CHIMÚ WORKSHOP 183

properties. This indicates that similar raw materials and procedures were used for
their production. All vessels of the Pampa de Burros repertoire were of small size
and all kilns contained mixed assemblages of wasters from various vessel classes.
It seems that vessels of different categories used to be fired as part of the same
kiln load. As may be expected for pit-fired pottery, the Mössbauer spectra of the
Pampa de Burros material reveal a certain range of variation in firing conditions.
The rather widespread occurrence of ceramics that contain almost no Fe3+ shows
that strongly reducing firing conditions prevailed. Thus the pit kilns must have been
covered very carefully, to admit barely enough air for combustion.
Much of the variation in firing conditions revealed by Mössbauer spectroscopy
is related to the temperature at which reoxidation occurred, i.e., in the timing of
the opening of the kiln. This may well be the most crucial decision in the opera-
tion of a large pit kiln. Pit firing is an unforgiving technology that allows neither
for corrections of the firing atmosphere nor for refuelling once the kiln has been
ignited [25]. Similarly, the quality of firing greatly depends on the arrangement
of vessels and fuel in the kiln and accordingly may vary substantially between
vessels fired as part of the same load. Thus, pit kilns are deceptively simple, quickly
constructed installations whose operation requires a considerable level of skill and
experience in properly stacking vessels and fuel, covering the load, timing the firing
and opening the kiln. Pit kilns can accommodate sizeable loads of vessels at a time,
allowing for a substantial output of pottery. Their appearance on the Peruvian North
Coast went along with the introduction of efficient moulding techniques in Moche
times [25].
Neutron activation analysis distinguishes Chimú pottery from the Pampa de
Burros workshop and the Lambayeque Valley from another group that is associ-
ated with the Salinas site in the neighbouring Leche Valley and comprises both
raw material and pottery samples from this northern area. Thus, the Salinas centre
participated in a northern pottery exchange sphere and there must have been at
least one Chimú pottery workshop in the Leche Valley from which Salinas pro-
cured its pottery. Mössbauer spectroscopy suggests that firing technology did not
differ between the Pampa de Burros and the postulated Leche Valley workshop.
Similarly, the regional distributions of mould-made and paddle-and-anvil pottery
are suggestive of two workshops located at opposite ends of the study area that
practiced moulding as their principal vessel shaping technology. The distribution of
mould-made jars is focussed on S166c and the northern apex of the study area and
these vessels are overrepresented at elite residential settlements. In contrast, pottery
assemblages in the area between these poles, mostly from habitation mounds, are
dominated by paddle-and-anvil ware [3]. Paddling is a simple but relatively inef-
ficient shaping technology, appropriate for domestic production [26]. Apparently,
the residents of the rural habitation mounds largely made their own pottery, rather
than acquiring mould-made products. While the number of the analysed samples is
too small to detect definitive patterns, available Mössbauer spectra do not point to
substantially different firing regimes for mould-made and paddle-and-anvil wares.
184 H. TSCHAUNER AND U. WAGNER

If the latter were produced in domestic contexts, they would likely have been fired
in small bonfires or pits, technologically not unlike but simpler and, given the small
size of the load, less risky to operate than their large Pampa de Burros counterparts.
Mould-made pottery came from specialized manufactories where “professional”
potters engaged in large-scale ceramic production [3]. Various features suggest that
a number of potters shared the facility and its personnel was composed at least of
two classes of workers, master artisans and low-skill assistants: the size and number
of kilns at S166c; the placement in a separate room or patio of each kiln and its
associated hearth(s) in which vessels were pre-heated prior to firing; the probable
division of the shop into specialized areas for the low-skill shaping and decorat-
ing versus high-skill firing stages of the production sequence; the manufacture of
different vessel types and the creation of mould templates on the premises. The
sizeable, dedicated workshop structure at S166c and the large sets of moulds and
paddle stamps that can be inferred from the hundreds of discarded tools left behind
represent a substantial capital investment. The vertical half-mould technology prac-
ticed is an intrinsically “market-oriented” technology; it maximizes flexibility in
responding to quantitative and qualitative changes in demand, facilitates the manu-
facture of standardized, uniform products that reliably meet patrons’ expectations,
and minimizes producers’ exposure to risk [11]. Therefore, “professional” Chimú
potters at S166c and the postulated Leche Valley workshop shared a common tech-
nological style that distinguishes their products from those of domestic producers
and that was appropriate for large-scale, fast production of small, simple consumer
items. Comparative stylistic and technological analysis of ceramic assemblages
from Chimú centres and regular habitation sites shows that pottery was no status
symbol and far less important as a carrier of the Chimú “corporate style” than
metal artefacts. For this reason, the Chimú government and elite took great interest
in controlling the production of metal and other sumptuary items, but no interest in
controlling pottery production [2, 3, 27].

Acknowledgements
We are indebted to Prof. Josef Riederer (Rathgen Research Laboratory, Berlin)
for examining the thin sections, and to Dr. W. Häusler for the X-ray studies. This
work and the stay of H.T. at the Physics Department of the Technical Univer-
sity of Munich were supported by the German Research Council. Fieldwork in
Lambayeque was made possible by grants from the Shibusawa Foundation for Eth-
nological Research (through Izumi Shimada), the National Science Foundation, the
Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research, the Mellon Foundation,
and Harvard University. We are very grateful for this support.

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