The Wall Paintings of Çatalhöyük (Turkey): Materials, Technologies and Artists Duygu Seçil Çamurcuoğlu Thesis Submitted to University College London for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy Institute of Archaeology University College London September 2015 1 I, Duygu Çamurcuoğlu confirm that the work presented in this thesis is my own. Where information has been derived from other sources, I confirm that this has been indicated in the thesis. Duygu Çamurcuoğlu 2 ABSTRACT Neolithic site of Çatalhöyük (Turkey) presents the most detailed and the interesting story up to date on Neolithic art and technologies both for the prehistoric archaeology and the material science studies. Çatalhöyük wall paintings are significant in terms of understanding the ideas of beliefs, rituality, symbolism and the social organization within the Neolithic community as well as the development of Neolithic wall art, since there are no other Neolithic sites at which the wall paintings were found of a similar scale in sizes and varieties in representations. However the technological processes which these paintings were created by did not seem to be interconnected with the discussions on the social aspects. The constantly developing field of material science has proved that the social studies on these paintings would not be complete without the study of their technologies which ultimately created these images. For the first time, this research aims to investigate primarily the technological make up of these paintings in detail and tie up the previous studies on the Çatalhöyük pigments and plasters within a broader technological and social context. The nature of wall painting production as a whole i.e. the materials used and their interaction with each other, tools and techniques and how “specialized” this practice was within the Neolithic community were investigated with the variety of analytical techniques available in order to understand the painting methods and the use of materials/sources within their archaeological and technological context. The research showed that most households at Çatalhöyük have involved in the making of wall paintings, their selection of materials/techniques were developed via their close environment and the production work was based on long-lived practices and traditions which were created through simply discovering and experimenting. By undertaking this research, it was also possible to understand the nature of the individual wall painting materials and thus to develop better conservation strategies for their preservation whilst setting up parameters for their safe retrieval from soil, sampling, stabilizing and safe storage which will help to increase the level of information provided by these very old paintings. 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS Abstract 3 Table of contents 4 List of tables 9 List of figures 11 List of appendices 21 Acknowledgements 23 Chapter 1 – Introduction to the Research and the Methodology 1.1 The Significance of the Research 24 1.2 The Summary of Previous Research on Çatalhöyük Painted Plasters and Pigments 29 1.3 Research Questions 31 1.3.1 Pigments 32 1.3.2 Plasters 32 1.3.3 Painting methods 32 1.3.4 Social Aspects of Wall Painting Production and Investigating Specialization 32 1.4 Research Objectives 33 1.5 The Methodology for the Research Questions: Technological Aspect 34 1.5.1 Data and Sampling 34 1.5.2 Sampling Contexts: The Excavation Areas 38 1.5.2.1. South Area 38 1.5.2.2 4040 Area 38 1.5.2.3 BACH area 38 1.5.3 Çatalhöyük Phasing System 39 1.5.4 Sampling Methodology and the Limitations 40 4 1.6 The Methodology for the Research Questions: Identifying materials, tools and techniques 45 1.6.1. Pigments 46 1.6.2. Plasters 46 1.6.3. Application Methods/Tools 47 1.7 The Methodology for the Research Questions: Social Aspect 52 1.8 The Structure of the Thesis 52 Chapter 2 – Material Under Study: Theoretical Background 2.1 A Brief Introduction to the prehistoric paintings in the Central Anatolia and the Near East 55 2.1.1. Prehistoric Colour and the Use of Pigments 57 2.2 The Neolithic of Central Anatolia and the Near East: Developments in Architecture, Art and Related Technologies 63 2.2.1. Painting as a part of the Neolithic House 64 2.3 Placing the Material into Context: The geographical setting surrounding Çatalhöyük 75 2.4 Placing the material into context: The Neolithic Site of Çatalhöyük 81 2.4.1 “Plastering” the House at Çatalhöyük 85 2.4.2 Houses and the Paintings 87 2.5 Conclusion 93 Chapter 3 – Material under Study: The Methodology of Sampling and Analysis 3.1 The Nature and Condition of the Painted Plasters at Çatalhöyük 95 3.2 Factors affecting the condition of the Çatalhöyük Painted Plasters and Pigments 96 3.2.1 Condition of the Painted Plasters 97 3.2.2 Condition of the Pigments 99 3.2.3 Condition of the Painted plasters and Pigments following 99 excavation 3.3 The Analytical Techniques Selected for investigating the Çatalhöyük Wall Paintings 100 5 3.3.1 Microscopy (Optical Stereomicroscope, Reflected Light 102 Microscope/RLM, Polarising Light Microscopy/PLM) 3.3.2 Reflected Light Microscopy (RLM) 103 3.3.3 Polarising Light Microscopy (PLM) 104 3.3.4 Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) 107 3.3.5 Raman Spectroscopy 108 3.3.6 Gas Chromatography–Mass Spectrometry (GC-MS) 109 3.3.7 Colour identification 111 3.4 Conclusion 111 Chapter 4 – The Results of the Instrumental Analysis of the Çatalhöyük Wall Painting Materials 4.1 The Brief Summary of the Analytical Methodology 112 4.1.1 Macroscopic Study Results 113 4.1.1.1 Paint colour and the nature of the paint layers 113 4.1.1.2. Number of paint layers 115 4.1.1.3 Application of paint layer on plaster material 115 4.1.1.4 Nature of the plaster material and plaster layers 115 4.1.1.5 Application tools and possible techniques 116 4.1.2 Microscopic Study Results 117 4.1.2.1. Number of layers on painted plaster material 117 4.1.2.2. Thickness of the layers on plaster material 118 4.1.2.3. Nature of the plaster material and plaster layers 118 4.1.2.4. Identification of pigments 118 4.1.2.5. Application of paint layers 119 4.1.2.6. Thickness of paint layers 119 4.1.2.7. Particle size of pigments 119 4.1.2.8. Paint application tools and possible techniques 119 4.2 Identification of Painted Plasters and Pigments used at Çatalhöyük 119 4.2.1 Plaster materials 120 4.2.1.1 Type 1 121 4.2.1.2 Type 2 123 4.2.1.3 Type 3 127 4.2.1.4 Type 4 129 6 4.2.1.5 Type 5 131 4.2.2 Pigments 137 4.2.2.1 Red 138 4.2.2.1.a Red 1 138 4.2.2.1.b Red 2 141 4.2.2.2 Yellow 145 4.2.2.3 Blue 147 4.2.2.4 Green 149 4.2.2.5 Black. 149 4.2.2.6 White 151 4.3 Application Methods and Tools 152 4.3.1 Scratch marks 158 4.3.2 Sharp striations going in the same direction 160 4.3.3 Softer striations going in different directions 163 4.4 Organic Binding Media 171 4.4.1 Sugars (monosaccharides): for detection of gum media 171 4.4.2 Lipids and amino acids: for detection of protein and oil/fat media 172 4.5 The Study of possible Ground Stone Painting Tool kits 173 4.5.1 Fine Abrading Tools 175 4.5.2 Polishing Tools 178 4.5.3 Pigments 179 4.6 Conclusion 183 Chapter 5 – The Methodology and Results of the Experimental Work for Plastering and Painting Practices at Çatalhöyük 5.1 Introduction to the Experimental work 184 5.2 Experimental Work: 187 5.2.1 Materials 187 5.2.1.1 Terminology Used during the Experimental Work 188 5.2.2 Marl Plasters: 188 5.2.2.1 Preparation of marl plaster before application 191 5.2.2.2 Layered application of pale brown and white marl plaster 194 5.2.2.3 Single, thick layer of white marl plaster 198 5.2.3 Preparation of the marl plaster surface before painting 199 7 5.2.3.1 Burnishing 199 5.2.4 Painting the marl plaster surfaces 201 5.2.4.1 Application of paint on a single, thick layer of white 203 marl plaster 5.2.4.1.1 Painting on a wet surface (unburnished) 203 5.2.4.1.2 Painting on a dry surface 204 (burnished when leather-hard) 5.2.4.1.2.a Egg white and yolk 205 5.2.4.1.2.b Water 205 5.2.4.1.2.c Milk 206 5.2.4.1.2.d Rabbit skin glue 206 5.2.4.1.2.e Linseed oil and Olive oil 206 5.2.4.1.3 Painting on a dry surface (burnished when dry) 207 5.2.4.2 Application of paint on multiple, thin layers of marl plaster 207 5.2.4.2.1 Painting on a wet surface (unburnished) 207 5.3 Summary of Results 211 5.4 Conclusion 214 Chapter 6 – Interpretation and the Discussion of Results 6.1 The Nature of Plasters at Çatalhöyük and the Different Methods of Wall Plastering prior to Painting 216 6.2 The Nature of Pigments and Their Modification/Application in relation to Painting practices at Çatalhöyük. 227 6.3 Painting the Neolithic Çatalhöyük: Possible Painting Techniques and the Painting Tool Kits 235 6.4 Painting the Neolithic Çatalhöyük: Was it a “communal” or a “specialist” practice? 240 6.5 Conclusion 247 6.6 Future Research 250 6.7 The Parameters for safe conservation practices for the future study of the wall paintings and related materials 252 6.8 Final Conclusion 254 References 256 8 LIST OF TABLES Chapter 1 Table 1.1 Mellaart and Hodder levels across the different excavation areas (East Mound) (Duygu Tarkan, 2012).