DOI: 10.33547/va.brz17.peb.8.3
Wstępne wyniki analiz petrograficznych ceramiki solowarskiej kultury łużyckiej / Preliminary results of
petrographic analyses of salt-making pottery
by Michał Borowski 
in: K. Dzięgielewski, Brzezie 17. Osada solowarska z późnej epoki brązu (Via Archaeologica. Źródła z badań wykopaliskowych na trasie autostrady A4 w Małopolsce), Kraków: Wydawnictwo Profil-Archeo, Krakowski Zespół do Badań Autostrad, 2025, pp. 343-352.
The main aim of the petrographic analyses carried out on fragments of salt-production vessels from
the Brzezie site was to provide information on the methods used to prepare ceramic pastes intended for
the manufacture of this category of pottery. Samples labelled BRZ-01 to BRZ-06 consisted of fragments
of typical salt-making vessels – briquetage (Fig. 1) – representing conical bowls/cups used for brine
evaporation as well as narrow, “flowerpot-shaped” cups. In addition, for comparative purposes, two
samples of “ordinary” pottery (BRZ-07 and BRZ-08) were included; typologically, these are not associated
with salt production (although their use in the process cannot be entirely excluded).
The pottery examined in thin section is characterized by a high degree of heterogeneity and poor sorting
of non-plastic inclusions, represented by ceramic grog, granitoid rock temper, and sand. Within the clay matrix, zones of distinctly reduced optical activity can often be observed, either concentrated in the marginal parts of the thin sections or distributed chaotically. This indicates uneven heat input during firing and/or during the use of the vessels. A relatively high porosity of salt-making pottery is also notable, associated with a well-developed network of irregular cracks.
Thin-section observations additionally allowed for the identification and preliminary characterization of secondarily precipitated mineral phases, resulting either from the use of the vessels in the salt-production
process or from later post-depositional processes. Samples BRZ-07 and BRZ-08, which differ typologically
from typical salt-production vessels, stand out from the remaining ceramic fragments due to their lower porosity and a higher proportion of rock temper.