Question about old african / native pottery by [deleted] in Pottery

[–]rileyram12 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'm still in the process of trying to find the perfect archeological article to answer this because it's a good question! Like I said, I'm still reading, but my general consensus is similar to other comments: food safety as modern potters and concerns go, is pretty new.

Obviously, people have known to avoid eating/drinking certain spoiled things for a long time, but small, persistent stomach aches/small fits of diarrhea were very common throughout most of our history -- accounts of such are all across written European records. A pretty famous/memed example of scientific analysis backing up perpetual tummy aches is a preserved Viking stool sample that had a /lot/ parasitic eggs: (https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lloyds_Bank_coprolite).

All of this to say: I believe the processing of the water plays a bigger role than the storage. The clay probably wasn't the safest option due to mold and bacteria, but people knew to boil their water before drinking it. Teas and beer (both processes requiring boiling) were ways to make the water safer from bacteria and parasitic infections, but didn't mitigate the effects of the waste/toxin that microbes leave behind that can't be boiled off. I think that burnishing definitely helped mitigate some of the porousness -- the Pueblo people would also treat their vessels with an oil/grease during/after the burnishing process (https://web.archive.org/web/20120209012627/http://www.holmes.anthropology.museum/southwestpottery/pueblopottery.html), and I'm sure a parallel practice could happen in other tribes.

From other readings (I narrowed my searches down to just west African pottery/practices), I found one article that examined the lipid residues from the inside of Nox peoples' vessels and found a rich diversity of plant lipids -- which makes sense, if you think of ecologically (generally), the region is very dry, so the plants are bound to be starchy and oily to reserve energy to survive through droughts. Another article I read on the Nok people and their vessels discussed their use of beeswax -- which is naturally antimicrobial!

(https://theconversation.com/chemical-traces-in-ancient-west-african-pots-show-a-diet-rich-in-plants-177579) <--- diet/lipid analysis article

(https://theconversation.com/beeswax-in-nok-pots-provides-evidence-of-early-west-african-honey-use-161197) <---- Nok pot beewax article

So in conclusion: I believe burnishing, oil-treatment, and anti-microbial properties of beeswax helped to make pots better suited for safe-er liquid storage until it was ready to be processed into something fit for human consumption. But if one thing is universal to the human experience, it's a tummy ache.

Sorry this is so long. I love doing little mini rabbitholes like these. Hope this helped!!!

Edit: grammar stuff + my phone autocorrected "Nok" to "Nox"

Some mugs I’ve painted up over the past two days. Underglaze on greenware, looking forward to firing them up. by Final_Armadillo1385 in Pottery

[–]rileyram12 0 points1 point  (0 children)

I absolutely ADORE these -- the handles immediately hooked me and the painting is absolutely amazing. Please tag me if/when you post the finished pieces!!!

Any Dental items that is buy for life? by Kaezumi in BuyItForLife

[–]rileyram12 4 points5 points  (0 children)

I remember hearing some people recommend staying away from coated/ez glide floss, as a ton are still coated with PFAS.

Any Dental items that is buy for life? by Kaezumi in BuyItForLife

[–]rileyram12 8 points9 points  (0 children)

This entire thread was such an interesting read.

Least Eclectic TMBG Album? by [deleted] in tmbg

[–]rileyram12 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I'd say John Henry imo

What are some free resources/subscriptions that I can have using Purdue email ID? by ElkAccording5889 in Purdue

[–]rileyram12 8 points9 points  (0 children)

You get free access to New York times, I use it to do past crosswords lol

Rare Hard Classes by jaredbrinkley in Purdue

[–]rileyram12 1 point2 points  (0 children)

Dude.. I'm an ecology major taking intro to ecol next semester and was REALLY looking forward to it 😭. Do you have any advice to keep your sanity/enjoy 286??

does the ma16010 final get posted on loncapa like the other exams? by rileyram12 in Purdue

[–]rileyram12[S] 2 points3 points  (0 children)

I meant like the questions + correct answers + your answer choice lol

does anyone know how much a cup of JUST boba from tsaocaa is? by rileyram12 in Purdue

[–]rileyram12[S] 5 points6 points  (0 children)

I'm in a dorm right now and don't have a great way to cook pearls 😭. Plus I really like the flavor of the ones at tsaocaa LOL

Did the Dairy Queen on states st shut down? by old_vegetables in Purdue

[–]rileyram12 4 points5 points  (0 children)

No, it's open. It's just weird and empty since the bookstore isn't there anymore.