A piece of pottery, despite its age and origin from a past civilization, is not classified as a fossil. This distinction stems from the precise scientific definitions used to categorize ancient remains. The confusion often arises because both pottery and fossils are “ancient” objects discovered by digging in the earth, but the terms refer to entirely different classes of preserved material. Understanding the difference requires defining what constitutes a fossil and what is considered an artifact of human manufacture.
The Scientific Definition of a Fossil
A fossil is defined as the preserved remains, impression, or trace of a once-living biological organism from a past geological age. The defining characteristic is that the object must originate from a plant, animal, microbe, or other form of life, not from human activity. To be officially classified as a fossil, it generally needs to be older than 10,000 years, placing it within the deep timescale of geological history.
The preservation of organic material into a fossil involves specific and lengthy geological processes. One common process is permineralization, where mineral-rich groundwater seeps into the porous spaces of remains, such as bone or wood, and precipitates minerals like silica or calcite. This process essentially turns the organic structure into stone, creating a dense, rock-like replica that preserves the original structure. Other forms of preservation include casts and molds, where the original material dissolves but leaves an impression in the sediment that later hardens.
Fossilization requires specific environmental conditions, such as rapid burial in sediment and a lack of oxygen, which prevents decomposition. These conditions must be maintained over immense periods for the transformation to occur. The resulting fossil, whether a body part, an imprint, or a trace like a footprint, represents a record of Earth’s biological history, divorced entirely from cultural manufacture.
Pottery as an Archaeological Artifact
A piece of pottery, or ceramic ware, falls into the scientific category of an “artifact,” not a fossil. Artifacts are objects deliberately shaped or created by human activity, representing the material remains of past human life. Pottery is a product of human ingenuity, formed by shaping clay and other raw materials and then firing them at high temperatures, typically between 600–1600 °C.
The firing process makes the object durable, inducing permanent chemical and physical changes to the clay material. The ceramic material’s ability to survive for millennia is a result of its manufactured, heat-altered composition, which resists decay. Archaeologists study these fragments, often called sherds, to gain insights into ancient technological advancements, cultural practices, and daily life. Pottery remains are often the most abundant type of artifact at a site because they do not decay, making them a primary source for understanding human history.
Distinguishing Paleontology from Archaeology
The difference between pottery and a fossil is reflected in the separation of the two disciplines that study them. Paleontology is the study of the history of life on Earth based upon fossils, concerning itself with non-human ancient life like dinosaurs, ancient plants, and microorganisms. Paleontologists use fossils to reconstruct ancient ecosystems, evolutionary events, and the planet’s deep past.
In contrast, archaeology is the study of past human life and cultures through their material remains, which are the artifacts they created. While both fields excavate ancient objects, their focus is distinct: one studies biological life (paleontology), and the other studies human culture (archaeology). Pottery, being a human-made object, is classified and studied by archaeologists.