Les doigts dans la terre.L’exploitation des dactylotypes de coroplathes : questions, exemples et perspectives

Abstract

State-of-the-art of the study of dactylotypes on ceramic objects and in particular on figurative terracotta. Quite rare, these documents have certain particularities due to their medium. Their examination gives obvious results concerning the gestures of the craftsmen and even, sometimes, the organisation of work in certain workshops. On the other hand, the identification of individuals, or more precisely the attribution of different objects to the same individual on the basis of dactylotypes, remains quite exceptional. As for the identification of the age and sex of the craftsmen, most often on the basis of the width of the papillary ridges and/or their density, this is a promising but still uncertain approach, awaiting the consolidation of the methodologies.

Keywords

• Dactylotype
• Fingerprint
• Papillary Ridge
• Modelling
• Moulding
• Craftsmen’s Gestures