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Broken Pots, Daily Lives: Uncovering the Medieval Domesticity of Ertu.

Broken Pots, Daily Lives: Uncovering the Medieval Domesticity of Ertu

BY: DANIEL ABEYA, Master’s student in Archaeology and History. 

 

Context: This post is prepared based on the master’s thesis entitled “A Typological Study of Pottery Assemblage from the Medieval Domestic Structure at the Ertu, East Shewa, Ethiopia” at Addis Ababa University in 2025, under the supervision of Dr. Worku Derara and Dr. Anne-Lise Goujon.

Introduction

On a rocky and volcanic hill, the archaeological site of Ertu is located in East Shewa, which is 15 km from Bishoftu (Robion-Brunner, Goujon, Alebachew, Shiferaw, and Sintayehu, 2023). During the Middle Ages, the area seems to have been dominated by “pagans” communities. After the 14th century, an expansion of Islam and Christianity has been observed, resulting of the disappearance of pagan states in the Shewa region from the century to the 15th century (Taddesse, 1968; Bouanga, 2013; Solomon, 2022).

Figure 1. The landscape of the Ertu archaeological site, a place of medieval domestic life laid hidden for centuries (Goujon, 2022).

Between 2022 and 2023, a Ethio-French team directed an archaeological mission in Ertu in order to understand the history of the site. They excavated a circular domestic structure named “zone 2”, alongside a rectangular structure recognized in “zone 1”.  Zone 2 yielded hundreds of fragmented pottery sherds that have been collected and brought to Ethiopian Heritage Authority (EHA).

As I stood in the laboratory of EHA for pottery analysis, staring at 820 broken pieces of clay, a question struck me: can these silent, scattered fragments speak? Can they reconstruct the daily rituals of a household that vanished centuries ago?

The Puzzle of the Sherds: More Than Just “Trash”

In archaeology, pottery is often considered merely as a passive object for establishing categories and relative chronology (Dyson, 1968). However, the typological study being conducted on Ertu pottery assemblage from the circular structure only allows to understand functional purposes rather than chronological markers. The analysis process was similar to solving a puzzle where most of the pieces were missing.

The dispersion rate of the sample is found to be 24% calculated from the pottery, suggesting that a deposit as fragments rather than as complete objects. Yet, through careful morphological analysis, including, the form attributes, size of the sherds, visual orientation, and the reconstruction by drawing and illustration, distinct categories emerged that challenge the notion of these sites being simple or uniform. Consequently, three primary vessel types that define the domestic character of Ertu were identified. These include: Griddles (eelee), bowls (taba), and jars. They are domestic material mainly used for baking, cooking and storage.

These vessels are the most striking discoveries from unthinkable fragile sherds. This finding provides a tangible link between the medieval inhabitants of Ertu and modern Ethiopian cuisine. It suggests that despite the political and religious upheavals of the medieval era, the fundamental domestic culture – the way people prepared and shared food has maintained a remarkable continuity.

Decoration as a Cultural Fingerprint

Beyond function, the Ertu pottery reveals an aesthetic choice. Over 50% of the diagnostic sherds were decorated. The dominant technique identified was cordon decoration – string-like linear elements applied to the vessel’s exterior. But there are also incisions, impressions, rare groove and the like. These designs offer a glimpse into the artistic preferences of the local medieval potters.

Figure 2. A variety of decorative techniques, including (A) cordon, (B) wave-lined incision, (C) perforation, (D) pointed impression, (E) cordon impression, and (F) nipple found at Erta (Daniel, 2025).

Why does this Study matter?

The ceramics at Ertu show similarities to other sites in the region, such as Harlaa (mid-16th – 15th century AD) and Lake Tana regions (17th – 18th century AD), but they also exhibit distinctive regional characteristics (de Torres, 2017; Tait and Insoll, 2021:2). For instance, unlike the imported wares found in major trade centers like Harlaa, the Ertu assemblage reflects local economy. This seems to indicate a self-standing community utilizing clays for their economic purpose, crafting their own tools, and maintaining their own artistic traditions in the face of external pressures. Overall, the results of this study are significant because they demonstrate how pottery characteristics, types, and functions can be used to reconstruct everyday domestic life and technological traditions at a medieval settlement that has previously received limited attention.

Conclusions

This study of Ertu pottery provides a basis for understanding the material culture of the Eastern Shewa zone. It fills a critical gap in our knowledge of the medieval period, proving that even in the deposits of “trash,” there is a rich tapestry of human behavior waiting to be noticed. By continuing to compare the ceramics of Ertu with those of neighboring sites such as Harla, it can be come closer to reconstructing the complex social and economic interactions that defined medieval Ethiopia.

 

Further Reading / References

Bouanga, A. (2013). Damot in the History of Ethiopia (13th-20th Centuries): Religious, Political and Historiographical Recompositions. Panthéon-Sorbonne University, History. Panthéon-Sorbonne University – Paris. Paris: Panthéon-Sorbonne University press. Retrieved from https://theses.hal.science/tel-01011594

Dyson, R. (1968). Annotations and Corrections of the Relative Chronology of Iran, 1968. American Journal of Archaeology, 72(4), 308–313. https://doi.org/10.2307/503822

de Torres, R. (2017). Sherds of a Kingdom: Historical Pottery of the Lake Tana Region (Northern Ethiopia). The African Archaeological Review, 34(2), 225-248. DOI: 10.1007/s10437-017-9256-0

Goujon, A-L., Robion-Brunner, C., Lefebvre, B., Laurent, A., and Worku Derara (2022). Technology, Education and Crafts in Medieval Ethiopia (TECME) Project. A Report on the First Survey of Ertu by the Ethio-French Archaeological Mission, Archaeology, Addis Ababa University

Robion-Brunner, C., Goujon, A-L., Alebachew Belay, Shiferaw Bekele, and Sintayehu Gobezie (2023). Ertu Archaeological Site. Preliminary Fieldwork Report by Ethio-French Archaeological Mission, Addis Ababa University,  Archaeology, Addis Ababa.

Solomon, G. (2022). Pagan Religious Practices in Medieval Ethiopia: Development and Resistance of the Christian Kingdom (1434–1468). Entangled Religions, 11(5). DOI: 10.46586/er.11.2022.9864

Taddesse, T. (1968). Church and State in Ethiopia, 1270-1527. London: SOAS University of London. DOI: 10.25501/SOAS.00028644

Tait, N. and Insoll, T. (2021). Local Ceramics from the Islamic Trade Center of Harlaa, Eastern Ethiopia: Markers of Chronology and Contacts. African Archaeology Review, 38, 419–442. DOI: 10.1007/s10437-021-09435-9

 

Remove the signs on the pictures as well


OpenEdition vous propose de citer ce billet de la manière suivante :
Secrétaire Scientifique (9 février 2026). Broken Pots, Daily Lives: Uncovering the Medieval Domesticity of Ertu. UN ŒIL SUR LA CORNE / AN EYE ON THE HORN. Consulté le 5 mars 2026 à l’adresse https://doi.org/10.58079/15nif


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