Black Red Vessels

BLACK RED VESSELS

Pottery

Pottery is a kind of objects made of clay by humans for their needs. Pottery generally refers to objects made of clay.

Black and Red Ware (BRW)

Since both black and red colours appears on the same surface, they are called black-red vessels.

Though, both the colours appear on the same surface, in most the vessels red colour appears on the outer surface and black colour appears on the inner surface.

The Black and Red Ware culture (BRW) is a culture that emerged in North India and Central India during the late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age around 1450BC - 1200 BC.

Black Red Pottery flourished in the Western Gangetic Plains (Western UP) between 1450 BC 1200 BC. Originally, the grey colour painted pottery culture flourished in the parts of India like eastern Uttar Pradesh. Later, in North India, the black glazed pottery culture emerged in the 16 Mahajanpada of the Haryankoa dynasty, between 700BC and 500BC.

Archaeological artefacts from the Indus Valley Civilization in the Punjab and Gujarat regions of India are known from the post Arab period. They are the black and red pottery culture areas.

1. The Raw Material of Black-Red Pottery

Spectroscopic analysis of some samples of black and red-ware found at Kizhadi were experimented. The results of that study revealed that the red colour of the black-red pottery was due to hamatite, an iron mineral and the black colour was due to the use of organic matter, charcoal.

The ancient potters living at Kizhadi used a unique technique of heating these dark red coloured pots at a temperature of 1100 °C.

2. Nanotechnology in Black Red Pottery

An examination of the pot shell found at Kizhadi excavations reveals the techniques used during the Sangam period really excite us. One of them is the use of elements of nanotechnology in the heating process of the pot.

The world renowned journal "The Nature Scientific Report' published this article.

Carbon Nanotubes

Chemical analysis of the interior pot shells found at Kizhadi confirmed the presence of nanotubes in the black paint. The researchers proved that the carbon nanotubes were responsible for the black coating on the inner side of the pot shell that did not decay or did not lose luster.

The tensile strength of carbon nanotubes is 100 times higher than that of the same size steel. This tenacity is the reason why the black paint on the pottery does not disintegrate even after 2000 years.

Carbon nanotubes have been discovered in the archaeological excavations. Nano particles and carbon nanotubes have been found in the materials from the excavations in the Mediterranean region and in Damascus steel. These nanotubes date back to 8 or 9th century AD. The carbon nonotubes found at Kizhadi are more than 2400 years old.

Single-walled and Multi-walled Nanotubes

Both single-walled nanotubes and multi-walled nanotubes were found in the pottery excavated at Kizhadi. Now, carbon nanotubes are formed by heating a carbon-based compound to a very high temperature i.e. 1200°C. So Sangam people could have made this possible by heating at very high temperatures.

3. Colouring

Sangam Tamils used to paint different colours while heating the pots. They knew the temperature at which the pots should be heated so that the colours painted in such a manner did not disintegrate or fade.

During that time, dyes would have been prepared from plants, trees and vines and plant products which contained a lot of carbon- based compounds. Carbon nanotubes must have formed when such painted pots were heated at high temperatures.

4. Uses of Red, Black Pottery

1. Sangam people used black red pots for cooking.

2. Large vessels were also used for storing grains.

3. In many ancient civilizations, human bodies were kept in earthen vessels and rituals were made.

4. Elders' Thazhi: It is a large earthen pot. In ancient times, the method of keeping the dead body and the ornaments used by them inside the large pot and bury in the soil.