Saturday, July 28, 2012

Follow-up: World's Oldest Evidence of Ceramics?

Published: Jul 26th, 2012

17,500-Year-Old Ceramic Figures Unearthed in Croatia


An international team of archaeologists has uncovered the first evidence of ceramic figurative art in late Upper Paleolithic Europe – from about 17,500 years ago, thousands of years before pottery was commonly used.

36 ceramics artifacts found at the archaeological site of Vela Spila, Croatia (Rebecca Farbstein / PLoS ONE)


The evidence of a community of prehistoric artists and craftspeople who ‘invented’ ceramics during the last Ice Age has been found at the archaeological site of Vela Spila, Croatia.

The finds consist of 36 fragments, most of them apparently the broken-off remnants of modeled animals, and come from the site on the Adriatic coast. The archaeologists believe that they were the products of an artistic culture which sprang up in the region about 17,500 years ago. Their ceramic art flourished for about 2,500 years, but then disappeared
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A study, published in the journal PLoS ONE, adds to a rapidly-changing set of views about when humans first developed the ability to make ceramics and pottery. Most histories of the technology begin with the more settled cultures of the Neolithic era, which began about 10,000 years ago.

Now it is becoming clear that the story was much more complex. Over thousands of years, ceramics were invented, lost, reinvented and lost again. The earliest producers did not make crockery, but seem to have had more artistic inclinations.

“It is extremely unusual to find ceramic art this early in prehistory,” said senior author Dr Preston Miracle of the University of Cambridge. “The finds at Vela Spila seem to represent the first evidence of Paleolithic ceramic art at the end of the last Ice Age. They appear to have been developed independently of anything that had come before. We are starting to see that several distinct Paleolithic societies made art from ceramic materials long before the Neolithic era, when ceramics became more common and were usually used for more functional purposes.”

Vela Spila is a large, limestone cave on Korčula Island, in the central Dalmatian archipelago. Excavations have taken place there sporadically since 1951, and there is evidence of occupation on the site during the Upper Paleolithic period, roughly 20,000 years ago, through to the Bronze Age about 3,000 years ago.

The first ceramic finds were made back in 2001. Initially they were almost overlooked, because it is so unusual to find ceramic in the Upper Paleolithic record. As more ceramic emerged, however, examples were set aside for careful analysis.

Broadly, the collection belongs to a material culture known as ‘Epigravettian’ which spanned 12,000 years, but radiocarbon dating has allowed scholars to pin down the Vela Spila ceramic collection to a much narrower period, between 17,500 and 15,000 years ago. Those which can be identified appear to be fragments of modeled animals.

The ceramics were clearly made with care and attention by real craftspeople who knew what they were doing. One of the better-preserved items, which seems to be the torso and foreleg of a horse or deer, shows that the creator deliberately minimized the number of joins in the model, perhaps to give it structural strength.

As well as being the first and only evidence of ceramic, figurative art in south-eastern Europe during the Upper Paleolithic, the collection’s size, range and complexity suggests that Vela Spila was the heart of a flourishing and distinctive artistic tradition. Although the finds bear some similarities with ceramics discovered in the Czech Republic, which date back a further 10,000 years, there are enough structural and stylistic differences – as well as separation by a huge gulf in time – to suggest no continuity between the two.

The older, Czech finds were also typically found near hearths, which were possibly kilns. Some researchers have even gone so far as to suggest that they were deliberately destroyed in the fire as some sort of ritual act. The Vela Spila finds, on the other hand, appear to have undergone no such ritual destruction – at least not in the same way.

As a result, the Cambridge-Croatian team believes that these ceramics came from a hitherto unknown artistic tradition that flourished for about two millennia in the Balkans. Like their Neolithic descendants, these people may have had no knowledge of ceramics before they invented the technology for themselves.

“The development of this new material and technology may have been a catalyst for a more general transformation in artistic expression and figurative art at this site thousands of years ago,” said lead author Dr Rebecca Farbstein of the University of Cambridge. “Although we often focus on utilitarian innovations as examples of societies transforming as a result of new technology, the ceramic evidence we have found here offers a glimpse into the ways in which prehistoric cultures were also sometimes defined and affected by artistic innovations and expression.”
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Bibliographic information: Farbstein R, Radić D, Brajković D, Miracle PT. 2012. First Epigravettian Ceramic Figurines from Europe (Vela Spila, Croatia). PLoS ONE 7(7): e41437; doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0041437

So, what is this about "older Czech finds" dating back another 10,000 years?  Are ceramics then as old at 27000 BCE?  Older than the Venus of Willendorf?  I seem to have missed this!

2012 Quebec Open

Hola!  Final standings are here.  WGM Melissa Greeff of South Africa, who was a last minute entry into the Invitational, did not finish in last place, a good thing! 

Invitational (9 rounds):

Classement final après 9 rondes

Rg.NameFEDELOPts. Dep.1
1GMSO WesleyPHI26507.537.50
2GMBRUZON BATISTA LazaroCUB27117.038.25
3GMSUMETS AndreyUKR26186.535.00
4GMKOVALYOV AntonARG26145.524.25
5FMOLIVA CASTANEDA KevelCUB23205.523.00
6IMGERZHOY LeonidCAN24595.522.50
7IMPANJWANI RajaCAN23925.521.75
8FMTHAVANDIRAN ShiyamCAN23015.521.50
9GMARENCIBIA RODRIGUEZ WalterCUB25265.024.50
10GMROZENTALIS EduardasLTU26005.022.00
11IMNARODITSKY DanielUSA24865.020.25
12IMPEREZ GARCIA Rodney OscarCUB24125.018.25
13GMSAMBUEV BatorCAN25425.018.00
14IMSMITH Bryan GUSA24414.523.75
15GMBOJKOV DejanBUL25564.520.25
16IMHANSEN EricCAN24604.519.50
17GMVERA GONZALEZ-QUEVEDO ReynaldoCUB24894.518.75
18IMPIASETSKI LeonCAN22904.518.50
19IMNORITSYN NikolayCAN24604.019.00
20FMJIANG LouieCAN23374.018.00
21FMKLEINMAN MichaelCAN22934.014.00
KRAIOUCHKINE NikitaCAN22044.014.00
23QIN Zi Yi JoeyCAN21984.013.25
24IMCALUGAR ArthurCAN22734.012.00
25BERUBE AntoineCAN21523.511.75
26FMVOSKANYAN VahagnCAN22403.08.50
PRAHOV ValentinBUL22093.08.50
28WGMGREEFF MelissaRSA20913.07.50
29IMYANG DarwinUSA24982.510.00
30MASSE HuguesCAN22322.59.25
31HUMPHREYS MichaelCAN21792.05.00
32FMLEVEILLE FrancoisCAN23011.57.50

There were several sections in the Open.  The top section (A -- 57 players), had favorite son IM Jean Hebert finish in second place overall, with 6.5/8.  Here are the top 10 15 (because of tie scores I extended the range):

# Nom Cote Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 Tot
1 Xu, Haizhou 2126 +41 +39 +12 +11 =7 =2 +5 +6 7
2 Hébert, Jean MI 2436 +27 +3 H--- +6 =10 =1 +17 +9
3 Tomb, Maroun 2087 +54 -2 +37 +35 +11 =9 +7 +14
4 Tessier-Desrosiers, Olivier MN 2194 +46 -22 -13 +45 +27 +39 +8 =10
5 Luksza, Arkadiusz MN 2143 +14 -12 +41 +25 +26 =7 -1 +18
6 Arsenault, Nicolas MN 2106 +36 +50 +35 -2 +12 =17 +15 -1
7 Galbadrak, Enk-Amar 2105 +32 =10 +53 +20 =1 =5 -3 +19
8 Goldner, John 1667 -35 +36 H--- +40 +34 +13 -4 +17
9 Casareno, Erwin MN 2246 =28 -35 +30 +46 +24 =3 +16 -2 5
10 Carrier, Claude 2197 +30 =7 =26 +39 =2 -15 +29 =4 5
11 Chiku-Ratté, Olivier Kenta 2196 +40 +38 +24 -1 -3 -14 +31 +28 5
12 Gelet, Seymour 2009 +57 +5 -1 +38 -6 =18 =13 +26 5
13 Yu, Zong Yang 1943 -20 +48 +4 =24 +22 -8 =12 +34 5
14 Le Duin, Thierry 1938 -5 -44 +56 +55 +35 +11 +22 -3 5
15 Rondon, Luciano 1844 =23 +18 =25 H--- +20 +10 -6 =16 5

My apologies in advance to any chess femmes that I have omitted from this report -- as I said in prior posts, I have trouble recognizing gender sometimes by names only.  Organizers, it would really be helpful for us reporters if you could designed F or M after a player's name! 

Chang Yun (FQE 1988), who will be playing in the upcoming 2012 Goddesschess Canadian Women's Closed Chess Championship ( also known as the Women's Invitational and Women's Zonal), finished in in 27th place overall with 4.0/8 -- at 50%.  Very good! 

Top final standings, U-2000 Section (50 players):

# Nom Cote Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 Tot
1 PICHETTE Mickaélin 1863 +50 =6 +16 +14 +2 -5 +4 +11
2 ALCANTARA Maximo 1757 +34 +13 +17 +9 -1 =4 =11 +5 6
3 LIBERSAN Mattieu 1882 -7 =42 =43 +36 +33 +22 =17 +9
4 GIROUX Robert * 1845 =46 +27 +6 =7 +18 =2 -1 +16
5 PILOTTE Benoît 1823 X--- =16 =25 +17 +8 +1 =9 -2
6 VILLENEUVE Benoît 1740 +36 =1 -4 +41 +38 =7 =18 +17
7 PERNA-FRASER David 1701 +3 =14 +11 =4 =9 =6 =20 +15
8 YAO Houji 1885 -17 +28 +22 +15 -5 -18 +30 +20 5
9 COTE-LALUMIERE Tristan 1866 +45 +15 +33 -2 =7 +29 =5 -3 5
10 NIKULICH Oleksandr 1836 =25 +41 -14 =22 +24 -17 +33 +18 5
11 LALUMIERE Claude 1825 =31 +46 -7 +25 +14 +21 =2 -1 5
12 BENOIT Sébastien 1816 +28 -18 =44 +23 -29 =33 +22 +21 5

Ling Yun Shi (FQE 1618) (or perhaps it is Shi Ling Yun?), who also will be participating in the 2012 Goddeschess Canadian Women's CCC, finished in 42nd place overall with 2.0/8.

In the U-1700 Section (66 players), top final standings:

# Nom Cote Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 Tot
1 PLANTE Marc-Eric 1668 +20 +37 +54 +31 +5 -4 =11 +6
2 BATHAIE Sina 1685 H--- H--- F51 +21 +40 +25 +26 +12 6
3 SHI Yang Tian Jiao 1570 -22 +55 -38 +39 +49 X31 +27 +16 6
4 LEMIEUX Serge 1533 +66 +57 =30 +19 +26 +1 -6 =7 6
5 SAHA Ananda 1325 +53 +25 +8 +7 -1 =26 =12 +11 6
6 KOZLOV Guennadi * 1665 +38 -54 +62 +53 +25 =11 +4 -1
7 BEDARD Michel 1611 +44 =23 +15 -5 +50 +19 =16 =4
8 LAMBERT Pierre 1573 +39 +42 -5 +54 -16 =9 +24 +20
9 NIKULICH Andriy 1415 +17 =33 +18 =12 -11 =8 +19 +27
10 MEDAWAR Jean-Marc 1636 -16 -50 +66 +44 +15 =20 +14 =13 5
11 CÔTÉ Claude 1598 +55 =16 H--- +36 +9 =6 =1 -5 5
12 MICHAUD Jean-François 1530 +28 =24 +23 =9 +31 =16 =5 -2 5
13 STEINBERG Ellis 1431 -58 =59 -29 +57 +33 +50 +17 =10 5
14 SAMIKOV Chingis 1427 -31 +46 =32 +29 +17 =27 -10 +28 5
15 SUN Benjamin 1409 +32 =48 -7 +33 -10 =30 +25 +26 5
16 SAINE Zachary 1408 +10 =11 =36 +35 +8 =12 =7 -3 5

I recognized the following chess femmes:

56 NICOLE Chantal 1269 -37 -38 -40 X66 +62 -21 -39 -47 2
57 GAO Christine 1210 +62 -4 -35 -13 -39 -44 -46 +55 2

In the U-1300 Section (72 players), top final standings:

# Nom Cote Rd 1 Rd 2 Rd 3 Rd 4 Rd 5 Rd 6 Rd 7 Rd 8 Tot
1 ZHANG Evan 1254 +66 +65 +39 +4 +5 +3 =2 +7
2 JOHNSON-CONSTANTIN M 1232 +56 +61 +12 =3 +24 +4 =1 +5 7
3 NOVOZHENIN Oleksandr 1286 +31 +26 +18 =2 +35 -1 +22 +12
4 DIMITROV Dimitar 1245 +55 +58 +7 -1 +10 -2 +28 +17 6
5 JOMPHE Denis 1241 +67 +46 +10 +13 -1 +11 +17 -2 6
6 VLASBLOM Vincent 1140 +59 -51 +47 -17 +44 +10 +11 +18 6
7TROTTIER Claire1288+37+53-4=9+29+23+8-1
8 BISSONNETTE Raphaël 1185 =63 +34 +22 -24 +21 +35 -7 +20
9 DIMOV Pierre 1118 -46 +67 +66 =7 -22 +29 +23 +21
10 MONTREUIL Carl 1285 +47 +15 -5 +43 -4 -6 +29 +22 5
11 ZHENG Xin Yue 1276 H--- =41 B--- +44 +14 -5 -6 +27 5
12OUELLET Maili-Jade1254+21+27-2+20+39-17+15-35
13 GRENIER Marcel 1246 +40 +36 +51 -5 -17 -15 +31 +28 5
14 DEMERS Claude 1222 +38 -23 +41 +42 -11 -20 +30 +26 5
15 CHAN David * 1122 +50 -10 -43 +33 +41 +13 -12 X24 5
16 YAMAGAMI Tadashi 1057 =64 -22 -34 +68 +49 =27 +33 +35 5
17 LEGAULT Gabriel unr. +19 -39 X28 +6 +13 +12 -5 -4 5

I recognized the folllowing chess femmes (femmes in top final standings above are marked in red):

18 PINEAULT Véronique 1243 +48 +57 -3 -29 +43 =19 +36 -6
26 ROUSSEL Lauriane 1106 +72 -3 -57 -21 +55 +42 +40 -14 4
28 SERBAN Diana 1092 H--- H--- F17 +40 +46 +39 -4 -13 4
32 TINICA Sabina 1024 H--- -35 -62 +50 -36 +38 +55 =25 4
33 PEPIN Marie-Jocelyne 1005 -24 -60 +45 -15 +59 +58 -16 +46 4
40 OCCEANT Christelle 993 -13 -71 +59 -28 +45 +44 -26 -30 3
41 GAO Catherine 973 =35 =11 -14 +47 -15 -46 -34 +48 3
43 TSYPIN Allison 849 -39 +19 +15 -10 -18 -31 +45 -29 3
45 CHUKHOVICH Yanina unr. -53 -30 -33 +67 -40 +59 -43 +55 3
48 EDOUARD Marie-Erline 973 -18 -52 =50 -38 +67 -49 X58 -41
50 FERDINAND Jennyfer unr. -15 -37 =48 -32 +56 -47 +59 -42
66 DUBOIS Lorraine * 1015 -1 +70 -9 U--- U--- U--- U--- U--- 1
69 HAMELIN Alysa * unr. -65 -47 +67 U--- U--- U--- U--- U--- 1

I will check with the organizers to see if they can give me a list of all female players and their final results/standings.  But they are busy right now getting ready for the next events.  So - we shall see!

Crow Offerings

I'm taking a 30 minute break from cutting the grass in the back yard.  Geez - it got tall over 2 weeks thanks to the rain we've had for the past several days (off and on, hit or miss but enough, enough -- for now...).  I didn't have to cut last week; despite my own watering (especially the trees and my perennials), the grass wasn't growing much. 

Two weeks ago when I cut I found the headless torso of a small baby doll -- plunked down right next to one of the clear glass flat dishes I put out to supplement the water supply for my critters during the drought.  I didn't keep it -- it freaked me out, actually!  I knew it had to have been deposited by a crow.  They leave interesting things behind all the time.  After finding two more items today, I have decided to start a collection of "Crow Offerings:"

Photos taken of the objects where I set them down on my plastic patio table:





As you can see, the offerings I found today are a bone with a lot of the marriow eaten out, and a gold-colored bangle bracelet with topaz-colored stones (one stone is missing), a little bit bent out of shape but otherwise in good condition.  I don't know what kind of metal it is made out of, but it is weighty.  I did not see any markings on it of any kind.  It does not fit over my hand, I think it must have been designed for a child.

I don't know what the bone might be from.  Shape-wise, it sort of reminds me of the bones that are found in pork-hocks that my dad loved, Bless his Soul, and were served in the house at least twice a month while I was growing up.  I don't remember them being this "long," though.  But the shape is similar. 

I found the bone next to the concrete birthbath under which my doggy Spencer's ashes are buried (March, 1999).  It wasn't there a few days ago when I gave that bird bath a good scrub, I would have seen it.  The bangle bracelet I found next to the glass pie plate I have filled with water, resting on the ground near the back fence.  It wasn't there a few days ago when I last cleaned that dish out and put fresh water in it.  It caught my eye as I was shoving the mower close to those glass dishes.  I didn't stop mowing, just bent over and picked it up and stuffed in in a pocket.

How do I know these were left behind by crows?  Well, they don't visit like they used to (I think the trees have gotten too big and thick for their liking), but during this drought, they have been coming for the water in the bird baths and the extra dishes I put out.  They often (but not always) announce their presence because the scout will signal out a call of "all clear" and then more of the flock members will come.  So, since they are visiting again, I have been tossing out peanuts and nutty-bread for them.  Crows always return the favor -- they understand quid pro quo very well.  I have been feeding them for 21 years now, and know their ways. 

Pretty neat "treasures", heh?  What do you think - should I clean them off or leave them as they are?  Not sure how I'm going to display them either!  I guess that depends on what other crow offerings I find in the future.

2012 Politiken Cup

There are 292 players competing beginning today.  Top chess femmes participating include WGM Alina L'Ami (ROU 2372), WGM Anna Rudolf (HUN 2325), and WGM Svetland Cherednichenko (UKR 2293).  They'll be up against really tough competition.  The highest rated male players include GM Vladimir Malakov (2712) , GM Aleksey Dreev (2677) and that cutey, GM Ivan Cheparinov (2677). 

Official website.  Play began today and continues through August 5, 2012 (10 rounds total).  I'm pleased to report that all three of the top-rated chess femmes won their games in R1.  I'll be checking the results periodically and will provide a final accounting when all the dust has settled, and see if I can round up the names of all of the chess femmes who participated and their final standings.

2012 FIDE Women's Grand Prix - Jermuk

Despite the Chinese players all losing their final round games, Hou Yifan hung on to take the clear win with 7/11.  Here are the final round results - notice who knocked off the Chinese players:

Round 11 on 2012/07/28 at 15:00
SNo.NameRtgRes.NameRtgSNo.
6IMKovalevskaya Ekaterina24171 - 0GMZhao Xue255612
7GMKosintseva Nadezhda25161 - 0WGMRuan Lufei24835
8GMLahno Kateryna25371 - 0GMHou Yifan26174
9IMMunguntuul Batkhuyag2447½ - ½GMDanielian Elina24803
10IMMkrtchian Lilit24501 - 0IMKhurtsidze Nino24562
11WGMJu Wenjun25180 - 1GMKoneru Humpy25981

Final standings (from The Week in Chess):

FIDE WGP Jermuk 2012 Jermuk ARM Mon 16th Jul 2012 - Sun 29th Jul 2012
Leading Final Round 11 Standings:
RkNameTiFEDRtgPtsTB1TB2TB3
1Hou YifanGMCHN26177.00.035.753.0
2Kosintseva NadezhdaGMRUS25166.51.536.504.5
3Lahno KaterynaGMUKR25376.51.536.003.5
4Koneru HumpyGMIND25986.50.033.003.0
5Ju WenjunWGMCHN25186.01.031.252.5
6Ruan LufeiWGMCHN24836.00.029.252.0
7Zhao XueGMCHN25565.50.029.002.5
8Danielian ElinaGMARM24805.00.527.503.0
9Mkrtchian LilitIMARM24505.00.525.252.0
10Kovalevskaya EkaterinaIMRUS24174.50.024.503.0
11Munguntuul BatkhuyagIMMGL24474.00.024.003.0
12Khurtsidze NinoIMGEO24563.50.017.501.0
12 players

Personal favorites Lahno and Koneru ended up in 3rd and 4th, respectively -- a very good event for Lahno and maybe not so good for Koneru, but she fought back into the top 4 and I give her credit for that. 

There are photographs and interviews galore at the official website, round-by round results and games. 

You can see from the FIDE Women's Grand Prix standings (not including today's results) - and Hou's winning 4 outright - she's the cream of the crop and today's victory cements her position at the top:

FIDE Women Grand Prix standings
PlayerTitleROSSHENALKAZJERMARBest 3
Hou YifanGM160160 100 420
Anna MuzychukGM100130 145 375
Kateryna LahnoGM130 8050 260
Zhao XueGM 75160 235
Viktorija CmilyteGM 35100100 235
Ju WenjunWGM 100130 230
Tatiana KosintsevaGM100 5560 215
Koneru HumpyGM65 145 210
Nadezhda KosintsevaGM80 5535 170
Elina DanielianGM4550 75 170
Ekaterina KovalevskayaIM2020100 140
Antoaneta StefanovaGM45 5535 135
Alisa GalliamovaIM65*3020 115
Ruan LufeiWGM3075 105
Tan ZhongyiWGM 100 100
Alexandra KosteniukGM10 1075 95
Zhu ChenGM 3555 90
Munguntuul BatkhuyagIM 6020 80
Betul Cemre YildizWGM 10 10 20
Control 85085085085000
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