Clay pots first started showing up in the Southeast around 2500 BC. Clay pots did not show up appreciably in the North Carolina Piedmont until about 1500 BC. The first clay pots were tempered with steatite, then with vegetable matter, and finally with sand. The pots often have patterns on them. These patterns are used by archaeologists along with the manufacturing technique to determine when and by whom they were made. (2, Chapt. 9)
	The patterns include cob marked, cord marked, fabric marked, paddle marked, incised, net impressed, etc. I know next to nothing about pottery, and the pictures never seem to show the patterns very well. I will have to try scanning them.	click image for large view

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