One Day
...tellectuals often had the most up to date form, and the wealthy tobacco farmers kept up with the most recent stylistic changes (Small Things, 69). Even with this in mind the English were ahead of the Americans by about fifty years in form. The modifications that took place in form began with a winged skull (death’s head), then changed to a winged cherub, and ended with an urn-and-willow style. Variations occurred intermittently with specific engravers and were reliant upon the time it took for the process of change to occur; overall about 150 years transpired. Winged skulls were indicative of the Puritan culture that would have believed a cherub to be a form of idolatry (Small Things, 71). The engravings placed an emphasis on the brevity of life and the fact that death comes to everyone. Winged cherubs were the next step in the form process and signified that only a portion of the dead remained with these engravings and life after death was stressed. With the willow-and-urn form the rounded shoulders of the gravestone were switched to square shoulders and showed the stone as a commemoration or a marking only. This permitted the stone to be a place of memory for the dead even without the body. The urn-and-willow style reflected a brake from religious tradition and the secularism of America with the Age of Reason where logic was used to determine aesthetics (Small Things, 72). Ceramics followed a similar pattern in the early colonial era. Studying ceramics of early New England culture is also a reliable method in choosing artifacts with a specific space, time, and form. Ceramics include earthenware, such as creamware and pearlware, stoneware, and porcelain (Flowerdew Hundred, 177). Much is known about the dating of these materials because of the American trade with England and the known dates of the English materials through historical record. Another method of relative dating includes the battleship shaped curves the ceramics made. The popularity of the item would start out small, increase by multiples, and then pan out again (Invitation, 27). Ceramics may brake, but do not decay easily and hold color and form. They are generally universal in the specific culture and have a “high degree of chronological precision (Small Things, 46).” Food ways, according to Jay Anderson, are everything included in the preparation of food for the culture. Variations occur in need, availability, function, and social status. Most ceramics were only used in the production of milk and milk products because cheese was a mainstay over meat. Cups were introduced first into the normalcy of meals. Plates were only displayed to show the wealth of the owner and probably were not popular until the later part of the seventeenth century. This is because ceramics had to be imported from England and were costly (Small Things, 50). Plates began with very few decorations in America following the Puritan tradition and the Reformation (Small Things, 53). Then there is a departure away from sharing of trenches to a one person one plate approach. This probably came along with the mass production of plates in England and increased trade with America. Also it reflects the beginning of logical thinking, order, and increased awareness of the individual in the Enlightenment. The latest excavations of the colonial period show several sets of plates per household and even expensive tea sets. These were found in dumping sites which must have meant they had expendable cash (Flowerdew Hundred, 25). Having porcelain, which was what the tea sets were made out of, was not only an indication of the wealth of the person but also a way of showing Americans developing their own unique culture and class system. There is no written record of forks until 1721 and then only in the house of a very rich man. This may also be an explanation of why Americans hold their forks “upside down” compared to European cultures. Until the eighteenth century they were using spoons for the same purpose as we use a fork today (Small Things, 123). Houses are another quintessential artifact in exploring the past of every civilization with space, time, and form in mind. Shelter was a primordial need evident before civilization or language was relevant. Everything happens in the house. “People are conceived, are born, and die in houses (Small Things, 92).” Much of archeology focuses on this structure for this main reason. Reading the dirt for clues about time and space for houses is one of the most frustrating processes for archeologists to perform. Many times they resort to the written record (Flowerdew Hundred, 16). Houses in colonial America started out with English influence in the shape of boxes. Americans were most comfortable in a square with most of the measurements being multiples of four, ideally sixteen feet on a side (Fennell). Although the English influence is evident in this early housing, most American homes were made of wood which would have been scarce and costly in England. Contrary to popular belief, most of the houses were not log cabins but timber framed (Small Things, 107). Many Americans had never seen a log house. There were very few rooms, generally two, three at most and not a lot of privacy. Afterward came a blend of Georgian style with that of the s...