S.K. Das et al., Man and Environment XLII (2): 11-20 [2017]. © Indian Society for Prehistoric and Quaternary Studies Provenance Study of Ancient Potteries from West Bengal and Tamil Nadu: Application of Major Element Oxides and Trace Element Geochemistry Supriyo Kumar Das 1 , Santanu Ghosh 1 , Kaushik Gangopadhyay 2 , Subhendu Ghosh 3 and Manoshi Hazra 1 1. Department of Geology, Presidency University, College Street 86/1, Kolkata 700073 2. Department of Archaeology, University of Calcutta, 1 Reformatory Street, Kolkata 700027 3. Geological Survey of India, Central Chemical Laboratory, 15 A & B Kyd Street, Kolkata 700016 E-mail: k.gongo@gmail.com Abstract Geochemical study of pottery provides useful information on the source of the raw materials (clay) of ancient vessels. However, published geochemical data on potteries from eastern coastal region of India is limited. Moreover, there are debates on the provenance of certain categories of fine ware, including the ‘Rouletted ware’, found in eastern coastal India. The uncertainty about the provenance of the potteries is primarily due to the fact that geochemical/geological sources of clay used for manufacturing of potteries has till now never been taken into account. To address the issue, major element oxides and trace elements in potsherds collected from surface context at three sites situated along the east coast of India namely Chandraketugarh and Tamluk in West Bengal, and Arikamedu in Tamil Nadu have been analysed. Samples from each sherd was prepared as a homogenised powder, and major element oxides and trace elements was analysed using wave length dispersive X-ray fluorescence spectroscopy (WD-XRF). Further, the study drew on already published major element oxide data of ancient potteries and sediments from Tamil Nadu and the Ganga Plains to identify the source of clay. The result indicates that the potteries were made of clay derived from the weathering of felsic to intermediate rocks, which are abundant in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry, but absent in West Bengal. The uniform geochemical character of the potteries collected from the geographically separated sites further implies that the potteries were manufactured using a single type of clay. It is likely that the potteries were manufactured at or close to the archaeological site in Arikamedu, and exported to the site in lower West Bengal such as Tamluk and Chandraketugarh. Introduction Pottery, one of the main artefacts is studied by archaeologists to locate its provenance, and thereby understand the trading and/or exchange systems and networks. Pottery is manufactured using clay, which is primarily composed of hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates with variable amount of iron (Fe), magnesium (Mg), sodium (Na), and potassium (K), and is produced from the weathering of aluminosilicate rocks (Chandrasekaran et al. 2013: 29-40). Hence, it is hypothesised that the geochemistry of the clay used for manufacturing the pottery can be correlated with the geochemistry of the source rock of the clay. Thus application of geochemical studies is a necessary prerequisite, as provenance analysis of pottery would help derive useful information on the source of the raw materials (clay) of the ancient vessels (Ramos et al. 2002a: 893-900, b: 689-700; Laviano et al. 2006: 49-62; Dias and Prudêncio 2008; Prudêncio et al. 2009: 873-883). Received: 27-12-2016 Revised: 29-04-2017 Accepted: 28-05-2017 Early historic fine wares, dated from c. 4th-3rd BCE to 3rd centuries CE, are found from several archaeological sites in eastern India, south-eastern coastal India, Sri Lanka and Bangladesh (Begley 1983: 461-81, 1988:427-40; Salles and Allios 2005: 27-34; Ford et al. 2005: 909-920; Schenk 2006: 123-53; Magee 2010:1043-1054). These wares have homogenous fine grey core and are generally thin to medium in section. The surface of the fine wares is found either slipped or polished with a grey surface and a black slip or with blotchy red and grey surface. The rouletted ware (henceforth referred as RW) is one of the varieties of fine ware included in Begley’s report of excavations (Begley 1996) at Arikamedu in Tamil Nadu, India (Fig. 1). Later, Salles and Allios reviewed her conclusions (Salles and Allios 2005: 27-34). The RW is a more carefully potted ware in monochrome (grey and black) or bichrome (black- and-red, grey and black). The most common form of RW excavated at Arikamedu is large dish (approximately 28 cm diameter) with internal concentric circle where the surface