Reading the urns: Solar-powered pottery in Irish prehistory.

The article focuses on the presence and interpretation of solar symbolism in decorated pottery from Irish prehistory, spanning the Neolithic to the Early Bronze Age. It argues that motifs such as circles, crescents, zigzags, and whirling patterns on various vessel types—including Bowls, Vases, Miniature Vessels, and Encrusted Urns—form integrated ideograms representing solar imagery rather than mere decoration. These solar motifs are linked to broader cultural beliefs about life, death, and cosmology, reflecting a shared symbolic language across regions and periods. Comparative examples from Britain, Iberia, and Denmark, including the Neolithic "sunstones" from Bornholm, support the interpretation of pottery as a medium for expressing solar power and its significance in prehistoric societies. The article encourages further exploration of these motifs within their ideological contexts to better understand their cultural meanings.