Household Textile Production in Ancient Anatolia in the Light of Archaeological Evidence

Abstract

Abstract

This work was aimed to examine household textile production in Anatolia from the Neolithic Age to the Late Roman Period in the light of archaeological evidence. In this article, the locations of textile production places within houses, their spatial organization, social and economic dimensions are treated. The story of mankind’s textile production begins with the production of textile products obtained from plant fibers in the Paleolithic period, and changed shape with the transition to settled life in the Neolithic Age and the domestication of sheep, which became an important branch of craft within homes. This branch of craft, which was a means of gaining status in the Chalcolithic Age, was organized and became an industrial branch with the increasing population and the resulting trade in the settlements in the Early Bronze Age. Some of settlements from different periods in Anatolia, such as Kendale Hecala, Limantepe, Boyalı Höyük, Bağlararası, Sirkeli Höyük, Zincirli Höyük, Hamaç Höyük, Yassıhöyük, Ovaören and Zerzevan Castle, that yielded finds supporting domestic production, are presented. Findings from these areas, such as spindle whorls, loom weights, awls, spindle and needles, which provide evidence of textile production, prove that textile production was carried out in a planned manner inside homes in every period. This branch of production, which was controlled by women within the household, was thought to have been produced for more commercial purposes than for household needs, based on the dense textile tools in settlements such as Boyalı Höyük and Zincirli Höyük, and therefore men may have also played a role in the production process in these settlements. Weaving, an important part of the household economy, has become a form of production that indicates women's social position and creates social capital. Although this form of production evolved over time into industrial activity, it always continued to exist alongside a more professional, large-scale production form. Evidence from archaeological studies has offered that household textile production was carried out in a planned and organized manner, providing an important look into the domestic economy and culture of textile production in Anatolia.