Up to this point, I have discussed the types of data with which we can assess ceramic production and use and the two principal data sets available from the excavations at Zhongba – complete vessels and sherds from the W.S. sample areas. Here I use these data to examine the various parameters that compose the organization of ceramic production and use at Zhongba.

identifying specialization

First we must consider whether the ceramic remains from DT0202 indicate specialized production of ceramics, on the one hand, and the use of ceramics in specialized production (of salt), on the other. To satisfy the broadest definition of specialization,we should minimally demonstrate that the product was being produced for consumption beyond a household. To do so, we should show that any single episode of manufacture created more of the product than could be used by an individual kin group. To further demonstrate that the production and use of the ceramics at Zhongba indicate specialized production involving a division of labor associated with social complexity (a perspective I have termed producer specialization; see Flad and Hruby 2007), we must show that time was invested in the production in lieu of other activity. To demonstrate this requires either that the time investment was substantial and therefore precluded other activities or that some necessary resources were unavailable locally and were acquired by trading the locally overproduced item.