International Conference Pisa

Conference Attendance

The conference will be held ONLY IN PERSON. If you wish to attend the conference, please register here.

Final Programme

List of speakers

• Gianluca Miniaci (Università di Pisa)

• Massimo Vidale (Università di Padova)

• Vanessa Forte (Sapienza Università di Roma)

• Georgia Long (Università di Pisa)

• Beatriz Noria-Serrano (Università di Pisa)

• Hannah Page (Università di Padova)

• Richard Lesure (University of California, Los Angeles)

• Giulia D'Ercole & Julia Budka (Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München)

• Athena Van der Perre & Dennis Braekmans (KU Leuven & Universiteit Leiden)

• Gabriele Gattiglia & Claudia Sciuto (Università di Pisa)

• Lara Maritan (Università di Padova)

• Aysel Arslan (Netherlands Institute in Turkey)

• Leonie Hoff (University of Oxford, School of Archaeology)

• Anna Rauba-Bukowska & Maciej Dębiec (Polish Academy of Sciences & University of Rzeszów)

• Filippo Mi & Jessica Izak (University of Strasbourg & DAI Berlin)

• Argyris Fassoulas (Université Paris Nanterre)

• Isabelle Vella Gregory (University College London)

• Marwa Soliman (Mansoura University)

• Victoria Jensen (University of California, Berkeley)

• Hossam Hegazy (The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities)

• Enrica Inversi (Freie Universität Berlin & British Museum London)

  
  

Abstracts

All the abstracts of the conference can be accessed here.

Conference Theme

Historically neglected, the study of ancient clay figurines has  developed considerably in recent years, in part through the application  of methodologies used in ceramic studies. Researchers have employed a  wide variety of approaches to tackle questions regarding  the production methods, use, and social and economic systems connected  to clay objects. While analysis on figurines has most often focused on  their iconography and basic use, there is a growing acknowledgement that  they had complex meanings with their own  agency that require diverse interpretations.

From their creation to their final deposition, clay objects encapsulate various levels of identity (e.g. the identity of artefact itself, the identity of the maker, socio-cultural identity) and performance (e.g. the process of creation/production, their  employment in daily life activities, in rituals, in social events or  human interactions). On a surface level, we can examine what clay  objects represent and provide a determination of their  use. Their plastic nature, typological variety, and the diversity of  their find contexts, however, allow us to also explore the hidden  identities and traces of action that are embedded within the clay.  Analysis of fingerprints and technological traces, for  example, have made significant steps towards profiling the producers of  clay figurines, their craft knowledge and skill, and the cognitive  processes behind their creations. By examining manufacturing techniques  we can explore the performative aspects of production,  such as the gestures used in the forming and decoration of clay  artefacts, which are associated with distinct groups and knowledge  transmission. Ceramic petrography and geochemical analyses inform us  about the selection and manipulation of raw materials, and,  in turn, how the material properties may have influenced the choices of  the producers, and therefore the final outcome of the object.  Typological differences and diversity of archaeological contexts further  invite us to reflect on the evolving nature of the  processes of identification and to (re)consider the degree of  interaction between the worlds of the ‘producer’, ‘user’ and ‘owner’.

Conference Details

The conference will be split into two sessions, each with a round of  discussion afterwards to facilitate collaboration and the generation of  ideas in that field of study. A final round-table will take place at the  end of the conference to help build and develop  strategies that all the participants will be able to use in their  ongoing and future research.

Session 1. Identity and performance in clay artefacts through the lens of archaeometry

Note: This session includes studies on clay objects (not only figurines) from various ancient societies (Ancient Nile Valley, Eastern Mediterranean and Western Asia)

•          Study of raw materials (ceramic petrography and geochemical analyses: pXRF, SEM-EDS, NAA...), residue analysis

•         Analysis of manufacturing techniques and operational chains (chaînes opératoires)

•         Use-wear and break patterns

  
  

Session 2. Identity and performance in clay artefacts through the lens of archaeology

Note: this session focuses more specifically on clay figurines from the Nile Valley

•          Analysis of archaeological contexts (funerary, cultic, domestic, production) and their implications for exploring identity and performance (e.g. identifying the owners, users and social contexts of clay figurines; examining the acts of burial, deposition or discard)

•         Typological classification of clay figurines (anthropomorphic and zoomorphic), studies of human/animal embodiment and abstraction processes (e.g. how a being materialises into a recognisable figure to its audience)

•         Analysis of the symbolism of the different forms of figurines and the rituality of its performance at different stages of its life (creation, (re)use, and disposal).

Deadlines and dates:

Abstract submission: 30 September

Notification of acceptance: 20 October

Article submission for proceedings: October 2025

Scientific committee:

Gianluca Miniaci, Massimo Vidale, Vanessa Forte, Beatriz Noria-Serrano, Georgia Long, Hannah Page

Organising committee:

Gianluca Miniaci, Beatriz Noria-Serrano, Georgia Long, Hannah Page, Giuseppe Fachetti, Simone Galuccio, Angela Maria Crudele, Chiara Libardoni, Martina Berluti

Contacts and Further Information:

For further information about the conference, please email: pipe.project.prin@gmail.com