LA ALTERACIóN POSDEPOSICIONAL DEL MATERIAL CERáMICO. AGENTES, PROCESOS Y CONSECUENCIAS PARA SU PRESERVACIóN E INTERPRETACIóN ARQUEOLóGICA

The purpose of this paper is to analyze the main processes of posdepositional alteration in archaeological ceramics, considered as a result of the action of a set of agents, both intrinsic -which are part of the object- and extrinsic -that define the burial context-, or an interaction between them. In this way, the main agents and the mechanisms by which they affect the pottery will be examined, as well as different consequences that these alterations may involve not only in preserving the physical integrity of materials but also on archaeological interpretation, as a wide variety of analysis -technological, compositional, decorative, luminescence-dating, etc.- may be affected.