With New Imaging System, Archeologist Can Peer Inside Caddo Artifact

George Sabo, director of the Arkansas Archeological Survey, discusses features of a 500-year-old Caddo “tripod bottle.”

Many years ago, Sam Dellinger, former zoology professor and long-time curator of the University of Arkansas Museum, obtained an impressive, 500-year-old Caddo artifact. The museum held on to the piece, a “tripod bottle,” which archeologists have studied since it was obtained.

Now, suddenly, they can observe the bottle like never before.

George Sabo, professor of anthropology and director of the Arkansas Archeological Survey, recently viewed the artifact with the university’s new MicroCT imaging system, which lets researchers observe an object without hurting it or disassembling it.

To learn about this powerful new imaging technology and see how it benefits Sabo’s research, visit Research Frontiers.

Claire Terhune and George Sabo

This surface rendering of the Caddo tripod bottle is shown with the top of the bottle digitally peeled away so that the internal portions of the bottle are visible. In this view, one can see the construction techniques used to attach the “feet” of the tripod to its large central bottle. In some areas, the clay has been smoothed or folded by the artist. The flat oblong object on the right side of the image is a museum label that was placed inside the vessel.

This story originally appeared in the University of Arkansas’ Newswire publication. Please visit news.uark.edu for more stories like this.