Asbestos-Ceramic

Asbestos-ceramic (c. 1900 BC – 200 AD) refers to types of pottery manufactured with asbestos and clay with adiabatic behaviour in Finland, Karelia and northern Scandinavia. A further vessel-type does not contain any asbestos, but it has insulating properties and is therefore sometimes included under asbestos-ceramic.

The most probable origin of this style of ware is the shores of lake Saimaa in Finland, which is the only place for richer easily accessible natural deposits of asbestos in its area of distribution. Finds from inland Finland are the oldest. In Finland real asbestos-ware is known from ca. 3900–2800 BC to ca. 1800–1500 BC. In northern Scandinavia, asbestos ware appears apparently from ca. 1500 BC to ca. 500 BC.

Asbestos ware is usually classified under comb ceramic ware. From the times of the earliest comb ware (ca. 5000 BC) in Finland, asbestos was mixed with clay as an adhesive. At some point, people started to make use of the characteristics of asbestos: its long fibres allowed large vessels with thin walls, which made them lighter, without compromising durability. Some of the vessels had 6 mm thick walls with a diameter of around 50 cm (Pöljä-style). The ware is divided into the following styles (Finland):

There are two variants of asbestos-pottery depending on its asbestos amount. Asbestos pottery had an asbestos amount of 50–60%. It is usually found along evidence suggesting metal work, i.e. crucibles, moulds, slag, fused clay, artefacts of bronze and copper and stone sledge hammers. There are a few finds of pure copper artifacts among asbestos ceramic finds. These include a bracelet and a hatchet (Finland) and some pieces of copper (Sweden). Asbestos ceramic can also have been used as a heat-storage. The vessel patterns are identical to the Neolithic and Bronze Age Jōmon culture in Japan (jōmon = rope pattern). The most common patterns, however, are the comb and pit decorations typical of North-Eastern Europe at the time (Finland).

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