Chemical characterization of ancient pottery from the greater Accra region of Ghana using neutron activation analysis

Abstract

Archaeology in Ghana has a long and respectable tradition. Despite this encouraging situation, significant gaps still exist in our understanding of the history of some early societies in Ghana. Accumulated evidence revealed that the Ga (Ayawaso), Dangme-Shai and the Wullf had trade and other cultural contacts with their Akan and Guan neighbours as well as the various European factors that traded and established footholds in the Accra coast. In an attempt to reconstruct the early history of the Ga, Dangme-Shai and Wullf, the archaeological material remains recovered from these communities during excavation have been studied. In all, 15 trace elements were determined in 40 pottery shards using instrumental neutron activation analysis. The elemental concentrations were processed using multivariate statistical methods, such as cluster, factor and discriminant analyses. The results revealed patterns of trade between these communities and also classified the 40 samples into two major groups based on variations in elemental compositions. The groupings suggested a clear separation between the shards from Shai and Ayawaso. The shards from Wullf scattered amongst the two groups, consistent with the archaeological findings that the Wullf community never produced their own pots. © 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.