Lachish (Tell ed-Duweir) is a large multi-period tell site located about 40km (25 miles) south-west of Jerusalem in foothills west of the Judean Mountains (Figure 1a and map). It is situated in an area dominated by geologically recent deposits of Eocene or later date (see for example Greitzer 1960). Lithologically, the solid geology is predominantly calcareous with chalks and marly limestones (see Tufnell 1953, 36-37, for a section through such strata). Major excavations at the site were first carried out between 1932 and 1938 by the Wellcome-Marston Archaeological Research Expedition to the Near East, a British team led by J.L. Starkey (Tufnell 1940; 1953; 1958). More recently, further extensive archaeological work has been conducted by Prof. David Ussishkin of Tel Aviv University (see for example Ussishkin 1993 and references therein; 1996; in press). During the 1937/8 season, a large cave (locus 4034; Figure 1b) was discovered and identified as the site of a potter's workshop dating to the end of the Late Bronze Age (1200-1150 BC). In addition to large quantities of unfired sherds, the cave also contained raw clay, pigments, tools, stone pivots, figurines and about 40 complete fired vessels (Figure 2). Although the use of the cave had clearly changed over time and the raw materials and tools were not found in their original positions, the excavations provided good evidence that several stages in the manufacture of ceramic artefacts had taken place there. A brief account of the workshop appeared in Lachish IV (Tufnell 1958, 291-93, pls 8:1-6, 49:2-15, 92) but no comprehensive scientific study was undertaken at the time. In 1980 a good selection of material from Cave 4034 came to the British Museum from the Institute of Archaeology, University of London, and this has provided us with the opportunity to carry out the present study.
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