noun
preceramic period
Archaeological term for the period before pottery was used in Japan; synonymous with 先土器時代. Rare in everyday language.
See also: 先土器時代
無土器時代の遺跡からは石器が多く出土する。
Many stone tools are excavated from sites of the preceramic period.
Synonym; 先土器時代 is more common in modern archaeological writing.
Compound of 無 (mu, 'without'), 土器 (doki, 'earthenware'), and 時代 (jidai, 'period'). The term is a direct description of the archaeological period characterized by the absence of pottery.