INTRODUCTION A mongst the artifacts recovered from the archaeolog- ical layers at Noen U-Loke are fragments of burnt clay that exhibit distinctive shapes and surface textures. hey have the appearance of material that has been used to build walls of some sort as some form of daub. he surface textures include impressions of bamboo and split wood, and the clay appears in most cases to be burnt (Fig. 24:1). Chetwin (this volume) describes these morphologi- cal features in detail, discussing possibilities regarding the origins of the artifacts and the possible functions of daub and wattle at Noen U-Loke. Given the physical and visual evidence available to him, and taking due consideration of published experimental and ethnographic evidence from elsewhere, Chetwin comes to several conclusions, the most important is that the fragments of burnt clay are most likely to be from domestic structures accidentally burnt, rather than from a structure such as a kiln or furnace that has been deliberately exposed to higher temperatures. In this chapter, we ofer geochemical evidence to test this interpretation. We argue that determining probable pre- historic iring temperatures of burnt clay recovered from archaeological sites provides opportunities to interpret the design and/or function of prehistoric structures. his chapter critiques some of the methods for deter- mining iring temperatures of burnt clay, especially using colour and geochemistry as analytical tools. he samples from Noen U-Loke are especially useful for such an analy- sis in that they have been recovered from a secure deposi- tional context within the Iron Age horizons, thus remov- ing any possibility that the characteristics of the samples may be the product of suricial weathering under tropical conditions. Adopting a multi-method approach, our work examines relationships between colour, micro- and mac- ro-inclusions, elemental and mineralogical composition, physical form, and temperature, through the application of ICP-MS, XRD analysis, magnetic susceptibility, and light microscopy. Our work reinforces the methodologi- cal importance of using the combined interpretation of independent measures. his, we believe, provides a better estimate of the original iring temperatures of the archae- ological material than has hitherto been possible using individual qualities. he work reported in this chapter has been published in detail by Parr and Boyd (2002, 2003), and the follow- ing provides the main points. Examination of the visual and macroscopic characteristics of the samples (Chetwin, this volume) lead to the conclusion the samples were most probably ired at low temperatures, with a possible indus- trial source for some of the material. Chetwin’s study of the samples recovered from the archaeological site provides a valuable foundation for our study. Providing a detailed descriptive account of the samples, Chetwin discusses the potential and limitations of burning experiments in determining origins for such material. Building espe- cially on issues of colour and the inclusion of surviving rice remains, Chetwin concludes that the evidence he had to hand “would seem to distance the Noen U-Loke daub remains from a pyrotechnological (e.g. kiln or hearth) origin” (p. 460). He then continued to conclude that his data indicated that “the preservation of wattle and daub remains at Noen U-Loke is the function of low tempera- ture iring, most probably accidental” (p.460). He was careful, however, to remind us that this is only a prelimi- nary conclusion. Chetwin considers three possible origins for the burnt clay recovered from Noen U-Loke. He discards his irst possibility, that is that the fragments came from a kiln or furnace, partly on the basis of visual assessment and partly on the basis of lack of good northeast hai ethnographic equivalent. He notes that local charcoal ovens do not have the wooden or bamboo structure that is implied by the abundant impressions on the archaeological material. We note from our own observations, however, that both bam- boo and slit wood is used to frame the opening to such ovens, and indeed were used to create an inner frame over which clay was plastered prior to the irst burning; there is ample evidence on the inner surface of these ovens for the impressed remains of a wooden or bamboo frame (Fig. 24:1). Chetwin then comments that two other possibili- ties are indeed possibilities, although as yet unproven. he irst is that the clay is from a domestic structure, although it would only be preserved if the domestic building had been burnt down. he second possibility is that the clay was from some part of an industrial structure, such as a wattle and daub roof over an oven (Fig. 24:1). Clearly Chetwin’s full and detailed descriptions and XXIV. GEOCHEMICAL ANALYSIS OF FRAGMENTS OF BURNT AND IMPRESSED CLAY (DAUB) FROM THE THE ARCHAEOLOGICAL LAYERS AT NOEN U-LOKE, AND THE DETERMINATION OF ITS PROBABLE ORIGIN W. E. BOYD AND J. F. PARR