The University of Arizona
 

The Pottery Detectives: Resources for Educators
Student Vocabulary

A.D. Latin for “Anno Domini,” meaning “in the year of the lord.” A date of 1500 A.D. means 1500 years after the birth of Christ.
Artifact An object made or used by humans.
Archaeologist A scientist who studies human cultures by analyzing their material objects
BC Initials of “Before Christ” meaning an event before the birth of Christ. A date of 300 B. C. means 300 years before the birth of Christ.
BCE Initials of “Before the Common Era,” also meaning before the birth of Christ
BP Initials of “Before Present,” reporting about how many years before the present an event took place. To be more exact, B.P. is a dating method used in radiocarbon dating in which B.P. stands for the year 1950.
CE Initials of “Common Era” referring to since the birth of Christ
Ceramics Objects made of clay and fired at very high temperatures to make hard
Clay Earth, including minerals and organic materials, that can be shaped when wet and baked to make pottery or bricks
Corrugated Shaped into ridges or ripples; bumpy
Evidence Facts or information used to prove something is true or false
Excavate In archaeology, to dig in the earth to search for ancient remains
Fired To bake clay in an oven or pit fire to make it hard
Horizontal Flat and parallel to the ground; going along the horizon
Potsherd A piece of broken pottery or ceramics
Pottery Objects made from clay and fired to make hard
Prehistoric Taking place before written records
Slip A paint made of fine, dissolved clay used to decorate pottery
Stratigraphy Layers of soil that can contain artifacts
Symmetry A balanced arrangement of parts on either side of a center line
Vertical Upright, or straight up and down
Vessel A hollow container such as a bowl, vase, or jar

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