The technology of mesopotamian ceramic glazes

Colored glazes were used to decorate ceramics in Mesopotamia for about 3500 years. The earliest glazes were produced using an alkaline-based flux. Beginning in the eighth century A.D., glazes containing a lead-based flux appear. Through the use of various analytical techniques, the technological history of ceramic glazes in Mesopotamia and the appearance of lead-based ceramic glazes can be reconstructed.